We tried going 2 weeks without single-use plastics - Part I: Here’s what happened
Plastic has only existed for 0.08% of the time humans have existed: it wasn’t invented until the late 1800's, and the mass production of plastic items didn’t begin until the 1950's.
Yet in this time, we have managed to produce over 8.3 million tons of plastic, 79% of which is discarded and ends up in our oceans and ecosystems (Geyer, Jambeck, and Law 2017). In our own backyard, Lake Ontario is notorious for plastic pollution, being fed by several major urban rivers (Lee-Shanok 2018).
In the past century, plastic has gone from a novelty “eco-friendly” alternative to materials like elephant ivory, to mass-produced single-use products that we are completely dependent on. The problems associated with our obsession with single-use plastics are well known: strangling of birds and sea creatures, leaching of toxins into the environment, and most recently recognized, accumulation of microplastics in every level of the food chain, likely including humans (The Lancet Planetary Health 2017). “We know from sampling in the lake and in the streams that we find this microplastic there and in the fish,” says Dr. Chelsea Rochman, a U of T professor of ecology and evolutionary biology. She stipulates the importance of preventing these plastics from ending up in the ecosystem in the first place (Lee-Shanok 2018).
In order to get a better idea of our complex relationship with single-use plastic in the 21st century, a few of us from UW Campus Compost decided to try going for two weeks without any single-use plastics!
What did we learn about the role of plastics in our lives?
Jane:
“When I first started this challenge, I figured that a lot of single-use plastics would be easy to avoid: plastic water bottles, cutlery, straws, and bags. What I soon learned, however, was that many single-use plastics are so deeply embedded into our lifestyles that they require some serious commitment to avoid. Everything at the grocery store is wrapped or bagged in plastic! Especially things like crinkly cereal bags, or styrofoam and saran-wrap packaging around meat: these all required a special trip to Bulk Barn or the farmer’s market to avoid.
“I’ve also realized during these two weeks that we are extremely fortunate to have the means to do this kind of challenge. Many places in the world, even in Canada, do not have as many options for food as we do in cities like Waterloo or Toronto. I realized that living plastic-free is not possible for everyone, and that I am privileged to have the financial ability to afford nice-quality reusable containers, bulk food, and fresh produce.”
Redmond:
“I’ve spent the last year cutting as much plastic from my life as possible, both single-use and reusable, but what continues to be the most difficult aspect is thinking broader in terms of degrees of separation. Using your own mug at Tim Horton’s is great, until you realize their coffee grounds are pre-packed pre-portioned in non-recyclable foil. Eliminating personal plastic was just the first step in a much longer journey.”
Suzanna:
“The main thing I found was hard about going zero single-use plastic was the time commitment and the changes I needed to make to my normal schedule. To avoid plastic at the grocery store (both the produce bags and vegetables that you can only find in plastic packaging) I went to the farmers market. However, the farmers markets near me were only open during certain times. St. Jacob’s is open 7:00am to 3:30pm Thursdays and Saturdays and the Kitchener farmer’s market is open 9:00am to 2:00pm on Saturdays. This meant I had to find time to take the 20 minute bike ride or 40 minute bus ride to these markets, shop for food, and then bike or bus back. It was usually a 2 hour chunk out of my day — much more time than just walking to the grocery store right next to my apartment.
“This also meant I had to plan out all of my meals for the week and decide when I would be able to cook them. I also had to cook every meal from scratch which took about 45 minutes if I was just making pasta with pan-fried veggies but up to 2 hours if I was going to make something with more steps like stuffed mushrooms (making the stuffing for 40 minutes, then baking them for an hour) or buffalo cauliflower (breading and cooking the cauliflower without sauce for 40 mins, then cooking for another 30 after I put the hot sauce on ). However, cooking in large batches and reheating leftovers was a must.
“Another thing that was tricky was finding good snacks that I could bring to class. I usually bike to class; I put all of my leftovers in glass containers or jars. This is after a warning from the American Academy of Pediatrics or AAP that the plastics commonly used in food containers can leach harmful chemicals after being heated through dishwashing or hot water/in contact with hot food). Plastics 3, 6, and 7 contain phthalates, styrene, and bisphenols which are all known hormone disruptors.
“You can read more about the dangers of these chemicals and the studies done by the AAP by copying and pasting this URL:
“Since it would be hard to bring a heavy glass container in my backpack — especially since I just use tinfoil to cover my containers with and things could spill out I found using a metal bowl with tinfoil on top worked for popcorn. Most other things I can wrap in tinfoil. Fruit was a good snack too. I made some variations on banana bread; banana bread with apples, banana bread with carrots. Peanut butter and a bit of applesauce on these breads were a great snack and they were super simple to make. Nuts were also a great snack as well.
“I found a large part of making this change is not to be too hard on myself. The weekend before co-op job postings closed I was super busy and barely had time to make food; I went to the grocery store and bought some hummus in a plastic container and vegan chicken nuggets in a plastic bag. However, with the exception of a stressful and busy time (like applying to co-ops) I have the time to make my own food from scratch. There are certain times plastic will be the most feasible choice — this past weekend I went back to New York to visit my family and I took a bus there and back. I have a reusable water bottle but the bus ride was going to be nine hours long so I ended up biting the bullet and buying two 1 litre water bottles. I remembered at the last second I needed water for the bus and had to stop on my way to the bus station to grab them. However, I am going to try to cut them in half and use them as plant pots now that I’m done with them. I’ve re-used the plastic hummus container at Bulk Barn to hold cayenne pepper.”
So what can we actually do, in the long term, to reduce our plastic use and our impact on the environment?
Stay tuned for next week’s blog post, where we will offer some tips based on what we’ve learned doing this challenge!
References
American Academy of Pediatrics. (2018). American Academy of Pediatrics Says Some Common Food Additives May Pose Health Risks to Children. https://www.aap.org/en-us/about-the-aap/aap-press-room/Pages/AAP-Says-Some-Common-Food-Additives-May-Pose-Health-Risks-to-Children.aspx
Geyer, R., Jambeck, J. R., & Law, K. L. (2017). Production, use, and fate of all plastics ever made. Science Advances, 3(7), e1700782. doi:10.1126/sciadv.1700782
Lee-Shanok, P. (2018, October 6). Toronto needs your help in its quest to end plastic pollution. Retrieved from CBC News: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/city-looks-for-single-use-plastic-solution-1.4853125
The Lancet Planetary Health. (2017). Microplastics and human health — an urgent problem. The Lancet Planetary Health, 1(7), e254. doi:https://doi.org/10.1016/S2542-5196(17)30121-3
