"Every bit of plastic ever made still exists somewhere."
Sounds terrifying, doesn't it? I find it ironic that one of the most long-lasting products like plastic is often considered as a single-use and disposable material. When we finish drinking that last drop of water, we throw the bottle away, almost naturally, and we think that that’s the end of our relationship with the plastic bottle of water. But it’s not.
Just because the plastic bottle, plastic utensil, plastic bag, and other plastic products are in the trash does not mean that they no longer affect you. They are actually being accumulated and hidden away in oceans and landfills, out of our sight but not completely gone from our lives. Harmful chemicals from plastic in landfills can spread into the ground and contaminate groundwater while those in the ocean are consumed by marine species that we eat. So where do plastics go after we throw them away? Well, they end up in wild animals’ stomachs, in our cups of water, and on our plates. So yes, every single one of us is constantly exposed to chemicals from plastic be it through air, water, food, or consumer products. In fact, high levels of harmful chemicals such as BPA and PBDEs have been detected in many people’s body.
Sadly, plastic trash from decades ago still remain and there is no effective way that we can eliminate them from our environment. In other words, there’s nothing we can do about it. The only way we can improve the situation now, if you ask me, is to not make the problem worse. Use glass containers instead of plastic cups, get a tote bag, tell the cashier lady that you don’t need a plastic bag for your pack of gum- these are simple things we can do without putting in much effort at all. It may be a tad bit more inconvenient and you might only reduce plastic consumption by a small percentage, but imagine doing it everyday. Imagine one billion people doing that everyday. We need to stop being lazy and realize that little actions matter. We need to understand that no one, not even governments, can solve this issue unless we do.
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