The War against plastic waste

MoneySeeker1

As regards bags, the last time I was "having a scout" in a local Oxfam shop I noticed a few nice fold-up type cloth bags for sale there. They have labels on them saying "I was a sari". About £4 each from memory.

I hadn't spotted that before and think they might be a new thing Oxfam shops are selling.

Saw one in just the colours I've been wanting and bought it. I always carry a fold-up shopping bag around in my handbag anyway in case of need and do find it very difficult to find ones in a colour/colours I like. Most of the ones on sale are not my definition of stylish. So I was very pleased to see one I actually liked for once:D

Fire_Fox

I will not be waging war on plastics on any more Monday evenings.

A suburban street of families and couples only (the voiceover represents all households. Except the quarter ** of single person households and people in very rural areas ....

Hugh poncing around China wringing his hands. Inane Anita pretending to be a radical yet caring journo.

Apparently I should have tap water instead of bottled water (already do), should recycle recyclable plastics (OMG), get milk delivered to the doorstep ( high rise city flat), drive around trying to get my water bottle refilled (no car).

No practical tips, and not even because I am already well informed.

**According to the ONS.

Primrose

Yes I watched the Hugh FW programme. I was appalled at the kitchen and bathroom oneuse plastic containers. I try to be very plastic aware but our bathroom and kitchen is, I,m ashamed to admit, a similar case.

I think Hugh FW deserves a lot of credit for his efforts to publicisr these issues.

We are too affluent a society now and we have too many choices between almost identical brands. Maybe we should offer the population a choice of being able to opt for a national "Utility" brand as they did during the last war where big tanks of single formula laundry fluid, washing up liquid, hair shampoo, bathroom cleaner etc are available in supermarkets for individuals to fill up from their own containers.

I imagine this would drastically reduce the profits of some of our big manufacturers (in whom, we need to remember the contents of our pension funds are invested) so this solution would be a double edged sword, but we at least need to be thinking outside the box for other solutions to what is a very real and urgent problem.

cherie1122

I watched the part about bottled water and cancelled the 24 bottles of water on my Tesco order due for delivery today. My grandsons like to take a bottle of water to school every day and I have them here once a week so I decided not to give them bottled water but a refillable bottle of tap water when they stay with me.

When my Tesco delivery saver runs out on 20th June I'm not renewing it as everything is delivered in plastic. If I go and do the shopping myself I can get unwrapped fruit and veggies.

pelirocco

Primrose wrote: »

I agree that the term capable of being recycled" or words to that effect is very misleading and can mean different things to different people. We have such a plethora of packaging materials these days that it,a understandable how people can get confused.

I think the national milk supply is one area, given the number of plastic bottles used throughout a year , where we could make massive savings if only the Diary industry could get together with the government and invent a system whereby we drew what we needed from massive tanks in supermarkets in the same way that we obtain our petrol from petrol stations. I accept that there would be issues of freshness to overcome but where are the innovative suppliers trying to get ideas like this off the ground? Surely better not to use make plastic milk bottles in the first place than to spend money and energy having to recycle them?

As a country we must have hundreds of citizens bursting with innovative ideas. What we need is a government who can harvest the best of our creative talent in the recycling area and support it to bring new ideas into the mainstream. Rant over!

or you could just use a milk man?

pelirocco

Have you watched Stacey Dooley investigates , are your clothes wrecking the planet ?

pelirocco

Fire_Fox wrote: »

I will not be waging war on plastics on any more Monday evenings.

A suburban street of families and couples only (the voiceover represents all households. Except the quarter ** of single person households and people in very rural areas ....

Hugh poncing around China wringing his hands. Inane Anita pretending to be a radical yet caring journo.

Apparently I should have tap water instead of bottled water (already do), should recycle recyclable plastics (OMG), get milk delivered to the doorstep ( high rise city flat), drive around trying to get my water bottle refilled (no car).

No practical tips, and not even because I am already well informed.

**According to the ONS.

although , getting milk delivered in glass bottles solves the plastic bottle recycling . By not drinking milk we would be doing more to saving the planet , 1000 litres of water to make litre of milk , that really makes no sense at all

chanie

I thought it could be intersting to move this topic onto what we do and don’t do to cut plastic consumption on a daily basis and why.

Today, I had a takeaway coffee on my way to work, but used my reusable cup. I was working from a different office today, so thought I would treat myself and planned ahead, by putting my cup in my bag. My does take up quite a bit of room in my bag, so I can see why people don’t like them.

I popped to the shops at lunchtime and bought a couple of items. I used my fold up bag, so I didn’t need the paper bags the shops were offering.

Lunch was an ITSU noodle pot, which I guess are similar to coffee cups. Have only just thought about this. The guess it’s a bit fat fail!,

OH popped to Lidl with DD, but forgot to take the shopping bags, so he grabbed a box. DD has claimed the box foe now, but it will go in thr recycling when she has finished with it.

cherie1122

Chainie you are not failing. I see the recycling bags lying in the streets round here full of plastic wrapping from stuff that I can't figure out why people buy. You are trying to reduce your use of plastic like a lot of us on here.

My cat will be fed on cans of food from now on instead of those convenient plastic pouches. He might not like it but that's tough. I've yet to find out what cat biscuits I can get for him that aren't packed in foil/plastic bags. He is nearly 17 so I don't want to mess with his feeding too much - I currently feed him on Purina One for sensitive stomachs. Has anybody any ideas?

Vanlady

Cherie1122, you could ask your local vets if they take cat food pouches to be recycled. I also have an elderly and frail cat who is much better for eating specialised food from the vets. I have recently been informed by the vets that I can take the used rinsed out pouches and foil/plastic bags that contained dry food back to them. What they do with them I don't know (I will try to find out next time I go ), but im hoping that at least there's a chance they might not make it to landfill.