A PLASTIC OCEAN: SHOWCASING THE DETRIMENTAL IMPACTS OF OUR WASTE

It’s everywhere, embedded into our everyday lives and I doubt you can go 10 minutes without touching it. Plastic.  It’s the basic structure to everything we use, from the keyboard you’re scrolling on to the pen you’re using, or the shopping bag in your hand.   It is the material used to package the majority of the food we eat and the drinks we consume.  But once we dispose of it, where does it go?

Even when correctly disposed of, plastic waste such as single-use shopping bags, are often blown out of bins and landfill sites and into the natural environment.  This issue, combined with the littering of materials onto our streets, sees much of the plastic we throw away ending up in storm drains and eventually being washed out into the ocean.

“Over 80% of ocean plastic leaks from land-based sources. Even if you don’t live near the ocean, chances are, your plastic garbage has found its way to the sea.”

Since starting my journey with Project 3 P, I definitely have improved when it comes to my plastic use. However, in the past, I was extremely guilty of  forgetting my reusable bag, and even though I still am, my habits have changed when it comes to my post-shop decisions.  It used to sit in my car, right in front of me, ready and waiting to be packed with goodies and I still managed to leave it behind.  Then I would get to the check out, get a little frustrated at myself and then used to try fit everything into one plastic bag. Whereas now, if I forget my reusable bag, I leave everything in my trolley and just throw it into the boot of my car - it works, trust me. 

It's crazy to think something so normal, something we don't even think about, can be so detrimental to our environment.  Working in customer service has exposed me to the weird, the wonderful, and of course, the assholes.  The store I work in rarely supplies plastic bags and that doesn't sit well with a lot of people. I've had people go as far as not even buying their items or screaming at me for being sooo inconvenient. Don't you think it's sad it's gotten to that point? When it's been a norm for so long, and it's the end of the world when we can't feed our habit.  I have also noticed people will only ask for a bag if the person in front of them asked for a bag... it's a knock on effect and we need to end it.

The awareness of the impact of plastic waste has exploded and that's not a bad thing, we all have a lot learn, including me.  The documentary A Plastic Ocean is a film that further opened my eyes to the impact of not just plastic bags, but ALL plastics.  I think in order to get a message out there, it has to be relatable and A Plastic Ocean was just that.  It explores the fragile state of the ocean, uncovering the truth about plastic pollution and the harm it poses to marine species as well as the detrimental health effects on human lives.

I watched A Plastic Ocean on Netflix but you can also support the documentary and organisation through their website!