It’s not easy being someone who cares deeply about our environment, especially in a part of Texas deeply rooted in its gas and oil industry. As an individual, it’s hard to pitch in to make a substantial difference. However, that isn’t to say that you can’t do the best you can do to help our ecosystem.
Among Earth’s many environmental problems, one that can realistically be mitigated by anyone, no matter where you live, is plastic pollution. Eight million tons of plastic from single-use water bottles end up in our oceans, posing a threat to our marine life and ecosystems. And that’s only a fraction of where our wasted plastic goes, with a majority of it either leaking harmful chemicals into our resources or being littered all throughout the world, posing the overall threat of diminishing an ecosystem’s ability to recover from climate change. However, this risk can be reduced through a variety of ways.
One way is using reusable water bottles instead of single-use plastic bottles. Making the switch to reusable minimizes unnecessary plastic waste while still providing a practical way of containing water or any other drink. This is something that even I’m guilty of doing, as using plastic water bottles has become a force of habit. It’s unfortunately the most convenient and accessible container for drinking water, but the switch to reusable containers is possible. It’s a simple, yet effective way to reduce your environmental footprint. If it makes the switch any easier, it’s worth noting that reusable is significantly more cost effective, with the longevity of reusable containers being much higher than any plastic water bottle could be. By making the switch, you’re able to save money while contributing to the preservation of our Earth’s environments.
Another way of mitigating plastic pollution is by recycling any plastics you use by taking them to a designated drop-off location. When it comes to disposing of plastic, recycling is the best option we have. A plastics recycling location is just down the road in Andrews. Since plastic use extends far beyond packaging for water bottles, it’d be a complete waste to toss plastics. We use less of our Earth’s limited resources when recycling, as well as reducing greenhouse gas emissions that drives our Earth into extreme weather. It’s easy to throw away plastic in the trash without thinking of the repercussions, but these split-second decisions will end up harming our environment if action isn’t taken.
If you still pay no mind to these issues, then you need to realize that just because it doesn’t immediately affect you now, doesn’t mean that it won’t later. It’s crucial to look into the future, solving problems now when we have the foresight to do so instead of doing it when the devastation of plastic pollution have already consumed our Earth.
