Comments on: Plastic-Free Living: Let’s Talk

By: Beth Terry

Beth Terry — Tue, 18 May 2010 01:18:29 +0000

Ruthie, I’ll get right on it. :-)

By: Ruthie

Ruthie — Sat, 15 May 2010 02:51:45 +0000

Please show us a picture of your pantry!!!!
.-= Ruthie´s last blog ..Every day is jeans day in May! =-.

By: Joanna

Joanna — Sat, 08 May 2010 05:37:15 +0000

What do you do for pantyhose? I don’t wear them much, but sometimes they are very useful. I have some nice skirts and dresses I like to wear to formal occasions and it’s not always warm enough here for bare legs and sandals.

By: Beth Terry

Beth Terry — Fri, 07 May 2010 21:17:01 +0000

Hey Tanya, I'm working on a post today answering many of these questions, but I just wanted to leave a comment here about the Jurlique sunscreen. I looked it up online, and it contains Oxybenzone, which is ranked as highly hazardous on EWG's cosmetics database. So I'd avoid it if I were you, even though I know you paid a fortune for it! .-= Beth Terry´s last blog ..Brand New Plastic-Free Vegetarian =-.

By: Patty

Patty — Thu, 06 May 2010 12:10:46 +0000

Another thought from me. Since the giant floating island of plastic has been brought up I was wondering about fishing lures. I know one could use bugs and worms but the store sells tons of litle plastic squiggly things to THROW into the water. Sure its supposed to be attached to the hook but really many are lost. I wonder if the fishing industry is taking any steps to change habits or materials.
You mentioned how some of these biodegradable forks and things aren’t degrading as quickly. I’ve now seen a credit card offer where ‘the card will degrade within 5 years in landfill conditions’(or something like that) and yesterday I saw trash bags sold that are ‘oxodegradable’. It said the bags were made of 100% recycled materials and are 100% recyclable. Their purpose was construction/contractor bags so it seemed like they would be headed to a landfill. I could use some education in this spot for sure.

By: Canadian

Canadian — Tue, 04 May 2010 18:42:03 +0000

I’m interested in natural alternatives for sports clothing and bras for large-busted women.

By: Leanne

Leanne — Tue, 04 May 2010 00:18:03 +0000

My big issue is kids.

I know you don’t have them, but I do. How do I tell my five year old autistic son that he can’t have the Fisher-Price rocket ship he’s been craving for months, especially when he’s due a reward for *finally* being toilet trained?

It’s so hard. The world of kids is one of plastic. All their toys are plastic. The packaging is plastic. Their night nappies are plastic. Sure, I could go to cloth, but then I’m even more exhausted than I am now.

How can we, as parents, ever get around the kid-plastic-thing, without becoming the “no you can’t have it” nasty parents we don’t want to be? My kids are not spoiled, they don’t get everything they want, but surely they deserve *some* of the toys they want, that other kids have!
.-= Leanne´s last blog ..Old Man Willow told me not to cut him down =-.

By: Tina Clark

Tina Clark — Mon, 03 May 2010 16:46:09 +0000

chokingplanet, as far as dog poop bags, try: http://www.poopbags.com. It’s the best way I’ve found so far.

By: Kate E.

Kate E. — Mon, 03 May 2010 13:17:19 +0000

I absolutely LOVE this blog and reading all of the comments fills me up with such joy to be among like-minded people!
My biggest issue for plastic is food choices. We eat lots of fruits and veggies, but I’ve noticed that so many of them are pre-packaged in plastic. Some are easy to find alternatives to, like picking my own apples and putting them in a cotton bag that I bring to the store, but others, like berries are nowhere to be found unless they are frozen in a plastic bag or stored in a plastic clamshell. I think it’s just taking the time, on my part, to find these solutions. I have 3 hungry little boys who eat a lot of food. Finding quick ways to get them nutritious food without extra packaging is admittedly tough for me. I feel like I should learn to make my own yogurt, make my own soymilk, make my own (add whatever convenience food you’d like here)….but I wonder where I will get the time to do it. I would love to know of places or companies that blend convenience with kindness to the earth. I know it’s a personal responsibility to cut back and do without, but it wouldn’t hurt to have some help in that dept. I remember years ago buying shampoo in aluminum bottles from a company called ‘earthpreserv’….I don’t know what happened to the company or the idea, but while it lasted, I thought it was great. I feel like individuals can and do make a huge difference, but I still find myself wishing I could walk into my local grocery store and have tons of plastic-free options staring me in the face!
.-= Kate E.´s last blog ..Putting Little Green Thoughts Into Practice =-.

By: Amy

Amy — Mon, 03 May 2010 13:03:11 +0000

I agree that buying from bulk bins may reduce the amount of packaging involved but I am curious about the actual impact and if it isn’t smaller than one might think. It isn’t as if the food goes straight from the farmer’s field into the bins at the store.

What is the food put into during all the intermediate steps? I’ve seen the store employees emptying cardboard boxes full of plastic bags and foil pouches into bulk bins. Some of these packages don’t seem that much bigger than what you might find if you shopped at Costco and bought the 4 pound bag of nuts. And what does the store do with the packages that the bulk foods come in. I’m sure they aren’t reusing them like I might if I buy a glass package. Maybe we can all feel good about not having food containers to recycle because really we are just transferring that step to the store…

Anyway, you are the only blogger that really gives a fair and balanced looked at the issues and I am curious what your reporting skills would turn up regarding this one. Thanks for all the work you do. Hope your retreat was refreshing.