We live in a plastic world. It’s hard to believe the substance only came on the scene about 150 years ago when Alexander Parkes, an Englishman, mixed collodion, camphor, and ethanol together. He exhibited his invention at the 1862 Great International Exhibit in London. Then in 1907 Leo Baekeland created an entirely synthetic plastic from phenol and formaldahyde and coined it Bakelite. Its chemical name is harder to pronounce: polyoxybenzylmethylenglycolanhydride.
Imagine how novel this cheap, light, colorful material was to people accustomed to glass, clay, and cast iron, and it’s easy to appreciate the zeal for plastic in the last century. Think of sixties housewives furnishing their homes with fiberglass tables and chairs, donning polyester dresses, and hosting Tupperware parties on the weekends. Plastic wasn’t just for adornment either. It brought real progress – film, vinyl records, cassette tapes, compact discs, computers, artificial heart valves, prosthetic body parts, contact lenses, and more.
Recently, however, the fervor for plastic has given way to anxiety. Why?
Health concerns.
People began questioning what’s in the long chains of unpronounceable chemicals filling our homes. What are our babies sucking on when we hand them a pacifier, bottle, or teething ring?
Bisphenol A, a chemical used in polycarbonate plastics – including pipes, dental fillings, water bottles, canned food, and many food wrappers – has come under fire. Bisphenol A is a “xenoestrogen” – a known endocrine disruptor. It disturbs the hormones in our bodies, and numerous animal studies have found effects on fetuses and newborns exposed to it. Nearly everyone in the U.S. is exposed to it, because polycarbonate plastic breaks down over time and leaches BPA into our bodies. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) found detectable levels of BPA in the urine of 93% of people they tested.
In 2007, 38 experts agreed that the average levels of BPA in people are above those known to cause harm to animals. A panel convened by the U.S. National Institutes of Health stated there’s “some concern” about BPA’s effects on fetal and infant brain development.
Manufacturers rushed to take BPA out of water and baby bottles. But can we rest easy? Probably not. In 1999, the European Union banned all pthalates in childrens’ toys. Pthalates are the chemicals used to soften plastic, and they can leach out of the plastic when chewed or sucked and perhaps cause cancer, mutations, and reproductive damage. The U.S. didn’t follow the EU’s lead in banning pthalates until January of this year, so toys manufactured before that may contain them.
Even if we stop eating off or chewing on plastic, the plastic manufacturing process has health implications. When Formosa Plastics Corp. built a factory in southeast Texas, ranchers noticed their steers losing weight; cows miscarrying more frequently; and calves being born with birth defects or stillborn. Texas A & M researchers discovered DNA damage in the cows living near the factory. The cattle downwind had the most damage.
Waste
Every time someone eats a tub of salsa, drinks a Styrofoam cup of coffee, sips on a bottle of Aquafina, or says yes to a plastic bag at the supermarket, a plastic container gets dumped. Plastic recycling rates are dismal. Only about 25% of all plastic bottles, 12% of bottled water containers, and 1 – 3% of plastic bags are recycled. The result? Plastic is littering our roadways, filling our landfills, mucking up our waterways, and killing marine life.
There’s a plastic waste dump site in the Pacific Ocean twice the size of the continental United States. According to a UN Environmental Program estimate, over a million seabirds and more than 100,000 marine mammals die every year from ingesting plastic debris.
A non-renewable resource
Plastic is a petroleum by-product. Its manufacturing diminishes the availability of a finite resource. It also contributes to the environmental damage and myriad social and political troubles resulting from petroleum extraction.
So what can we do?
The author of one anti-plastic blog uses a two-year old toothbrush and doesn’t buy tofu even though she loves it, because she doesn’t want to bring more plastic into her home. You don’t have to go that far. Do what you can, and celebrate what you do. Go easy on yourself if you find it hard to create new habits. It takes time.
Here are 12 easy ways to use less plastic (many of which you’re probably already doing):
- Carry a stainless steel coffee mug or water bottle everywhere.
- Bring reusable bags to the store. Keep some in your car or bike saddle bags so you don’t forget them.
- Don’t take plastic produce bags. Put produce in a reusable bag or wire basket.
- Stock up on jars and use them to store food instead of tupperware. You can also freeze leftovers, breastmilk, or baby food in them. Just leave a little room at the top and thaw slowly.
- Use cloth bags to store dry food, like bread or grains.
- Buy food from the bulk section when possible. Bring glass jars for syrup, olive oil, nut butters, shampoo, etc. Ask the checkout person to weigh your jars before you fill them and write the tare weight on the lid.
- Cook from scratch.
- Make your own. It’s easy to mix up cleaners and toiletries, like deoderant, bath salts, and even shampoo and conditioner.
- Factor packaging into your decision-making. If you can afford to buy the glass jar of tomato sauce instead of the can, it may be worth a little extra cash.
- Buy products in larger quantities to reduce packaging waste. For instance, get the largest size of detergent.
- Don’t buy plastic toys.
- Consider using cloth diapers and/or reusable menstrual products.
Heather says
Im curious to know if there’s an alternative to the plastic sippy cup? I need to use more glass, but it gets complicated with a toddler on hand 😉
newurbanhabitat says
Hi Heather,
Great question! We use a BPA-free plastic sippy cup and a stainless steel one. Stainless steel is probably the safer option.
I came across this blog, which reviews a number of BPA-free sippy cups. Hopefully it will help you find a good alternative:
http://zrecs.blogspot.com/2007/05/sippy-cup-showdown-safer-bpa-free-sippy.html
Good luck!
graceonline says
Thanks for the super tips. I’m using about half of them so far, plus we’ve cut way down on the number of meals we take from restaurants, which is eliminating several plastic takeout containers a week.
newurbanhabitat says
That’s great! We’re doing the same. Cooking at home is such a great way to eat healthier, save money, and reduce packaging waste at the same time.
I just came across “Top 10 Reasons to Cook at Home” on Cynthia Lair’s blog (I love her cookbook Feeding the Whole Family!).
http://www.cookusinterruptus.com/blog/?p=78
Columbine Quillen says
I hate plastic! It disgusts me how things are packaged in this country. And the plastic bags at the grocery store, I literally cannot think about it or I will start going mad. Thanks for your great statistics on how little we recycle this very wasteful product. It’s too bad plastic is so cheap, as that’s what promotes its over abundance in our society.
Lisa Z says
Great tips! I try on all of these things, but it’s good to be reminded to try harder. Plastic is just SO ubiquitous in our culture!
Janet says
Wow i was actually searching for an answer to polymer clay questions.I keep running into these great sites to really pay attention to what i need ot be doing.I try to recycle as much as possible.I love these great reminders.Im gonna be making recycled fabric shopping bags.Add to your favorites ! http://www.ragquiltusa.etsy.com
I will have a collection out by August 7th At great prices and mutiple purchase discount.Custom orders will also be available !
Kika says
I wonder if I can safely store my homemade bread and buns in the freezer in (thicker) cloth bags? Any ideas?
newurbanhabitat says
Great question. I don’t freeze my bread. But I did a little searching. I found two people who wrap bread tightly in aluminum foil for freezing here and here. I didn’t find anybody advising to wrap it in cloth for freezing. Maybe someone else has some tips?