Ditch the Straw
Most beverages in America come with a plastic straw—even if it’s only a glass of water. Though it may not seem such a big deal, when added up, plastic straws create a major problem for the environment. In the U.S., Americans uses 500 million straws every day—that’s enough straws to circle around the Earth 2.5 times.
It’s no secret that plastic straws (and plastic in general) are bad for the environment, especially marine life. But did you know that plastic straws are the 11th most found ocean trash? What’s more, it takes up to 200 years for a plastic straw to decompose, and they can’t be recycled in most places. So ditch the straw, and drink your beverage straight up.
Drink, Eat, and Be Eco-friendly
There’s finally a solution for the 500 million plastic straws Americans use and discard every day. It’s Lolistraw, the world’s first hyper compostable, marine-degradable straw. Loliware, the company behind the edible and delicious straws, began developing edible cups which were featured on the show “Shark Tank.” After much success they created the Lolistraw, which is 100 percent plastic free, non-GMO and made with seaweed—a renewable resource that absorbs CO2 and has an environmental advantage.
Lollistraw creates new value after it’s used in three key ways: by transforming into plant fuel through composting, machine fuel through anaerobic digestion, or human fuel through eating. Flavors include rose, mango, yuzu, vanilla and mystery, and are all derived from 100 percent fruit and vegetables. Find out how you can get your hands on a Lolistraw by visiting www.loliware.com.
Cultivating Your "Green-ness"
Saving the planet may seem like an ambitious endeavor, but here are 10 simple ways you can make a difference every day:
Use energy efficient light bulbs. It will save the amount of power you use, and lower your electric bill. If every house in the United States did this, it would reduce pollution by the same amount as taking 1 million cars off the road.
Turn your computer off overnight. It will help the planet, and save you about $14 a year. Not a huge amount, but better in your pocket than the energy supplier’s pocket, right?
Recycle glass. Un-recycled glass can take up to 1 million years to decompose. When you recycle glass, it reduces related water pollution up to 50 percent and related air pollution by up to 20 percent.
Go vegetarian for a day. You don’t have to give up meat for life, but try to go meat-less one day a week. It takes 2,500 gallons of water to produce a single pound of beef.
Cut back on napkins. If every American used one less napkin a day, current figures show that it could save a billion pounds of space in landfills.
User paper wisely. Businesses in the U.S. waste 21 million tons of paper a year. Try to go paperless as much as possible. When it’s necessary to use paper, print on both sides. If you jot down a note on paper, use the rest of the sheet for your notes. And don’t forget to recycle!
Re-think bottled water. Bottled water is handy when you’re on the go, but why not buy one bottle and refill it from the tap. About 90 percent of water bottles end up decomposing in landfills rather than being recycled.
Take a shower. Switching from a bath to a shower can make a huge impact. Baths used approximately double the amount of water a shower uses. This not only saves water, but saves you money on heating the excess water, too.
Turn off the tap while brushing. When you turn off the tap while brushing your teeth, you can save 5 gallons of water a day—the equivalent of 1.5 billion gallons of water across the U.S.
Recycle your cell phone. With the average consumer replacing a cell phone every 18 months, 130 million cell phones are being disposed each year. If these go into landfill sites, the toxins from the cell battery leak into the soil and pollute the ground. Use a recycling program. The added bonus is that many programs contribute cell phones to charities.
