Taking the Pledge DownEast: No Single Use Plastic Bags, Straws, Water Bottles, Stryofoam Cups

With Maine being the first US state to officially ban single use food and drink containers made of Styrofoambeginning in 2021 and single use plastic  bags beginning on Earth Day 2020, the state has become a leader in the nationwide movement to eliminate throw-away plastics.  Even retailers who once opposed bans or fees on plastic bags came out in support of a comprehensive state policy instead of a patchwork of local ordinances. More than 20 towns in Maine already had some type of plastic shopping bag ordinance.

EcoSattvas DownEast, an environmental group based in Pembroke and inspired by the example of the “bodhisattva,” someone compassionately dedicated to relieving suffering in the world, has spearheaded a multi-year campaign to encourage the voluntary elimination of these single-use plastics:  plastic water bottles, plastic shopping bags, plastic straws and styrofoam cups.  These throw-away plastics are principle sources of the plastic waste that is filling the world’s oceans.  The group is sponsoring a More Ocean, Less Plastic information table at various venues DownEast at which people are invited to take this pledge: “For one year, I will say ‘No’ to single-use plastic shopping bags, plastic water bottles, plastic straws and styrofoam cups whenever I can and if I end up getting an item, whether by forgetfulness or by being in a situation where it was unavoidable, I will keep it until the end of the year.”

While the statewide bans on styrofoam drink cups and plastic shopping bags will ultimately force consumers to change those disposable plastic habits, the group hopes voluntary compliance will begin now and extend to straws and plastic water bottles.  Straws cannot be recycled anywhere and plastic water bottles, while advertised as recyclable, often are not effectively recycled.  According to a 2018 US Census Bureau report, 78 percent of US plastic waste was exported to countries that are now known to be overwhelmed with plastic waste and major sources of plastic ocean 

pollution. Many now argue that we should stop recycling our plastic waste until we can confirm that it is not ending up in countries with poor waste management systems. All the good recycling efforts we have undertaken for  years may in fact have contributed to the global ocean plastic crisis. EcoSattvas DownEast hope that their Take the Pledge campaign will make people rethink their use of all kinds of plastic and contribute to the global movement to protect our oceans. For more information, see www.zendowneast.org.

Diane Fitzgerald