Individual Action

Plastic plays a large role in our daily lives. We may sometimes take plastic for granted and use it without thinking about the consequences it has on the environment. However, as plastic production continues to increase, the consequences of plastic consumption will worsen and may reach a point where they are irreversible. Therefore, it is imperative to take preventative measures to limit plastic consumption while providing alternatives in a way that work to meet the social, environmental, and economic needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

When addressing global issues such as plastic pollution, it may seem like a hopeless cause when the streets and oceans are littered with plastic, every product is wrapped in layers and layers of plastic, and we live in a society that is focused on consumption. However, individuals can make a difference in a problem like this even though individual action may be regarded as insufficient. It is shown that a top-down structure is often more inefficient than a bottom up approach. When people act on an individual level, it shows the government that people are in need of change, and it can eventually lead to changes on a larger scale.¹

For a lot of people, plastic pollution might not directly impact their lives. Yes, plastic might line the street that they live on or aesthetically ruin an area, but this may not be enough for people to want to make a change. It is often harder to see more severe impacts of plastic pollution such as how plastic is affecting wildlife, contributing to climate change, and entering our bodies as microplastics. Therefore, people may not feel inclined to do anything about the issue. However, one argument that Kathatine Hayhoe makes in Saving Us, is that “everyone already has the values they need to care about the future of our world”.² All you need to do is tap into those values to make them realize that they align with the issue. This can be done by asking a few questions about a person’s identity. The first question is where a person lives. “Home is often central to our identity” and is a place that we feel connected to.² If you live near the water, you already care about plastic pollution because it is directly impacting the environment in which you live. Furthermore, focusing on the health issues from using plastic may resonate with people who care about their health and family. The things that you love doing, where you are from, who you love, and what you believe in can all shed light on ways in which you already value protecting the environment from plastic pollution. Sometimes sharing facts and data can overwhelm people, so “sharing our personal and lived experiences is far more compelling than reeling off distant facts”.²

For individuals that want to do their part to mitigate plastic pollution, there are a variety of options. The first obvious solution is to decrease your use of single use disposable plastics.³ Alternatives such as reusable straws, water bottles, and shopping bags will drastically reduce an individual’s plastic footprint. However, these alternatives may not be affordable to everyone. Using a plastic bag in the grocery store is much cheaper and convenient in the short run than bringing your own reusable bag, as is buying a plastic water bottle instead of a reusable one.  Over time, buying reusable products may save an individual money, so we may need to find ways to encourage people to invest in these alternatives. Along the same line, purchasing items second hand can decrease plastic waste.³ Many products ordered online or purchased in stores are wrapped with plastic. Buying second hand or from thrift stores reduces excess plastic packaging. Another benefit of buying second hand is that these products are often cheaper so this may be a more accessible option to a wider range of consumers. Furthermore, cooking more meals at home, rather than eating out can decrease your plastic footprint.³ Eating out and bringing home leftovers utilizes plastic containers. Similarly, many fast-food restaurants package their food in plastic and provide plastic cutlery to customers. Buying food fresh and locally can also decrease plastic waste because in grocery stores, fruits and vegetables are wrapped in plastic and can even make their way into your body. Once again, this is a more expensive and time-consuming option that many people may not have the resources for.

While directly using less plastic is a great option to decrease the amount of plastic pollution and accumulation in our ecosystems, signing petitions or supporting movements can also encourage change. “Eight states- California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, New York, Oregon and Vermont—have banned single-use plastic bags”, while other states have fees or taxes on plastic bags as shown in Figure 1.⁴ If you live in one of these states, you can support laws, sign petitions, or attend protests that take this one step further to ban other single use plastic such as straws or water bottles. If you live in a state that does not have a ban on single use plastic bags, you can sign petitions to make this a reality in your state. The benefit of petitions is that anyone can sign on and it takes just a few minutes. A drawback is that these do not produce immediate results and may take months or years to make its way to government officials. The same sort of action can be done to pressure large manufacturers to make business changes that rely less on plastic. This can be done through letters, calls, or even through a tweet to make your voice heard. Businesses want to appeal to their consumers so that they make revenue, so if they know that their consumers are dissatisfied, it may encourage them to make changes. 

Another indirect way that an individual can contribute to decreasing plastic pollution is giving donations to organizations that specialize in pollution cleanup.  One example is The Ocean Cleanup. They are a non-profit organization whose goal is to clean up 90% of floating ocean plastic pollution.⁵  They focus on cleaning ocean garbage patches where plastic spans millions of square kilometers. Shown below in Figure 2 is the process that the Ocean Cleanup utilizes to guide plastic into a retention zone using a long U-shaped barrier.⁵ Donations to non-profit organizations such as The Ocean Cleanup helps to make these cleanup efforts possible. To have a more immediate and direct impact on the cleaning of ecosystems, individuals can participate in community and beach cleanups to remove plastic debris from the environment.

Change can start at the personal level. Acting individually, while it may seem insufficient, allows people to tap into their values and what they find important, making them more invested in the problem. Plastic production will likely never completely stop, so therefore we need to find ways to limit our own consumption and limit the amount of plastic that makes its way into our water, sidewalks, and bodies.

References:

1. Niesenbaum, Richard A. Sustainable Solutions: Problem Solving for Current and Future Generations. New York: Oxford University Press, 2020. 

2.Hayhoe, Katharine. Saving Us: A Climate Scientist’s Case for Hope and Healing in a Divided World. S.l.: Signal PR, 2022. 

3.Engler, Sarah. “10 Ways to Reduce Plastic Pollution.” NRDC, January 5, 2016. https://www.nrdc.org/stories/10-ways-reduce-plastic-pollution. 

4.Schultz, Jennifer. “State Plastic Bag Legislation.” NCSL, February 8, 2021. https://www.ncsl.org/research/environment-and-natural-resources/plastic-bag-legislation.aspx#bans. 

5. The Ocean Cleanup. Accessed March 21, 2022. https://theoceancleanup.com/.