Summer is here and with it comes one of the United States favourite holidays, July 4th! Independence Day celebrations are all about enjoying the warm weather; fun with family and friends down by the beach, jokes around the campfire, enjoying food, drinks and fireworks under the stars. And while you are out having a blast, remember to un-invite plastic from your party. Here’s how.
Bring Re-usable Plates, Utensils And Cups
Disposable forks, knifes, straws, plates and cups are a huge contributor to pollution, with these plastic items often ending up in oceans and causing havoc on our environment. Fortunately, many countries are beginning to place a ban on single-use ‘party plastics’, however they are still widely available. Bringing your own cutlery, plates and cups is a fantastic way to avoid harming the planet with unnecessary plastic pollution. You’ll also save money in the process!
Take A Cooler
Another easy environmental win, and one that pairs well with bringing your own drinkware involves making sure they are chilled in a sustainable way. Investing in a cooler is a great way to keep your drinks cool, but remember that you also don’t need to buy plastic bags of ice to do so. Instead, use the ice-shelf in your freezer to supply the coldness! And now that you have your own, portable party-freezer, invest in larger size drinks of your choice to save on the number of containers used, instead of picking up a multi-pack of drinks that will quickly heat up in the sun.
Pick Up Before (Or When) You Set Off
This one’s a no brainer, but if you do end up using plastics (and in today’s world that can unfortunately be unavoidable at times), make sure you pick up after yourself. Cleaning up your rubbish is not only good for the environment, and helps to keep that our most cherished spaces clean, but it also helps to set an example for others, especially young people and kids. This tip goes not only for food and drink containers, but for fireworks debris as well. If you see it, bin it!
Cook With Fresh Produce
Some grocers and supermarkets have an obscene method of packaging fruits and vegetables – by shrink wrapping them in plastic! While it’s possible to purchase produce without all the plastic wrapping, often times the store will provide plastic bags to use when picking them, and more plastic bags to take the groceries home in. All this is gross and harmful to the planet. Choose to use your own re-usable produce bags and tote bags to transport your groceries, it’s an easy win for the environment.
Keep It Going All Month
July 4th also coincidences with Plastic Free July, a global initiative to help reduce the planet’s reliance of consumer and single-use plastics. Join the over 100 million people worldwide who have made the pledge to go plastic-free and challenge yourself to see how long you can make an impact; a day, a week, the month or longer.
