Tracey Martin is a Sustainable Lifestyle Leader and author and has been a certified Transformational Life Coach as well as health, life and wellness advisor for more than 25 years. Tracey’s mission is simple, to protect our natural resources, planet, and our most precious resource: humankind. She is sharing her knowledge with us in this monthly column and this month Tracey talks about how plastic is taking over our world.
Plastic is taking over our world – State of Our Planet
Think about that statement for a moment. What does this really mean? If you wanted to reduce plastic, is it even humanly possible to eliminate it all together?
Our food comes in plastic, our home products, our beauty products and our clothing. Parts of our cars are made from it. Our homes are filled with it. Pretty much everything that we purchase today comes in plastic. Unless you are intentionally seeking out companies that do not use plastic, it is probably surrounding you all the time.
Here are 6 statistics that are staggering:
—By 2050 there will be more plastic in the ocean than marine life.
—Over 50 million plastic straws are used in just the US daily.
—Most plastic can take between 250 to 500 years to decompose.
—If you are wearing polyester, you are wearing plastic derived from crude oil.
—If you use plastic containers, they release chemicals called BPA (Bisphenol A) and can leach into your food and water and be found in your bloodstream. (This component is a known carcinogen)
—Only about 10% of plastic is recycled.
Recycling your plastic isn’t going to cut it. It is going to take intentionally changing daily habits to really creative change.
Here are 3 tips for quickly cutting plastic out of your daily routine:
1. Ditch the plastic water bottle and buy a reusable one. One of my favorites is the Hydroflask.
2. Say NO to straws completely. If you need one, bring your own. U-konserve is a company that can take care of any container, straw or lunch carrier you may need. U-konserve was founded by two amazing women and located right here in Scottsdale. Double sustainable purchase; plastic saving products and supporting local!
3. When it comes to your clothing, buy natural fibers. Cotton, linen, wool and cashmere. There are even some new ones on the block to look out for. Tencel made from wood pulp and Lenzing made from the birchwood tree to name.
As a consumer we must get in the habit of reading labels and become more educated and informed.
Sustainably Yours,
Tracey xo
If you have comments or questions you would like to see addressed in this column, please send them to info@fabulousarizona.com.
For a private one on one with Tracey text 602.568.4124.