Plastic has changed our lives in many ways-but its excessive consumption in our "disposable" society has plagued us. Disposable plastics have created mountains of garbage, polluted our rivers and oceans, and killed many residents. Moreover, microplastics are entering the food chain, threatening human health. Another serious problem is that as a by-product of petroleum, the production and disposal of plastics emit methane and other greenhouse gases-which is the chief culprit of global warming. The cumulative result is that we urgently need to deal with our wasteful plastic consumption. Our previous practice of transporting plastic waste to Asia-out of sight and out of mind-has now been banned by the Basel Treaty; no country can send waste to any other country.
We can use the "circular economy" method to design a system of waste and pollution, which is the trend of the future. The product aims to keep all available material molecules in circulation by remaking all molecules of available materials into new products, finding new uses and excluding them from landfills. If single-use plastic products are designed to be recyclable rather than discarded, they can become a resource for other products.
Governor Newsom has just signed a landmark five bills to support California's circular economy, eliminate green washing and get rid of single-use plastics. These bills cover the "label truth": they measure how much plastic is actually recycled, allow glass bottles to be reused more easily, and require products labeled as compostable to actually decompose and not leave harmful chemicals in California's compost stream Material, and reduce plastic food-only provide it to takeaway customers who request it, thereby reducing waste. These measures will take effect in January 2022.
The CALRecycle recycling committee is studying all aspects of the recycling crisis to develop solutions. The Extended Producer Responsibility Act has been passed at the state and federal levels, requiring producers to find new and alternative plastic materials, especially single-use plastics, such as the 1 million plastic bottles of water sold every minute on our planet-we Use the purchased bottle once and throw it away.
At the same time, Truckee Town staff is establishing a working group to formulate regulations and implementation plans to reduce disposable food utensils (for example, plastic utensils, cups, straws). This is in response to requests from community members, student groups and town councils to formulate policies to reduce the number of such items handled by Truckee. Applications to join the working group will be accepted by November 5th and the application form is available on the Truckee Town homepage of Townoftruckee.com
We consumers have a role in this, and it is not difficult. It just requires each of us to think about our consumption in advance-how we choose to spend money and what we choose to consume. Usually, we can say "no" to single-use plastics and look for alternatives. And, if we like the product in the non-recyclable #5 container (think yogurt), we can write to the manufacturer to request a replacement. Finding alternative ways to stop using single-use plastics can be a home research project.
There is no need to throw away the plastic bags; they can be stored in Safeway's designated recycling bins. Plastic bottles with the CRV logo and refund value can be taken to the Eastern Sierra landfill near Cabin Creek Road for exchange. Seventh Generation and TruEarth provide products with almost no plastic packaging. Moreover, new alternative packaging products are coming soon, such as the fully recyclable paper bottles that Coca-Cola is trying out. We can also search online and determine other ideas about what we can do.
Taking responsibility for all of us-you, me and the producers of these plastics-is the key to changing this pollution dilemma. Let us meet the challenge, join the rapidly developing citizen-led movement, and do our part to reduce the consumption of single-use plastics. By taking this measure, we will help clean up our oceans and waterways and keep microplastics away from our food. Reducing the use of plastic can also help slow global warming, which can reduce the threat of wildfires we face in the Lake Tahoe region. If we do our part and give our earth time and space to renew ourselves, it will. Our children and grandchildren will thank us!
Shirley Freriks lives in Grass Valley and is the leader of waste products! Nevada County Climate Action Subcommittee. Sue and John Sorenson are climate activists for the Citizen Climate Hall and Climate Action for Elders, living in Truckee
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