In the new animated Disney movie “Finding Dory,” the adorable little blue tang voiced by Ellen DeGeneres accidentally sleep-swims her way out into the open ocean, gets trapped in a plastic six-pack ring, and ends up captured.

Dory turns out ok. Her panicked family eventually finds her, and they go back to swimming through forests of  kelp, over gorgeous coral reefs, and around all kinds of other fish, urchins, octopi, sea otters and more.

But here’s the spoiler alert: The movie is a cartoon, but the oceans it depicts are not, especially when it comes to plastic pollution. In fact, by 2050, Dory’s fate could be far worse than what’s depicted in the film. That’s because:

in less than 35 years, scientists predict that
there will be more plastic in the sea than fish when measured by weight.

All good movies have a hero, and fortunately, our real-life movie about ocean pollution does, too. It’s the Love the Ocean campaign, a joint initiative of the National Geographic Society’s Pristine Seas Project and DAVIDOFF Cool Water, a fragrance for men whose sales  help protect marine environments across the globe. They’re sponsoring this post so you can pitch in and not just love the oceans, but help save them, too.

Why Bother?

Don’t think the oceans are worth protecting? Here are 6 mind-boggling facts that will change your mind in less time than it takes you to make a tuna fish sandwich.

Stop Trashing the Oceans.

6 Mind-Boggling Reasons Why.

1) 71% of the “earth” is covered by the ocean. The oceans are why the world exists as we know it. No oceans? No us.

2) Over 50% of the oxygen we breathe is produced by our oceans. Don’t like the idea of suffocating? Keep the oceans alive.

3) A shocking 11 billion pounds of plastic waste were dumped into the ocean in 2012 alone. That’s just one year. Now multiply that year after year after year. Mind boggling, right?

4) By the year 2050, the oceans will contain more plastic than fish when measured by weight. Yes, I said this already. I’m repeating it so you will, as well. Because that’s what you need to do with mind-boggling facts. Tell everyone you know so their mind will get boggled, too – right before they take action.

5) 90% of the world’s fisheries are either overexploited or fully fished out. That means that the fish that used to be there pretty much aren’t any more.

6) 47% of edible seafood is wasted each year in the United States alone. It’s like taking that nice piece of grilled salmon on your plate, cutting it in half, and throwing it away. Just. Like. That.

What Can You Do to Save Dory and Stop Trashing the Oceans? Go Plastic-Free.

At the Love the Ocean website, spokesperson and hunky actor/model Scott Eastwood (yes, THAT Eastwood) says, “We can’t ignore the importance of protecting the world’s oceans.”

“As individuals, we have more power to change the world than we think.”

You can watch his short and compelling video right here:

Eastwood also encourages folks like you and me to go plastic-free. Here’s how:

1. Stop using so much plastic, especially plastic bags.
2. Encourage your local government to introduce legislation supporting a plastic bag ban, or ask consumers to pay a small fee to use plastic bags rather than their own reusables.
3. Take the Plastic Free Challenge. Avoid single-use plastic as long as you can – a day, a week, a month, longer? (Beth Terry at My Plastic Free Life can show you exactly how to live very happily without plastic.)
4. Use your social networks. Encourage friends, family, neighbors, co-workers and your community online to kick the plastic habit, too.
5. Join a clean up. DAVIDOFF is organizing beach clean-ups in the United States, United Kingdom and Germany to get people involved. But don’t wait for them to pitch in. Your local environmental organization and coastal protection group probably already has clean-ups in the works. If not, help them get one going.

By the way, make sure you’re eating the right fish, too. Leave the threatened species alone. Purchase only seafood certified by the Marine Stewardship Council as being sustainably maintained. You can see the list of what they recommend here. Or, look for their eco-label when you shop.

The post Finding Dory Will Be Impossible If We Don’t Stop Trashing the Oceans appeared first on Big Green Purse.

The new environmental law, which goes into effect January 1, 2012, is designed to help get rid of the billions of horrible, nasty, throwaway bags that waste resources, clog waterways, and kill wildlife.

Throwaway bags are one of those inventions that never should have seen the light of day. According to Pati Robinson from The Cleaner Earth Project, in 2010 consumers worldwide used over 1
trillion throwaway plastic bags. Because the bags don’t biodegrade, they cause serious environmental problems. When they get loose, they end up polluting rivers, streams and oceans, where animals
mistake them for food and die. In fact, scientists have found that fish living in the Pacific Ocean eat more plastic than plankton! Wildlife also die when they get tangled in plastic and can’t break free.

Plus, plastic bags waste oil. An estimated 12 million barrels of oil are required to make the nearly 100 billion single use plastic bags used every year in the U.S. alone, says Cleaner Earth.

Then there’s the fright factor. Plastic bags are downright ugly when they get caught in trees or blow along the highway like synthetic tumbleweed.

For years, municipalities the world over mounted campaigns to educate people about the harm plastic bags cause while trying to motivate consumers to use reusable bags, to no avail. Then someone smart hit on the idea to charge shoppers for every plastic bag they used.

Today, cities that require retailers to charge as little as a nickel for each bag a consumer takes are finding plastic bag use plummeting. In nearby Washington, D.C., disposable plastic bags used to make up 47% of the trash found in the Anacostia river basin. The Anacostia River feeds right into the Potomac, which feeds into the Chesapeake Bay, which feeds into the Atlantic Ocean. Conceivably, a bag thrown on the sidewalk in D.C. could end up in a sea gull’s belly in no time at all.

In January 2010, a nickel fee was placed on single-use plastic bags. In just six months, bag use decreased by 65%, reducing the total number of bags per month to 3.3 million, down from 22.5 million per month prior to the fee, reported the Washington Post.

Now, a nickel is not a lot of money. It’s just five pennies. Pretty much anyone who has bought enough stuff to need a bag can afford to pay for it.

Yet human nature being what it is, people seem to hate paying “extra” for something they used to get for free. I’ve stood in line at a cash register in D.C. and watched people fill their arms to
overflowing with their purchases rather then cough up a measly five cents to put it in a bag.

Stupid?

Nope. Brilliant!

Other cities are looking equally environmentally savvy. Brownsville,Texas, is charging people an extra dollar for each transaction that requires a disposable plastic bag. Why?

“We want to have a beautiful city,” Commissioner Edward Camarillo said. “We want to make sure that we take care of the environment.”

San Francisco started the trend in the U.S. in 2007. The result has been a 50 percent drop in plastic bag litter on the streets since the ban took effect. Several other California cities, including Palo Alto, Malibu, and Fairfax, have since followed suit. On the east coast, North Carolina banned single-use plastic and non-recyclable bags last year in the Outer Banks. Retailers like Ikea and Apple no longer give out free bags in their U.S. stores, either. Across the pond, British retailer Marks and Spencer (M&S), has seen an 80% reduction in the use of disposable plastic shopping bags since introducing a charge for them nearly a year ago. The company reports that the number of bags
taken over the last year has fallen from 460 million a year to 80 million.

This is such a simple solution, why doesn’t the entire U.S. adopt the policy? We wouldn’t be alone. India and China have already banned single use plastic bags outright. Ireland introduced a plastic bag tax in 2002 that cut consumption by 90%. Canada’s 2003 plastic bag tax has inspired 95% of consumers there to supply their own sustainable bags when they shop.

When’s the last time anyone ever got so much for a nickel?

GET REUSABLE BAGS!

Every grocery store sells durable, reusable bags for $.99. Or take a look at the fashionable bags we sell in our store.

The post My County Finally Did It! What About Yours? Our New Plastic Bag “Tax.” appeared first on Big Green Purse.

The bag had already caught my eye, not only because it’s so cheerful and colorful, but also because it’s made from 80% post-consumer waste.  Plus, it’s got a washable surface and actually seems more ample inside than the standard paper grocery bag.

I asked Lillian Buie, marketing manager for the Whole Foods where I shop in Silver Spring, MD, what the give-away meant for the store’s use of paper and plastic bags.

“As of Earth Day 2008 (April 22, 2008), we won’t be bagging food in plastic anymore,” she said.  Paper bags (made from 100% recycled paper, and totally recyclable) will remain an option for customers who don’t bring their own bags, and the store will still provide plastic for bagging produce, meats and fish. But plastic grocery bags will be gone.

Even if you miss the free giveaway, these bags are worth buying. At only 99 cents per bag, you can’t go wrong (I’ve already bought three). And every time you use them, you’ll get a 5 cents/per bag refund on your grocery bill. The bags will pay for themselves in no time.

Thumbs up, Whole Foods.

MEMORY TIP: BTW, if you have trouble remembering to take reusable bags to the grocery store, try this: after you unpack your groceries, put all the bags inside a main bag, and put the main bag with your car keys. The next time you go to your car, take the bags and toss them in the back seat or the trunk. The bags won’t clutter a kitchen cupboard or closet, and you’ll always have reusable bags when you shop.

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