Consider our Earth when you make choices for your day.
Every day is full of choices. You won’t be perfect, but make it a habit to become aware! Our air, water, wildlife, and all living things thank you.
Below is from The Carbon Almanac:
Salvador Dalí once said, “Have no fear of perfection—you’ll never reach it.”
He wasn’t talking about the environment. But he could have been.
Somewhere along the way, the idea that if we’re going to care about the planet, we have to do it right. The right purchase. The right diet. The right commute. And if we can’t be sure we’re doing it right, a strange kind of paralysis sets in where it seems it is better to do nothing than to do something imperfectly and get it “wrong.”
Waiting for the perfect option is a very effective way to never act at all. And the perfect option doesn’t exist as every decision has trade-offs.
So if we can’t make the perfect choice, then we should be looking for the next best choice. The choice that we don’t make on autopilot. When we pause to weigh the planet in a decision, we’re not just making one choice. We’re practicing a habit of attention. And that habit doesn’t stay contained to the one decision in front of us. It grows. The more often we consciously factor in impact, the more naturally it shows up in the next decision, and the one after that. Awareness builds on itself in a way that a single “perfect” decision never could.
The real question isn’t “did I make the perfect choice?” It’s simpler than that: “did I include the impact on the environment in my thinking?”
The more we do that, the better we will become at making the next best choice.
Clean water and clean air depend on every day good choices.
Believe it or not, plastic particles called microplastics have been found in countless food items. Marine animals routinely mistake tiny microplastics for food. When we eat fish, shrimp or shellfish, we may eat the plastic these animals once consumed.1Plastic isn’t only in seafood. Microplastics are contaminating soil, and plants may absorb them through their root systems. This means that plastic may be finding its way into carrots, lettuce, potatoes and other common vegetables that we eat.2
Microplastics are tiny. So tiny, in fact, that they can easily bypass standard water filtration systems. Studies have detected microplastics in tap water samples from cities all over the world.3If you think bottled water is plastic-free, think again. A single liter of bottled water may contain an average of 240,000 detectable plastic fragments, largely shedding from the bottle itself and the capping process.4
Because microplastics are lightweight, wind easily sweeps up plastic fibers from car tires, degraded trash and even polyester clothing. These airborne plastics can travel thousands of miles, settling in city streets, parks and everywhere in between. And when they’re airborne, people unknowingly inhale them.5We already have plenty of plastic. But they keep making more and more.If current trends hold, 1.2 billion tons of plastic could be manufactured each year by 2050. To put this number into perspective, the cumulative total would be enough to completely cover the U.S. in a layer of plastic that’s ankle-deep.6At PIRG, we refuse to let this become our future.We’re urging grocers to reduce unnecessary plastic packaging and petitioning the Environmental Protection Agency to enact meaningful limits on microplastics in drinking water. And by raising public awareness of plastic’s problems, we’re working to generate the groundswell of support that’s necessary for meaningful change.But we can’t do it without you. Our work relies on the dedication of members like you who refuse to let the plastics industry dictate the health of our families and the future of our planet.Thank you for standing with us,Faye Park
Choose a new reusable plastic-free swap each day or stick with one that works for you. Whether it’s refilling your coffee cup, reusing containers for takeaway food, or shopping packaging-free options—every swap counts.
Health4earth 