Tangled in Plastic: Our Scotland Director’s Big Plastic Count

The results of the Big Plastic Count are in. UK households are throwing away an estimated 1.7 billion pieces of plastic a week, that adds up to 90 billion pieces per year.?In this blog, our Scotland Director, Neil Ritch, shares his reflections from doing The Big Plastic count.

Plastic is, well, brilliant. ?It’s an incredibly robust, versatile, cheap and convenient material. There’s a reason why our supermarket shelves are practically wrapped in the stuff. Yet plastic, especially single use plastic, can do serious damage. Over half is being incinerated, which can generate more carbon dioxide than burning coal. Recycling systems can’t cope with the sheer amount of plastic that’s being produced. And vast quantities can’t be recycled at all.?

When I embarked on the Big Plastic Count, I was curious. This initiative pulls together information from communities across the UK who are counting their plastic waste as evidence to call for change.?

I didn’t think I was a huge plastic consumer. Yet still, our recycling bin is full of the stuff. We’re lucky we can recycle a lot of our plastic, but it’s better to use less in the first place.?

What did I learn from the Big Plastic Count??

The biggest driver of my plastic consumption is food.?We can use reuseable bags for a few things but most of what our household eats comes plastic wrapped. Next came household cleaning products and toiletries. And after that... came a bit of a surprise. We do a lot of gardening which, ironically, generates a lot of plastic waste. Compost comes in plastic sacks and so does most bird food.??

Lastly, I was reminded that convenience comes plastic wrapped.? Need lunch on the go? Fancy a coffee on that long train journey? “Would you like a bag for that?”.?

My reflections??

Most of the things we’ve done to cut down household plastic use happened because we made a conscious decision to change something. However, some choices can me more expensive, like glass bottled milk.?Each of those choices helps a little but the Big Plastic Count reminded me that there’s always new opportunities to do a little more.???

While we all have the responsibility to reduce our consumption habits, this isn’t a story of individual guilt. We still need further innovation, system and legislative change if we want to keep making progress.??

There are many things we can all do that involve being a bit more thoughtful and organised. There are loads of resources to help with this (check out Zero Waste Scotland). These things matter not just because they make a small difference, but they also signal an intent to change for the better. It is impossible to live a perfect life in a complicated world but do what you can and keep going.??

What next??

Reflecting on the Big Plastic Count, we are doing some things differently in our house.?

#1. I am stepping away from the meal deal and getting back to the make and take lunch.?

#2. Cardboard wrapped "coir compost" – rehydrating it is great fun too.?

#3. We are testing out a local veg box scheme.??

#4. Laundry balls? Investigations have begun?

#5. Shampoo bars – it's going to take while for me to generate significant usage data.?

I’d love to hear your top tips for a less plastic filled future whether that’s in your day-to-day activities, the work you do in your community or through promoting wider change.?