A young boy working outdoors with rubbish piled up around him

The need to reduce our plastics

Why is it so important to start reducing our plastic consumption?

Plastic pollution.

There are over 5 million tonnes of plastic used in the UK each year, and nearly half of which is packaging, and demand is rising. Unfortunately, the majority of our used plastics are landfilled, littered, or incinerated. A recent research concluded that landfills and incineration of plastic bottles produces approximately 233,000 tonnes of CO2e emissions a year.

A survey conducted in 2019 shows that we recycle only 370,000 tonnes, which is less than 8% of total plastic consumption. It is estimated that two thirds of our plastic waste in the UK are exported overseas, mainly to developing countries.

Rubbish and junk litter a beach shore

In the UK approx 5,000 items of marine plastic pollution have been found per mile of beach. Marine plastic pollution is set to treble world-wide to 150 million tonnes. Our marine life is taking a toll, as well as to our own health via the water we drink and the foods we eat.

Unfortunately It takes up to 500 years for plastic to fully decompose. We started to widely use plastic in the 1960s, so the year 2460 is when the first lot of plastic will fully decompose. 

We all can all make small changes to make an impact now. 

how to reduce plastic?

  • Stop using plastic straws
  • Carry reusable shopping bags
  • Carry reusable metal flasks/bottles for your beverages
  • Avoid plasticware 
  • Use matches instead of plastic lighters
  • Get your milk delivered - Glass bottles taste a lot better in my opinion. (Find me a milkman)
  • Ditch your chewing habits. Chewing gum contains plastic.
  • Use soap and shampoo bars. Have a look at our shampoo bars here.

Washla is passionate in playing a part in reducing it’s carbon footprint. We aren’t about the fancy stuff, keeping everything simple our rustic style boxes just makes it easier to recycle. We keep suppliers to a minimum and make everything in-house. Our packaging is made from 100% recycled kraft card and are all hand-cut to produce each individual box, the labels are too all printed in-house. Postal boxes are all made from cardboard and can all be recycled. 

Our goal is to be able to produce more eco-friendly products in a bid to help the environment. 


Reduce | Reuse | Recycle 

 

References:

https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201719/cmselect/cmenvaud/339/339.pdf

https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/uk-waste-data

https://www.recoup.org/p/173/download-centre

https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2014/10/how-the-plastic-bag-became-so-popular/381065/

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