I was watching “The Late Show with David Letterman” the other night, and Charles Moore was one of the guest. His discussion about the floating garbage shocked me. The amount of garbage floating in the pacific ocean is double the size of Texas. It is harming and killing all the sea creature in the area. I have heard something about it a few years back but didn’t get a chance to watch any video or read any article about it until last night.

We have made great advances in science and technology. It has made our lives much better, but everything that share this earth with us is paying the price for our convenience and cleverness.

Recycling is good but it’s just a bandage to the problem. The root of the problem is plastics, is it possible to stop using it? Everything we buy comes in plastic packaging, and we carry them home in plastic bags. We use it for everything, and it’s everywhere. This video gives an overview of the situation.

Some things I’m doing and we can all do:

• recycle everything – all plastic containers, newspaper, paper, cans, batteries, phones, etc.
• reuse – bring my own canvas bag for groceries, use both side of the paper before recycling, reuse containers to store things, etc.
• go glass, wood or metal – try to buy and use glass, wood or metal rather than plastic
• use less – water, energy, and fuel; and packaged processed food and products;

Problem areas:

• groceries – everything is wrapped in plastic, sometimes multiple layers.
• grocery bags – I live in a condominium, so I use plastic bags to put wet and smelly food stuff before throwing in the garbage bin. I don’t have a good alternative yet.
• things we use daily are made of plastics or has plastics. (comb, toothbrush, toothpaste tube, chairs, tables, computer, car, pen, etc.)

We can help to reduce, but ultimately companies have to change at the source. It’s a big problem because every company in the world would need to find alternative materials, and would cost lots of money.