What are the worst plastic products sold in California? Today, four non-profit organizations launched the Plastics BAN (Better Alternatives Now) List, which identifies the most harmful plastic products on the market and gives readily-available alternatives.
The top 15 offenders include food wrappers and containers, plastic bottle caps, and plastic bags. The report supports Proposition 67, which, if passed on Election Day, would ban the use of plastic bags in the state.
The BAN list gives an overview of the toxic threats posed by single-use plastic products. Recommended alternatives include reusable stainless steel cups, mugs and lids, bamboo utensils, and reusable bags.
“Annually, eight million tons of plastic escapes collection systems to end up in the ocean, where it contributes to the 5.25 trillion particles of plastic smog that choke our marine ecosystems,” said Anna Cummins, Co-Founder and Global Strategy Director of 5 Gyres. “Even more worrying is the prediction that there will be more plastic than fish in the sea by 2050 if we don’t solve this problem. Eliminating single-use disposable plastics must be a priority.”
Read the full report and download the PDF here.
Learn more about 5 Gyres, Clean Production Action, Surfrider Foundation, and UPSTREAM.
I would like to add that using Bokashi to compost your kitchen scraps is the best way to avoid using plastic bags and at the same time eliminate smells and create valuable rich compost for your garden that is alive with microorganisms that are need for plants
My husband has started Bokashi buckets for his organic master gardening course. Yes, it is very, very easy to do.
Got plastic shopping bags are bad as well as plastic drinking cups/ straws from fast food resteraunts…yadayadaya what about food wrapped in plastic? Delivery services wrapping goods in plastic like food services??? Or toys and household goods and storage containers made of plastic including car doors and dashboards? Let’s get real here…lol it’s not just grocery shopping bags it’s everything sold at stores made of plastic or wrapped in plastic and then put into plastic to take home
None of it makes sense. It’s laziness and fear and greed all in one lol and people the mass are delirious to it all no one cares. It’s sad and the rich know it which is also very sad because the rich can ultimately be the ones to blame for our environmental problems which exist due to greed because of money and clothing wasting fresh water to produce it…the story goes on and on and no one pays attention again it’s sad and it’s pathetic and such a easy fix but people human beings are lazy and greedy and don’t and won’t spot and rather eat the plastic that is produced. So there you have it. Hope it great but until the rich can come up with a better system that is not mass manufacturing of clothing, cars, oil and food there is no hope. But have fun cleaning that plastic in sure the rich will laugh watching as they continue to make money and continue to produce mass garbage for the world to make that dollar.
If we request packaged drinking water companies to replace plastic bottles with glass bottles, will it help in decreasing plastic pollution?