REFUSE
Take the pledge: REFUSE single-use plastics!
Small changes can make a world of difference. Let’s turn the tide on plastics pollution together.
We challenge Coastal Stewards from all walks of life to REFUSE single-use plastics wherever possible by choosing alternative materials, reusable packaging, and sharing the importance of sustainability in their communities.
Take the pledge
“I choose to REFUSE single-use plastics to help protect sea turtles and other marine life, and the global ocean we all share”
REFUSE Single-Use Plastic
This is a critical way you can actively support our mission.
Single-use plastic is simply those plastic items that are intended to be used only once before they are thrown away.
That includes products such as plastic grocery bags, straws and coffee stirrers, most food packaging, utensils, and much, much more. These items cause incredible harm to habitats and wildlife in the ocean and other ecosystems.
What items can you REFUSE today?
- Plastic shopping bags
- Plastic produce bags
- Plastic cutlery (forks, sporks, knives, spoons)
- Plastic straws
- Plastic water bottles
- Plastic/styrofoam take-out or to-go containers
- Plastic containers
- Plastic cups
- Six-pack rings
- Plastic toothbrushes
- Cotton swabs with plastic stems
- Plastic tape
What items can you CHOOSE today instead?
- Canvas or other reusable bags
- Metal cutlery or other reusable silverware made of materials like bamboo
- Paper, glass, bamboo or stainless-steel straws
- Reusable drink bottles and cups
- Products in boxes/glass/aluminum instead of plastic
- Wax paper, foil, or silicone wraps & covers
- Bamboo toothbrushes
- Cotton swabs that have paper stems
- Masking tape
- Bar soaps & shampoos instead of liquids sold in plastic containers
Why is it important to reduce our use?
Plastics are forever, even if they are used only once. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, outside of the small amount of plastics incinerated, every bit of plastic ever manufactured still exists today. Plastics pile up on our beaches, float in our waters, and poison our wildlife. The use of single-use plastics has tripled in the last 20 years.
A 2016 study by the World Economic Forum suggests that by 2050 there will be more plastic by weight in our ocean than fish.
According to the report, more than 70 percent of the plastic we produce is either put in a landfill or filling the world’s waterways and oceans.
- Did you know that in the next ten years, the amount of plastic in our oceans and along our coast is expected to triple?
- Right now, there are more microplastics in our waters than there are stars in the Milky Way?
- Do you stop and consider that the plastic bag or take-out container is harmful to the marine life? It is. Many hatchlings that wash back along our beaches are suffering from the impacts of mistaking these single-use plastics for food. And once eaten, it leads to malnutrition and eventual starvation.
- When you choose to refuse single-use plastic products, you increase the chance that our planet can recover from plastic overuse. Coastal Stewards commit to do our part and, together, we make a difference.
