Tuesday, 10 September 2019

Why I Started This Blog?

I'm scared of the future!

There I said it, the reason why I want to make a change is because I am scared that our planet is dying and we humans are causing it. Forget climate change, my focus is on waste and pollution. My focus is on getting clean fresh water and enough oxygen for us all to breathe. My focus is on protection of wildlife and nature which in turn will help protect us and our children who follow.


Some may think that I must have been reckless all my life and only just starting to feel guilty, but the truth is I've been recycling since the 1990's. Glass, plastics, tin, paper, you name it, we recycled it. I thought I was one of the good guys.

A BBC documentary called 'Drowning in Plastic' really made me sit up and pay attention. The spread of waste plastics, particularly in oceans was truly epic and global. Animals, birds and sea creatures were dying from congested digestive tracts. Chicks were being fed micro beads by their mothers. It truly was a stomach churner.

In another BBC program called 'War on Plastic', Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and Anita Rani challenged the British public to see how many plastic items they used in their homes. The amount was staggering and was a huge eye opener. Everything from kitchen to bathroom and beyond was full of disposable single use plastics.

Hugh then traced waste plastics to countries overseas where they were shipped, including finding UK plastic bags sitting in an abandoned plastic mountain in Malaysia. In other areas plastics were incinerated causing medical harm to nearby residents. I felt helpless knowing that my enthusiasm for recycling may not simply have been enough.

So here my new blog is born

I will report on encouraging news (we all need a positivity boost) plus reviews on some plastic alternatives I've been giving a try plus some views of my own as I progress on my journey. I aim to reduce the use of single use plastics by making 50 reductions or changes during my 50th year on this planet.

I hope you enjoy following me on my journey. I do not claim to be an expert, I will not claim to get it right first time and my reviews will be candid and hopefully helpful to others. Gradually I will build up a resource of useful links and tips for you all to enjoy.

(P.S. BBC's Plastics Watch is a great resource) 💖
(P.P.S. Check out Beth Terry's excellent book on a Plastic Free Life).


New Update May 2020: 

Good News! I managed to exceed my target of 50 changes in a year - here's a wee look on how I did plus the areas where I tried to make improvements!
Bird's Eye View of the World by Josh Sorenson from Pexels

Stay tuned for more!