Plastics

Over the last century, plastic has become part of everyday life. The problem with plastic is that most of it isn’t biodegradable, it doesn’t naturally breakdown like paper or food. Our plastic waste has invaded the deepest oceans and the highest mountains. Nobody knows how long it will take to disappear, but it will be hundreds of years, at least.

Plastics are mostly made from fossil fuels, such as oil, gas and even coal. The extraction of these planet-warming fuels will continue, so long as we demand plastic in unforgivable quantities.

But plastic is not always the enemy. It has many great purposes such as in car production for bumpers, interior dashes and seating. Or for household items such as TVs, kettles, chopping boards and even your food waste recycling bin! These items have a significant shelf life though and will (or at least should) be used for many years.

plastic bottles
Let’s reduce single-use plastics and choose reusable alternatives

From its first use in mass-production in the early 20th century, it’s now everywhere, from our food packaging to our clothes. It’s versatile and cheap. This has made it so popular in the last 50 years that its production has sky-rocketed.

Around 335 million tonnes of plastic is produced every year. We take it for granted, but plastic is a finite resource. One day, it really will run out.

Victorian landfill waste
What did we do before plastic?

The main thing to remember is that if we all do our bit to reduce our personal plastic footprint, we’ll be a huge step closer in helping to solve the problem with plastic. Here’s a few tips to help make some simple changes that you can make to help:

–  Buy from ‘packaging-free’ food shops – This is a fantastic way to lighten your carbon footprint and support local independent businesses. Take your jars and fill up on essential dry foods like flour, oats or sugar. Have a search online for your nearest ‘Packaging Free’ shop in Chelmsford: You may be surprised at how many there are now.
–  Buy a reusable coffee cup and/or water bottle – Try to keep it with you when you’re out and about in daily life. Every plastic bottle adds up – and you can get discounts in many coffee shops for using your own cup. You could also consider reusable cutlery and metal straws.

glass reusable jars
I can’t save the planet on my own!

If you don’t have the money or the ability to make the changes we talk about on this page, please don’t worry, the weight of the world is not on your shoulders. It’s important to point out that with all environmentally friendly choices that your best is always enough. This is not to say that we don’t all have a responsibility to make changes, but if your financial situation is your limiting factor then it’s okay that waste reduction and recycling is not your priority.

Love Your Chelmsford
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Love Your Chelmsford
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.