The Lazy Eco-Foot - Gabby

The struggle with motivation when being zero & the crazy panic buying

Good morning, afternoon and good evening wherever you are today! I decided that I am going to start today by elaborating on Covid-19 shopping and Ecobricks. I just wanted to say that I can understand that some of you may be struggling. I understand how difficult it is right now to be zero waste, especially since most of the zero waste shops are temporarily closed. This is even more difficult since some people have gone a little (definitely not little) crazy with their food shopping. It hurts to see some of these panic buyers' bins (on the internet mostly) full of uneaten food. I know that these times will be hard to shop zero, but do not forget you can still shop zero and you can still get rid of your current waste at home. If you do not recycle, start recycling. You’ll make your zero waste lifestyle a lot easier starting this way (I’ll briefly discuss later). If you did not get the chance to read my first blog post. Simple way to explain what you missed is with one word, ‘Ecobrick’. To create one you will need a big bottle (plastic) and your plastic waste, you put the plastic waste inside the bottle, weigh it and BOOM! You have an Ecobrick! It will then be used for architectural projects, it’s fun and also a great way to alleviate most plastic waste at home. I’ve put a link below so you can see how to create your own at home. You’ll notice on the website that the drop off points are currently closed because of covid-19, but remember you can still create your Ecobricks at home to send them later, when we are all back to ‘normal’. You will be surprised by how much plastic you can squeeze inside one bottle. 

Here is a link to the ‘How to’ make your own Ecobrick to get started; https://www.ecobricks.org/how/ 

So If you are shopping do not feel guilty to pick up that piece of plastic, you can be part of a project and place it in your Ecobrick! However, if you’re going shopping bring your own bags, if there is loose fruit and vegetables available pick them up instead. Lastly, If you eat meat and have a butcher that is open near you go there! Forget all about that piece of meat you saw in ASDA that was completely sealed in plastic. Take your tupperware that is buried in your cupboard with you to the butcher and buy local (do not be shy to ask if they can place your chosen meat in your tupperware usually they are fine with it). During this pandemic I have been taking exactly these steps to reduce my waste. I am also lucky that I have a butcher open, loose fruit and vegetables available nearly everywhere and a zero waste shop open for collections! But remember if you are hungry and you need to eat, buy what you need and stay safe! 

If you are planning on taking a dive into Ecobricks I would highly recommend it, it is quick and easy to do. Just ensure that when handling these bottles that you are washing your hands, sanitizing, and/or wearing gloves. It is not fully clear how long the coronavirus can stay on surfaces, studies suggest it may persist on surfaces for a few hours or up to several days. 

Understanding who the real target is here. Let’s talk about my plastic problem!

My journey to becoming zero waste was not an easy one, but I guess easier than some have experienced. Living alone when starting this journey was a great benefit, other than loneliness. Anyway, I started my journey by not diving in the web or searching libraries for countless and countless pieces of information. The first thing I had to consider was “what do I do with my current waste?”. I spent a good hour with the devil and angel telling me “yes girl you will figure this out” and the other “girl you have no time for that, let’s go play”. The angel did win, I guess I do love a challenge. I had to tell myself that this journey will get easier once I am in it! However, before taking a dive I had to set myself targets, you know realistic ones? Plastic was my main target. Yes, it all started with me realizing that plastic was my main enemy, it is everywhere! Plastic pollution has a long list of long term effects; it can kill plant life, cause death to wildlife, humans, create illness and so on. The material was made for durability which is why it is difficult to recycle, the material is not biodegradable. 

The second word that made it to my list was ‘re-use’. I could not find any do-it-yourself videos or guides on the internet that appealed to me, I decided to come up with a few of my own recipes. My first project began when I realised that I did not have space or an organised section for my crafts. I managed to use up to 40% on my plastic waste to make a crafts station, which made my journey easier! Now as for the rest of the 60%, no this is not when I decided to do research. I had a conversation with my mentor at university 2 years ago about going zero waste. When starting the conversation I had no clue that she had been doing this journey already! Have you guys ever heard of Ecobricks? Well if not the business is a fantastic idea! An Ecobrick is a reusable building block created by packing clean and dry used plastic into a plastic bottle to a set density. What I had to do was sign up, receive my pack with a range of information and then send my  Ecobrick to the local collection centre. These bricks are used to make furniture, gardens and parks. 

Thanks to this company I managed to get rid of my 60% leftover plastic and filled 3 bottles full of plastic. So if you are on the road to a zero-waste lifestyle make sure you get rid of your current waste. Especially with a pandemic spreading quickly more and more of us are cooped indoors. Spend some of those days thinking about crafty ideas you could do with your ‘trash’, trash can also be materials too! ‘One man's trash is another man's treasure’, I love that quote especially for this topic. There has not been a world emergency like this since the black plague, which lasted approximately 500 days! Covid-19 has isolated people of the modern world, I want to wish you all the best during this stressful pandemic.

Next Blog post : Sunday 5th April - Zero waste shopping