Part of the Problem or Part of the Solution?

     Unless you are a Rip Van Winkle who has slept for a hundred years,  you are certainly aware of the global issue of plastic pollution.

     There is not a corner of the earth, or of the oceans, that is immune from it. From the trendiest beaches, favoured by sun worshippers and hedonists, to the remotest stretches of unoccupied Arctic coastline, plastic is ubiquitous. It is a hazard to human health and an ever-present danger to wildlife.

     How tragic is it to see the stomach of the young albatross below filled with plastic, fed to it by unwitting parents?

     What are we doing to this planet, this blue dot, the only place we have to live? 
     It often seems to me that despite our knowledge, despite the fact that we are confronted with this issue every day, there is little will on the part of the average citizen to tackle it. I still see shoppers, many in fact, at the grocery store putting one tomato in a plastic bag, one avocado in another plastic bag, a couple of onions in another, and so on, and then getting a couple more plastic bags at the checkout to carry it home. It is ridiculous, excessive, unconscionable and unnecessary. 
     Yet we can all do something about it. 
     First it is important to advocate to store owners that they should make it easy for people to bring their own containers. We can refuse to use plastic straws and suggest to restaurant owners that they discontinue their use. It is easy to take one's own thermal mug to your favourite coffee chain and have them fill it rather than taking a plastic lined paper cup, a plastic lid and, often, a paper sleeve to safeguard against holding a hot cup. When I buy olives I put them in my own container. The list goes on. I am sure you can think of countless instances yourself. Simply refuse to patronize an establishment if they resist becoming a little more enlightened.
     For our part, we have eliminated the use of plastic, especially single use plastic, almost completely. And we have now extended this to paper also.
     We never shop without taking our own shopping bags. Never! Doesn't matter what we are buying. And they are all made by Miriam from recycled materials.

          We always have a good supply in the car, and Miriam has even made bags that fold up into a little pouch and we make sure that we have those in the glove compartment too.

     When I visit my favourite bakery I take my own cloth bags - one for a loaf of bread, another for buns/bagels/rolls. No plastic or paper is taken from the store.

     And it catches on. Other people have remarked that they too should start doing that.
     Miriam and I often talk about the issues and devise ways to eliminate waste. She is the one who comes up with the products and makes them. 
     She has for many years made a whole range of items from recycled materials, and now scours thrift stores and charity shops for old lace curtains and the like, from which she makes produce bags.

     They weigh next to nothing and are see-through, so when you get to the store checkout counter the contents are easily visible. I am quite certain that this type of bag weighs no more that the plastic bag others (hopefully fewer and fewer) choose for their fruit and vegetables.
     Instead of using plastic wrap at home Miriam makes beeswax food wraps which can be wiped off after each use and used over and over again. I can barely remember not using these!

     Another product we have substantially eliminated is paper towel. What we use now is often referred to as unpaper towel. It can even be stored on the same holder, vertical or horizontal, as paper towel, and washed and reused over and over again. Not only is it effective, we save money by greatly reducing our purchase of paper towel.

     Little cloth hankies in a pouch replace paper tissues.

     They can also be used as napkins for a summer picnic.
     Larger ones are more suitable for men, perhaps.

     It is very important of course to make sure that the plastic you cannot avoid acquiring  is recycled correctly. In this area we have highly efficient recycling plants, but in many parts of the world there are no such facilities, and even here only about 8% of all the plastic we put out for recycling is ever actually recycled. There is simply not the capacity at present to do more.
    So, you can't change the world overnight but you can make a difference. You can choose to be part of the problem or part of the solution. Just imagine the reduction in plastic waste if everyone could curtail their use of this virtually indestructible substance by 50% by the end of the year. 
     The time for excuses is past. The time for action is now.

West Perth Wetland, Mitchell, ON

28 July 2018

     Our good friend John Sanderson recently had hip replacement surgery and is recovering nicely. In order to give his hip a test drive, so to speak, we accompanied him and Geraldine to one of their favourite birding areas. John did well and his mobility has improved immeasurably since before the surgery. He didn't want to push it too much, however, so went back to the car to rest while we carried on with our birding.

     When shorebirds are migrating West Perth Wetland is a magnet for a number of species. Adult peeps (mostly Least (Calidris minutilla) and Semipalmated Sandpipers (Calidris pusilla) were present - and they were too far out to identify other species if there were any - with hatch year birds to follow soon.

      In addition to the birds there was an abundance of Grove Snails (Cepaea nemoralis) and much as we tried to avoid stepping on them it was at times impossible, and whenever we heard a crunch underneath our feet we knew another had met its demise.

     Of ducks we saw many Mallards (Anas platyrynchos) but a lone female Wood Duck (Aix sponsa) joined the parade too.

     Both of these species breed at Mitchell and it will be another couple of months before the migratory ducks from the north begin to arrive.  

     Lesser Yellowlegs (Tringa flavipes) was far and away the most common shorebird, as it generally is at this time of the year. It may be familiar but it is a handsome bird indeed and merits a full measure of our appreciation.

     We probably saw several Savannah Sparrows (Passerculus sandwichensis) but they never stayed put long enough for us to be sure. There is no doubt about this one, however.

     A Caspian Tern (Hydroprogne caspia) and a couple of Ring-billed Gulls (Larus delawarensis) seemed content to loaf around watching the sandpipers frantically gathering food.

     West Perth Wetland can deliver some lovely surprises from time to time (the first time we ever went there a Red Knot (Calidris canutus) in breeding plumage) and today we were treated to the wonderful sight of several splendidly attired Short-billed Dowitchers (Limnodromus griseus) feeding away with their signature stitching motion.

     One might have wished for them to be a little closer, but we had great looks through the scope. It just wasn't as good as it might have been for photographs. Actually had Franc been with us, with his equipment, he would have had some wonderful captures.

     Semipalmated Sandpipers fed a little closer to shore.

     Least Sandpiper too.

     As much of a delight as the dowitchers was a Stilt Sandpiper (Calidris himantopus) still retaining vestiges of its breeding plumage. This is a bird that can be found each year, but not without some diligent searching.

     On the way back to the car a group of Eastern Kingbirds (Tyrannus tyrannus) let us know that they had a successful breeding season.

    When we shared our sightings with John he was delighted at our success. Next time we go to the wetland I have no doubt that he will be able to join us for more of the circuit and he too will have the kind of sensory top up we had.

     And now, if I may, let me address something totally unrelated, a topic that has been much on my mind of late. It is the use (misuse is more appropriate) of single use plastics. The sheer complacency of people now that I have been deliberately taking note is staggering. We seem to be hardly making a dent into this problem and we continue to flood both the earth and the oceans with this nearly indestructible detritus.

     It has to become an individual responsibility to reduce and ultimately eliminate it. 

     I am reminded that many years ago, when companies sent their management people to motivational seminars, I attended such an event in Calgary, AB where Ziz Ziglar was the featured proselytizer. Most of what he evangelized about was utter nonsense it seemed to me, but I do remember one point that left its mark. It was the concept of always measuring the inevitable secondary result of any action you take. He illustrated the point like this. He asked everyone in the audience to raise their hand if they had a piece of the pie served for dessert the previous night. There was a great show of hands. He then asked how many people were ten pounds or more overweight, and there was another great show of hands. He then said, "Well, when you made the choice to have the pie you made the choice to be overweight." One logically follows on the other. And so, when you continue to use single use plastic you are making a conscious decision to pollute the environment.

    So stop doing it. It is probably impossible to achieve 100% success but you can come close to it.  Let me give you one simple illustration of how great strides can be made easily. The other day I went to the store to buy red and green peppers, apples, bananas, green onions,  and a red onion. I took a cloth bag that Miriam made and put everything in that bag. Some shoppers put each item in its own plastic bag - the red pepper in its bag, the green pepper in its bag...and so on. That represents six plastic bags and then they go to the checkout and pay 5 cents for a plastic shopping bag to carry off the six other plastic bags. It boggles the mind. But this behaviour is repeated over and over again. When water in plastic bottles is on sale at the store shoppers leave with cart loads full. I see consumers pick up meat which is already on a styrofoam tray enveloped in plastic wrap, then place it in another plastic bag.

     Instead of buying individual little plastic containers of yogurt why not buy a big tub and use your own containers? Tell restaurants that use plastic straws that you will no longer take your business there if they continue to do so. Find coffee shops that will fill your own cup. 

     I shop at Costco and they are always shoveling food samples at everyone, served in little plastic containers with a plastic utensil provided, all of which are immediately thrown away. I cannot buy produce there. If I want to buy tomatoes, for example, they are prepackaged in a plastic box. Grapes are also in a plastic box, apples are in a plastic box or bag...and so on.

     The airlines have to start to address this problem and as consumers we can be influential. Think of the amount of disposable items used on every plane throughout the world every day. Our politicians need to change their habits. Each time a cabinet meeting is shown on television there is a plastic bottle of water at every chair. Do you all remember Trump's clumsy efforts to drink from a plastic bottle at the podium? Why couldn't that be replaced with pitchers of water and glasses?

     I could go on, but I am sure the point is made. There are countless ways you can stop using single use plastic and if we all do it there will be a very significant reduction. I hope the day will soon come when drinking from a plastic bottle will be as uncouth as spitting in a spittoon. Remember, that was once socially acceptable too.