Guest Speakers
November 2, 2009
While rifling flickr for nasty plastic photos, (see my plastic visual world map for details), I come across people documenting and commenting on the ever increasing amounts of plastic pollution. Blogged from there is this weeks Guest Speaker
It’s been a while since I’ve done a rant about littering. Seems like that’s reason enough to revisit the subject. If only because I feel better after venting …
When you walk and pick up litter on a daily basis, you start to see patterns or cycles in this miserable business. Sunday morning seems to always result in the largest amount of stuff to be dealt with. Presume that’s because of all those so&so’s who have something like Saturday Night Fever and as a side-effect are prone to leave a trail of trash wherever they go. Perhaps it’s bar hopping, perhaps just cruising here and there to avoid going home, who knows.
Whatever. Anyway, above is a typical assortment of what we come across while walking through our neighborhood and immediate surrounding areas for about an hour, covering a couple miles or so in the process. We do tend to walk a bit farther on Sunday mornings, but that’s not enough to explain the larger quantity of litter. After MUCH observation, the Saturday night after-effect thing is unmistakeable.
Afterthought: When I was first getting religion about this business of fighting litter, the main motivator was wanting to keep the neighborhood from looking trashy. Yes, it was pretty much a bourgeois thing — promoting respectability, responsible behavior and all that. Lately, another and more significant motivator has entered the picture. Specifically, seeing what eventually happens to all this plastic trash. A lot of it ends up going into the waterways, where it may very well snag in the underbrush and be part of the growing visual pollution problem one sees in previously “natural” areas. But a lot of it also keeps on going until it reaches the oceans and moves on the vast ocean currents. One horrendous result is the vast pool of plastic debris which has built up in the north central part of the Pacific. If you haven’t seen news reports on this subject, here’s one primer:
www.ecocycle.org/askeco-cycle/2005/1028.cfm
Uploaded by ghb624 on 20 Jan 08, 11.56AM PST.
New Kid On The Blog
October 18, 2009
web links
July 25, 2009
Latest links – I like these blogs
Plastic Refuseniks
All these sites have been and still are really useful
UK
- No Plastic Livejournal community
- Fantastic No Plastic (finished)
- Plastic and Physics (finished)
- BBC’s A Month Without Plastic (finished)
- Plastic is Fantastic
Canada
- Living Plastic Free (year three)
Tunisia
America
Envirowoman is amazing – not only has she given up all plastic all at once – she keeps all the plastic she has used in her living room. Yes I know. And theres hardly any of it. How does she do it?
Beth over at Fake Plastic Fish monitors her weekly plastic consumption and has a good set of links.
www.lifelessplastic.blogspot.com- more on giving up plastic
Trying to make cheese and killing big pigs – this is hardcore stuff. Im still with the biobags and letting the local butcher do the ham slicing www.avoidingplastic.blogspot.co
Leonardo Di Capreo – yes the filmstar- is campaigning against plastic- you can sign his pledge here <
Dirty Beaches and Plastic Soup
The surf rider foundation have had enough of bobbing about in a sea of bottles – see their Rise Above Plastics Petition
The Junk Raft – these guys are sailing round the world on a boat made of rubbish to raise awareness of plastic in the sea
Ban The Plastic Baggers
This UK site is committed to seeing the back of the nastly plastic bag – take a look – they are really great
The all American bag monster is daft but really gets the mesage accross.
Eco blogs
For all things green and wonderful
Try Make Wealth History – a U.K. based site about important issues
Zero Waste
Cutting garbage back to the bone
My Zero Waste in England
The Rubbish Diet also homegrown
pig pen doing it in New Zealand – makes her own noodles
Zero waste America is a worthy if rather ugly site about yes you guessed it..
365 days of trash is the story of one man and his bin and a year of throwing nothing away – the resources are American the sentiment global.
planet trash is fighting rubbish wherever it is to be found.
Garbloggers
Those that write about garbage…
Everyday trash is one of my favourites full of facts, trash art and great photos.
Well through her exceptional blog I was introduced to a Miz Ruby Reusable of yet another fine garblogging site and Olympia Dumpster Divers though because the link button has decided to stop working you will have to find them yourselves.
Well I have dug and delved through the masses of rubbish they have accumulated and here is a small sample of their inspiring wares.
Junk To Funk – the recycled fashion show
http://www.junktofunk.org/index.iml/call_to_artists
http://www.crackedpots.org/gallery1.cfm
Bagfree Bahrain
April 26, 2009
bloggers in Bahrain are campaigning to go plastic bag free – link here
February 28, 2009
well I’ve gone an done it – joined face book and I have started a page called Leave Only Footprints. Like the blog doncha see? Still grappling with all the intricacies… but if you want to be a fan please feel free to adore me.
However less about me. I joined so I could be as one with these plastic refuseniks
Want to cut down on your plastic rubbish? – you can find plastic free products with the >>>A-Z<<< plastic free index
giving up on plastic in Lancaster
February 28, 2009
If you happen to live in Lancaster and you want to give plastic then you are lucky lucky lucky.
This secular University based  no to plastic group are giving up plastic for lent
They have organised a load of workshops, a lively google discussion group and have a face book presence.
Every day you get a new plastic free tip like this one
Go on check them out – they are doing all the work for you.
Even if you don’t live in Lancaster its extremely relevant.
The fab picture Plastic bag on tropical beach is by  Bag Monster -  check him out - he too  is fun.
Want to cut down on your plastic rubbish? – you can find other plastic free products with the >>>A-Z<<< plastic free index
Disposing of polystyrene
February 22, 2009
As with all plastic polystyrene does not biodegrade. Instead it hangs around for years creating everlasting litter and problomatic pollution.
the boffs are working on the problem and here are their solutions
Recycling
Polystyrene is difficult to recycle. Difficult but not impossible …
For those of you who insist on using plastic cups there is the  save a cup recycling system
For the other stuff there is a process for recycling  polystyrene that uses  the styromelt system.
The Rest
Polystyrene that ends up as litter has to be picked up – by the council – you pay the cost or by decent folk who care about the environmnet.
The photo is Snowballs that never melt Originally uploaded by Ted Raynor
To see some really nasty beach pollution click on the image for pictures of his  beach clean up
plastic free bloggers
January 23, 2009
for an uber list of green bloggers check out everyday trash – her links are big.
Or follow this tortuous link from here to ET to the fake plastic fish post to dedicated to those giving up plastic.
One small quibble – these bloggers are mostly American. Ive not got anything against them there folk specially not in these obama early days but wheres the rest of the world. Plastic is a global problem so come on – well everyone else really.
Them surf boys keep the plastic pressure up with their rise above plastics website
Belgium Links
November 1, 2008
news of a Belgium plastic is rubbish  blogger has come to my attention thanks to his jolly kind shout out – sadly I cant read his blog because it is in well to be honest I am not quite sure what language but the pictures are easy enough to understand – have a look
For other plastic free blogs check out my web links
