How do you reduce your use of plastic?

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gaylejackson2
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Joined: Tue Sep 08, 2015 1:13 pm
Location: Utah

Re: How do you reduce your use of plastic?

Post by gaylejackson2 »

Oh it is hard!! We don't have a regular recycling company that gives us a can -- there are recycling carts around town (they move monthly though which is highly irritating), but they take ONLY newspapers & aluminum cans. :(

So I use cloth grocery bags to bring home groceries -- am thinking I ought to make more too. The plastic shopping bags I do end up with are used to line small trash cans in bathrooms, and laundry room.

I cook 90% of our meals from scratch, and even thought we do create bags of kitchen trash it's less than our neighbors -- neighbor across the street sets out 2 big rolling dumpsters each week for her family of 4, I put out 1 of same size for my family of 7 and rarely is it full unless we've been cleaning out garage or basement.

Friends give me clothes for my children, I save & reuse the bags to donate stuff to thrift store.... or in ds15's case, to stuff his bean bag chair back up to usable proportions.
mainer
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Joined: Wed Sep 05, 2018 5:01 am

Re: How do you reduce your use of plastic?

Post by mainer »

Most of my plastic came from takeout, so I have started cooking at home. I don't eat meat anymore--haven't for the last 8 months, and I eat a lot of veggies.

Plus, as a rule, I only buy something if it is absolutely necessary. This applies to everything: clothes, stationery, food, etc.
mainer
Posts: 12
Joined: Wed Sep 05, 2018 5:01 am

Re: How do you reduce your use of plastic?

Post by mainer »

We can also reduce plastic or paper use by investing in cotton handkerchiefs. That is, instead of using tissues and paper napkins at work, restaurants, bars, or other places, we could just use a nice cotton handkerchief. The challenge is to find one that is snug and fits well and absorbs wetness or moisture efficiently.
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delighted99
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Re: How do you reduce your use of plastic?

Post by delighted99 »

I've thought about whether these will ever make a comeback!
mainer wrote: Thu Sep 06, 2018 4:40 am We can also reduce plastic or paper use by investing in cotton handkerchiefs. That is, instead of using tissues and paper napkins at work, restaurants, bars, or other places, we could just use a nice cotton handkerchief. The challenge is to find one that is snug and fits well and absorbs wetness or moisture efficiently.
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delighted99
Posts: 512
Joined: Sun Sep 06, 2015 10:26 am

Re: How do you reduce your use of plastic?

Post by delighted99 »

Outside of bringing my own bags to the store, I'm not sure what else I do to reduce my use. I just make sure I recycle as much as I can. I've become more aware of the plastic straw issue but I think I have to get used to the idea of buying my fast food drinks and not using one.
gaylejackson2 wrote: Mon Aug 27, 2018 4:25 pm Oh it is hard!! We don't have a regular recycling company that gives us a can -- there are recycling carts around town (they move monthly though which is highly irritating), but they take ONLY newspapers & aluminum cans. :(

So I use cloth grocery bags to bring home groceries -- am thinking I ought to make more too. The plastic shopping bags I do end up with are used to line small trash cans in bathrooms, and laundry room.

I cook 90% of our meals from scratch, and even thought we do create bags of kitchen trash it's less than our neighbors -- neighbor across the street sets out 2 big rolling dumpsters each week for her family of 4, I put out 1 of same size for my family of 7 and rarely is it full unless we've been cleaning out garage or basement.

Friends give me clothes for my children, I save & reuse the bags to donate stuff to thrift store.... or in ds15's case, to stuff his bean bag chair back up to usable proportions.
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LWolfT
Posts: 2709
Joined: Fri Aug 28, 2015 10:46 am

Re: How do you reduce your use of plastic?

Post by LWolfT »

MackerelCat wrote: Sun Aug 26, 2018 4:41 pm
It appalls me how much plastic is used. I buy store brand fig Newtons and a package has 5 pieces of plastic. What ever happened to cookies being packed in cardboard sleeves inside the plastic on the outside?
Mackie, I think some of this is to deter tampering. Also, food products do occasionally get damaged in shipping. If the inner package isn't damaged and the food is intact, the store might mark it down or donate it. (Depends on policy ... I do see certain store brands at salvage stores, too) If the food is exposed ... it has to be thrown out.

Sandi ... some of those air bags can be recycled ... I've seen No 2 and 4. In a couple of cases, I've cut some larger ones apart and used my heat sealer to make a bag -- usually for the little sink-side container I use for scraps. (That does take a lot of time ... I'd rather reuse bread bags for that purpose)
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