During my trip to an island last weekend, I did a little beach clean up for the first time, inspired by the many individuals who share their #beachcleanup posts and stories. I didn't intend to go on this getaway to pick up trash but it's come to a point where I couldn't walk past trash and ignore it anymore.
It's now become so blatantly obvious when there is trash and then arises the feeling that 'I need to do something about it' even if it's as small as a 15 minute beach clean up.
I decided to go and ask for a bag from one of the staff. They told us that they had no 'small bags' only the 'very big black bin bags for trash'. 'That's exactly what I want.. I want to help do a beach clean up because I noticed some trash piling up on the shore'. To my surprise, the staff seemed delighted that we'd made this request and turns out we're not the only guests to have wanted to help with such a thing. They happily got us a bag and two tongs and explained to us that the trash is from the fishing boats. Despite their efforts to clean multiple intervals throughout the day, new trash would wash ashore. Bear in mind, this is a remote island and to have trash washed ashore at the rate that it does is very alarming and reveals the plastic problems that our oceans have. It's true. We patrolled the beach the next day and found the area we once had cleaned up was indeed filled with trash again.
What the staff said really stuck with me—how the trash is from the fishing boats. It made me wonder if any campaigns to reduce plastic waste have reached the fishermen and how effective are the messages in changing their behaviors. If it reaches the middle or even upper class who have * everything to lose * in the face of ecological destruction and they don't even oblige, how would a fisherman who can barely make ends meet, oblige. They really do have more pressing concerns.
It only took us a few minutes to fill the entire big bag. It was easy to pick up the big pieces of trash but I noticed something even more alarming and that Microplastics–basically small pieces of plastics that are broken down that pollute oceans & marine life and are highly hazardous to our health.
Statistics shows that we eat a credit card's worth of plastic a week.
Stopping Plastic At The Source.
To me, it alerts to the importance of stopping plastic at the source. Phasing out single use packaging for biodegradable or compostable alternatives and using reusables whenever we can. Humankind has been to the moon and invented some seemingly impossible things. It points to 'how much do we want (prioritize) this', if we really wanted to phase out plastics, we would.
It's critical that our lawmakers (and everyone) begin looking to the long-term effects of things.
Until then, we all gotta do our part in reducing our plastic use & spreading the message.
💌 'Leave nothing but footprints'.
