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How We Tried to Be Plastic-Free

Our attempts at a plastic-free February taught us some interesting lessons. Give it a try!



Our plastic-free ground rules:
1: No buying or acquiring new plastic.
2: No cooking with plastic or storing food in plastic.
3: Minimize all other plastic use.


Why go plastic free? Click find out, to and to see some of the bloggers who joined us for Plastic Free February!
Share your comments here and on our Facebook page. Follow our Twitter feed: Twitter.com/rodalenews, tag #noplastic.



Plastic-Free February is over...but keep checking this page as we continue to offer solutions that will keep us all healthy safe from pollutants, contaminants, and toxins.

Read our interview with Susan Freinkel, author of Plastic: A Toxic Love Story (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2011).

Hey, our plastic-free challenge got mentioned in the New York Times! (No link love from them, unfortunately.) Look for an interview with Susan Freinkel, author of Plastic: A Toxic Love Story, some time soon on Rodale.com.

Read the 5 key plastic-free strategies that sum up what we learned about eliminating plastic.



See our 5 favorite plastic-free tactics.

Find out how to reuse plastic that you can't avoid.

Check out DIY natural hair-styling solutions that don't require product in plastic bottles.

Are cloth diapers as hard to manage as everybody says? Here's the answer.

Plastic-free food storage: What you need to know.

Maria Rodale offers 10 tip for avoiding plastic.

Forgot your reusable shopping bag? Try letting a bird carry it for you.


Read our week-by-week plastic-free recap:

Week 4: by Rick Chillot, senior online editor

Week 3: by Leah Zerbe, online editor

Week 2: by Emily Main, online editor

Week 1: by Dana Blinder, digital assistant


Why go plastic free? There are plenty of reasons to cut down. It's made from either petroleum or natural gas, two nonrenewable resources extracted in ways that pollute our air and water. Plastic manufacturers add chemicals to certain types of plastics that can be highly toxic, like bisphenol A and phthalates. And very few types of plastic are widely recycled.

You can join us! Give plastic-free living a try, and share your comments below and on our Facebook page.

These bloggers went plastic-free with us:

Maya Rodale, MayaRodale.com/blog
Harriet Shugarman, ClimateMama.com
Liz Banse, Grrl Gone Green
Paul Clarke, School of Sustainability
Growing A Greener World w/Joe Lamp'l
Jen Savedge, The Green Parent
Corey Condello, CoreyCondello.com
Briton, EnslavedByFaeries.blogspot.com
News From Nowhere
Megan McWilliams, The Green Diva
Organicality.com
GreenDump.net
MPA Daily News Round-Up
Jen Walter, Jenni's Jingles
Green Families UK
Liz Ask Liz First
Prevention Magazine Spark
Healthy Child, Healthy World
Kristen Mighty Nest.



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That is so great! I love that you can save so much of the earth by switching to glass jars than by using more common plastic. Ive started storing all of my herbs and spices in apothecary jars so they don't spoil as fast and I don't use plastic or waste food!

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Hemp Bars also make the perfect snack food, will affect positively the glycemic index of cereal, as well as leave you with a good feeling that you have eaten something good. But the DEA is in charge of hemp growing. We should all write them and tell them we are going to vote them out next election.
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The Rodale.com editors really liked the Lunchbots stainless steel containers mentioned in the article above. They're really durable, and the lids stay on really well. Plus most are small enough to fit into standard reusable lunch bags. Good luck!
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Plastic-Free Yard Work

That's hilarious about the wingnuts.

We did some yard work this weekend to clean up after the "big freeze" and managed to spend a whole afternoon plastic-free. I'm feeling rather pleased with myself.

http://eatdrinkbetter.com/2011/02/21/plastic-free-february-days-14-and-15/

Heather
Eat.Drink.Better

Sinus infections

I seem to be prone to sinus infections and have usually resorted to antibiotics to resolve them. For the last 3 years I've tried to preempt the infection by noticing symptoms a few days in advance, such as neck soreness/tenderness when I look up at the ceiling (swollen lymph nodes?), extreme mid-day tiredness, mild cold symptoms. When I notice these symptoms I will do the following: sleeping when I feel weirdly tired, rinsing my nasal passages with a simple salt solution and a Neti Pot, boosting my immune system with Vitamin D and maybe a Vitamin C for fun ( caution, I did just read that boosting the immune system during a cold may actually make it worse- sigh); and lastly, avoiding caffeine and sugar. Note! I only do these things when I think I'm coming down with something! I THINK it has helped- but how would I know for sure? : )

Not too late!

Of course it's not too late! Every day is another opportunity to cut down on your plastic. We're glad to have you on board, and be sure to let us know here or on facebook how it's going.

Rick Chillot, senior editor

Too Late?

OMG! I'm a bit late hearing about a plastic-free Feb, but surely I can still join in?
It made me consider what I have eaten today- so far cereal with milk from a plastic carton, a piece of toast with peanut butter- both out of plastic, water from a plastic bottle and a couple of valentines chocolates, stored in a plastic tray.
So what can I do tomorrow? Get milk from the milkman in a glass bottle- but don't think they do organic milk! I often buy bread from the bakery- which doesn't have to be wrapped in anything! peanut butter I think still comes in glass jars- but I often have yoghurt for breakfast. What do I do about that? I thought I was being good reusing my plastic bottles for water through-out the day but now find out I have been drinking water that has been sitting about in poisonous bottles all day! I have a metal thermos which resolves the issue of using plastic, but is that healthy?
I'll look for solutions, but any suggestions always welcome!
Sunshine xx

Plastic Free - Harder than we thought....

Lessons learned...on the postive.....also the negatives and the near impossibility of the task. Thanks Rodale for opening our eyes and encouraging us to make changes, one step at a time! Thanks to all the bloggers who courageously participated, and who we learned so much from!!! Thank you, Thank you!!!

Maya Rodale, MayaRodale.com/blog; Liz Banse, Grrl Gone Green; Paul Clarke, School of Sustainability; Growing A Greener World w/Joe Lamp'l; Jen Savedge, The Green Parent; Corey Condello, CoreyCondello.com; Briton, EnslavedByFaeries.blogspot.com; News From Nowhere; Megan McWilliams, The Green Diva; Organicality.com; GreenDump.net; MPA Daily News Round-Up; Jen Walter, Jenni's Jingles; Green Families UK; Liz Ask Liz First; Prevention Magazine Spark; Healthy Child, Healthy World; Kristen Mighty Nest.!

http://www.climatemama.com/index.php?option=com_wordpress&p=1633&Itemid=56

Stainless...

My guess on the lens cases is that stainless steel might be more likely to scratch the lenses.

Ugh plastic

It's so hard to get away from plastic, but it'd doable, at least in part. We've been working on this for a few years now.

One way to reduce plastic and save money, make your own toothpowder and store in a glass jar. Have a recipe on my blog this week using some of those yummy in season meyer lemons:

http://chiotsrun.com/2011/02/09/vanilla-meyer-lemon-tooth-powder/

Can't wait to keep up with how you're doing on this, keep up the good work.

Climate Change & Plastic Connecting the Dots

What's the connection between plastic and climate change, we explore this in our latest blog post at www.climatemama.com. Along the way, we also realize that we are ADDICTED to plastic. Like many addictions, it has crept up on us and we didn't even realize it until this week and the Plastic Free Challenge. We now have to fight, to conquer this addiction and be free!

Plastic-Free February

This is more challenging than I expected. I am entirely surrounded by plastic.

One commenter suggested I reuse glass jars with metal lids. I was just finishing off a jar of salsa at the time. Woohoo! My first plastic-free food storage container.

When I decided to do plastic-free February, it didn't even occur to me how much of my life is dependent on plastics. I was just noticing tonight how much plastic is in sports.

Lunchskins, not totally plastic-free

My husband and I use Lunchskins, which are dishwasher-safe sandwich bags. They are lined with a thin layer of polyurethane, which the site claims is lead-free, BPA-free, and phthalate-free. Since we bought them before I signed onto the challenge, we're going to keep them.

If you don't want to buy reusable lunch bags, you can always wrap your sandwich in aluminum foil. It could be rinsed and used more than once.

Top 7 Reasons to Recycle Plastic - ClimateMama Day 1

Join us this week at www.ClimateMama.com as we take the Rodale.com Plastic Free Challenge and live our life with less plastic in it. Each day, in addition to the trials and tribulations of reducing our plastic use, we will also learn something new about plastics...the good the bad and the ugly! Come along for the ride.

Glass Water Bottles

This is most importat for men. Well, for women too, The plastic estrogen mimicking chemicals are devastating to men and also deadly to women. Glass water bottles are hard to find, but search for them. Home Breweries and winemakers don't use plastic bottles so you can get them from them. The taste of the water is remarkably better

We're in and so is the dog!

I was just thinking that reducing plastics is the next logical step in our quest to be more conscious consumers. Great timing! I'm taking on this challenge and including my husband, two kids and dog, Obi. I'll post our progress and challenges on my blog at http://www.ifitbarks.com/dog-collars-blog/

You would think I would live without plastic!

I am so happy Rodale has created this challenge and I am happy to pledge. I actually pledged not to accept any disposable plastic at Plastic Pollution Coalition, but I must admit, I have not been able to honour my pledge completely.

You would think I should live without plastic, being the co-owner of an online business called LifeWithoutPlastic.com where we offer all kinds of great alternatives to plastic products. But alas, I still consume too much disposable plastic every month.

Mostly, it is the plastic packaging of the food I buy at the store that I find difficult to avoid. We live in a small rural community and it is not always possible to get everything in bulk. Just today, I used cream cheese for my sandwich out of a plastic container. Yesterday, I had some hummus, again from a plastic container.

Of all people, I should lead by example, so I happily take on the challenge and I will blog about my progress on lifewithoutplasticblog.com. I will try and avoid the plastic disposable packaging as much as possible even if it means no cream cheese in my sandwich.

- Chantal Plamondon
LifeWithoutPlastic.com

I’m Free!

Happy Plastic-Free February!
Our family has taken up the Rodale.com challenge. I wrapped Emma’s sandwich in toxin-free waxed paper this morning. I was wishing I had a ribbon handy to tie a bow on it, but by that time we would have missed the bus. Alas, the bread, ham, cheese and alfalfa sprouts all came from plastic containers, but I did buy them in January. Truth be told it was January 31st for the ham. I bought milk in a plastic jug then too, but I did debate it. I had to choose between non-organic in a returnable glass bottle or organic in plastic. I chose organic. I am sure I would have been won over had the bottle displayed a label stating that the cows were allowed to roam freely in pasture. This month, though, I will have to plan better, and planning isn’t really one of my strengths.
Rodale.com tells us that plastic is bad because “It's made from either petroleum or natural gas, two non-renewable resources extracted in ways that pollute our air and water. Plastic manufacturers add chemicals to certain types of plastics that can be highly toxic, like bisphenol A and phthalates. And very few types of plastic are widely recycled.” On that note, rather than banning incandescent light bulbs (which I just discovered our province has banned and I strongly disagree because of the mercury content of fluorescent light bulbs – I have no idea how I am now going to light my plastic-free home), I believe all packaging that cannot be recycled in the region in which it is marketed should be banned. Plastic tops the list because will never, ever, ever break down in the landfill and it is known to contain pseudo-estrogens which will leak into the groundwater beneath the landfill and eventually cause cancer and other health problems for people and animals alike. I have been consciously trying to store leftovers in glass jars and choosing glass over plastic (and over cans) when I make a purchase, although the decision is often clouded when the organic option is only available in plastic. But now, thanks to Rodale, we have rules! Don’t worry – there are only 3!
1. No buying or acquiring new plastic.

2: No cooking with plastic or storing food in plastic.

3: Minimize all other plastic use.
Here are some tips I have already come up with:
Always keep reusable shopping bags in your car and the cars of your spouse and children. You never know when you might get the urge to shop!
Toss all of your reusable plastic containers in the recycling box so that no one in your family will be tempted to use them.
Save and reuse wide-mouth jars and lids and haul out your summer canning equipment for more storage, if need be.
Buy only Perrier or San Pellegrino (I love Perrier and San Pellegrino) if you are out and thirsty and forgot your stainless steel water bottle. (You may be about to add that asking for water in a cup would be a better choice, but I have health concerns about the chemical toxins in non-filtered tap water)
I invite you to join me, take up the challenge, and share your own tips. Free is fabulous!

http://jennwalter.blogspot.com/

Plastic Free Living

Unfortunately, I bought some plastic covers for bowls today, so I can't say that I've totally committed to a Plastic Free life at the moment. I will ask pardon by offering that my purchase be ameliorated because these plastic "bonnets" are washable and reusable (the last set I had were used for over 10 years).

Here in Edmonton we have a fabulous recycling system and a community that promotes the three R's: reduce, reuse and recycle. My family is very careful about purchasing local or alreay used where possible and we do not purchase anything that is over-packaged. (I remember that, in the 1970's, we used to slap stickers that said, "this product is over-packaged" on merchandise that had more packaging than product. A bit naive, considering that we were adding to the waste, but our intentions were honourable.)

My dad was way ahead of his time - in the 1960's, when plastics were coming into their own, my dad refused to have plastic in our house; everything was wood, ceramic, metal or glass. He thought plastic unsanitary and he wasn't far wrong. As a result, I grew up with an aversion to plastic and it is a serious matter for me to make such a purchase now. We opt for reusable and recyclable tin foil or just placing a plate or other dish to keep food fresh. My mum and dad raised us to think about where waste ends up, getting us to think about how household garbage doesn't just go away and saying "whatever you put down the drain, you will eventually drink". What a great example they set!

Living plastic free may not be convenient as it can sometimes be difficult to find suitable alternatives, e.g. freezer containers, but it can be done! Part of our dependence on plastic has to do with how busy our lives have become. Using plastic for preserving freshness is so convenient, but it is truly a poor choice for our environment. Just think, it is only since the 1950's that we have become dependent on plastic. We can use glass, ceramic, paper, tin foil, cloth - we are only limited by our imaginations. (By the way, elastic bands are a great way to keep air out.)

There are things in our lives, especially electronic gadgets, that are simply not available in plastic-free forms. It is a huge commtment to find ways to recycle these things responsibly or to even do without them. What I think about when I am considering these types of purchases is how the long-term effects can be minimized. Friends, we only have one planet and, if you're reading this, you are already working on preserving and protecting it. Good for you!

I am really pleased to see Rodale promoting a Plastic-Free February. It is said that it takes just 21 days to establish a habit and February has 28! Here's hoping this is one good habit we can all learn.

Blessings,
Deanne

Plastic Free

I'm going to try. If only there were hemp wrap. I remember cellophane, it was was made sfrom wood pulp.

Anyone here ever looked at

Anyone here ever looked at www.reusit.com? We hear it's great.

Go Green Lunches

Wow! www.reuseit.com was great! It had tons of easy, everyday solutions to my lunch problems. It was a tremendous success. I am stuck in plastic bag heck until the products arrive, but I guess that is the point of the whole month long process. Take stock of what we use and what we waste. I am embarrassed at how much plastic is in everything and how much I waste! I mean everything! My pencis and pens, plastic containers for everything, even my keyboard is plastic.

On the bright side, my daughter baked cookies for her teachers last night and the first thing to bag up the little goodies was a plastic bag. We started to give in, but decided to use butcher paper and make "envelopes" for bags. It worked great. Then she wrote on each envelope, "Go Green and Just say NO to Plastic." Eco-friendly and spreading the word about plastic. It was a great day!

Thanks for all your help as I continue with the plastic challenge.

Thrilled to join!

Hi! I'm so happy to be joining your Plastic-Free February challenge! I'll be blogging about my experiences at http://greenfamiliesuk.blogspot.com/ Looking forward to learning and sharing my experiences with others! Best, Jessica

I'm ready for the challenge!

Will keep up on your journey and share yours and mine:
http://asklizfirst.com/environment/going-plastic-free-with-rodale-in-feb...

Plastic-free

I'm joining and will blog about it at my own book and cook site: http://peacefulreader.com. How can you find a way to send out magazines w/out plastic covers?

Plastic Free MAIL?

Will you suspend mailing your magazines in polybags for the month of February, or is this another "do as I say, not as I do" dictate?

Re: Plastic

Hi Maybeth,
We're so glad you've decided to join on to our challenge! As for lunch containers, we've written about a few plastic-free, unbreakable alternatives here:
http://www.rodale.com/green-school-supplies?page=0%2C1

The Rodale.com editors really liked the Lunchbots stainless steel containers mentioned in the article above. They're really durable, and the lids stay on really well. Plus most are small enough to fit into standard reusable lunch bags. Good luck!
Emily Main

Plastic

No plastic for a month! Whew! The idea just makes me excited and nervous all at the same time. It is such a integrated part of my life that I am willing to give it a solid try, but...can anyone suggest a way to get lunch to school in something that won't break? Sandwiches can be wrapped in freezer paper but we often take salads, whole grain pasta dishes and other items that need to be put in a spill proof container.
Any ideas would be appreciated.

I'm In!

Great idea! I would love to be a part of Plastic-free February. Looking around me, I can see that it is going to be quite the challenge, but definitely a worthy one. I'm blogging at www.thegreengiftguide.org and would be happy to share and update readers along the way. Wish me luck!

party silverware

We entertain quite often, indoors and out, with neighbors, family reunions, etc. I have found 2-3 sets of metal silverware at garage sales, plus bit and pieces from thrift stores. They all go into a big bin and THAT is what we use when we all dine together. If I have time, I wrap a knife,fork and spoon in a napkin for quicker access in the food line.

I do have to remember to bring a bin for the dirty silverware afterward. I think some of the smaller kids have accidentally thrown away of few of the pieces, but that's OK, its still better than than the alternative.

Sure beats throw-away plastic silverware!

party silverware

We entertain quite often, indoors and out, with neighbors, family reunions, etc. I have found 2-3 sets of metal silverware at garage sales, plus bit and pieces from thrift stores. They all go into a big bin and THAT is what we use when we all dine together. If I have time, I wrap a knife,fork and spoon in a napkin for quicker access in the food line.

I do have to remember to bring a bin for the dirty silverware afterward. I think some of the smaller kids have accidentally thrown away of few of the pieces, but that's OK, its still better than than the alternative.

Sure beats throw-away plastic silverware!

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