More plastic than fish in the oceans?

Nearly seven hundred marine species have been found entangled in plastic. Only 9% of all the plastic ever produced has been recycled. The situation is critical, and it’s predicted that, without action, there’ll be more plastic in the ocean than fish by 2050! We need to take action now.

With this in mind, one of our people, Vicki Chambers, took the challenge to go plastic free for a weekend. Here’s how she got on.

By Vicki Chambers

I work in the Technology and Transformation team at Ecotricity, improving the systems that run our business. I have been at Eco for just over eleven years, because I love working for a company that shares my values, in a job where I feel that I’m making a difference.

Last weekend I decided to take on the plastic free challenge, attempting to create as little plastic waste as possible for a weekend. I’ve known for a long time that plastic waste is a huge problem as it doesn’t biodegrade and it harms wildlife, and I wanted to see how much I could cut down on my own plastic waste.

Overall, it was much easier to limit plastic waste than I thought, although there were a few challenges. I knew I was going to be in London overnight so I made sure I planned ahead. For example, I used my trusty water bottle rather than buying bottled water on the train, and I brought a snack with me rather than buying a packet sandwich (much tastier and less of a rip-off too!)

The easiest part was limiting plastic waste when I was eating and drinking at home, because I'd already taken a few steps towards stocking up my house with plastic free goods. For example, there is plastic in some brands of tea bags, so I made sure to stock up on Pukka which is plastic free. I also have a coffee machine so that I don’t get tempted to buy takeaway coffee, which has saved a lot of money over the years, along with a huge amount of disposable cups. Our machine takes grounds rather than pods, which is really important as the pods don’t biodegrade. I also try to buy vegetables from our local market rather from the supermarket whenever I can, as it’s often impossible to find food that isn’t wrapped in layers of plastic at the supermarket.

It was quite challenging to limit plastic waste while out and about. I attended a festival whilst in London, and all of the food was served in polystyrene containers so I couldn't avoid creating some waste. With hindsight, I wish I had done my research and eaten elsewhere before attending. I will be emailing the festival organisers to request that they consider biodegradable alternatives next year however, so hopefully some good will still come out of it.

Taking the challenge to go plastic free has made me aware of how much waste I was creating without realising it. The good news is that once you’re aware, it’s really easy to cut down, it’s just a question of doing your research and planning ahead – buy the brands that you know are plastic free, and try to plan ahead so that you aren’t put in a situation where you have to buy something in throw away packaging. It’s also important to share your views with businesses, they will only change if we ask them to!

So it’s not maybe as hard as we think to go plastic free, or at least to reduce the amount that we use. With a concerted effort, we can minimise the impact we make on a personal level, and encourage businesses to do so on a larger scale. A supermarket in the Netherlands just created the world’s first plastic-free aisle, and campaign groups are tirelessly working hard to promote change. Join Friends of the Earth’s #PlasticFreeFriday to make a stand for our planet, and make your energy supply count too – switch to Ecotricity and we’ll donate up to £50 to Friend of the Earth, and we’ll also donate the same amount each year you stay with us!