Plastic Free July is upon us, and there’s plenty we can do to take part and reduce the impact our plastics have on the environment, here are just a few ideas on what to do for the challenge ahead this July.
Plastic caught in seaweed / Isabel Griffiths
Businesses both small and large can have an impact on the environment, so likewise they can do a great deal to reduce the amount of plastics in the environment. If you own a cafe or a restaurant, you could purchase ingredients in bulk to reduce the amount of packaging to be disposed of; buying in smaller amounts would mean that there would be a lot more plastic to throw away for the same amount of ingredients. You could also replace any plastic straws used with paper straws, a trend that has thankfully already become rather popular; in fact plastic straws are proposed to be banned from April 2020 onwards by Michael Gove, which has received overwhelming public support.
As the owner of a business you also have a greater capability to spread awareness of the challenge this month, so be sure to talk to customers and staff about it, as spreading awareness of Plastic Free July is incredibly important, and a great way to do that if you don’t own a business is through organised events, such as a garden party. Food can again be purchased in bulk to avoid excessive waste, or you could cook your own to provide for the event to eliminate waste from food packaging entirely; encouraging others to do so would be a great way to get them started in the challenge. By gathering people together, you can organise further plastic free events to participate in and also provide others with necessary skills to go plastic free if they’re not sure where to start. With all those people gathered from your garden party, if you live in a seaside town a good event to move onto next would be a beach clean up; Plastic Free July is an excellent conservationist movement too, by removing plastic from our beaches and shores we can greatly reduce the impact of waste on marine wildlife.
On a final note on how to do your part this month, although I’m sure it’s drilled into your mind already, please remember to recycle as much as possible, and to separate materials appropriately when doing so to ensure none of it ends up being incinerated or just put into a landfill site. By recycling the plastic we have now, we can reduce the amount used in the future by using the more permanent products made from those recycled materials
