Drastic Plastic!

By beccajo

Listening to "The Story" on MPR last week, I heard the host Dick Gordon interview a woman from Chicago named Joanne about her rather unusal (and yet very green) new year's resolution-to not purchase anything made from or wrapped in plastic. Her story is the second one in the show-you can skip over the Nigerian e-mail scammer story if you want.

Although it's still very early in the year, she has come up with some very interesting solutions to the hurdles one faces, shopping in a world full of PLASTIC. She brings her own containers to the grocery store-something that I've seen in co-ops, but I don't know if that would work in 'big box' grocers. She's also shopping more conciously-looking for less packaging, and even is considering making her own toothpaste and dishwasher soap, so she doesn't have to buy them; plastic-bottled and wrapped.

She discusses how recycling is confusing and difficult sometimes in large cities (Chicago has almost no public recycling bins on the street, trust me, I've looked for them), and how it's just better to keep those things out of the waste stream in the first place.

It boggles my mind, now that I've become more aware of it, just how hard it is to find shampoo in non-plastic bottles, or buy a DVD without it being wrapped in plastic.

But I am doing very well on my own new year's resolution along the same vein-and that is to bring my own bags to the store, and re-use the ones I have.

Anyone have any other tips on reducing the amount of plastic you purchase, and put into the recycling and trash?

Tagged:
plastic green environment recycling new year's resolution

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January 14, 2008

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About: I'm obsessed with making the world a prettier place. I make my living as a production...