'Earth Day' Weekend - A Call to End Plastic Ocean Pollution

As the world prepares for the Earth Day celebrations we would like to draw your attention to the very important matters of plastic pollution in our oceans. Here at Pacific TV we are pleased to hear that ocean pollution will be on the table for discussions at the Rio+ 20 Earth Summit coming this June 20th 2012, but we as citizens need to do more. If we really love this planet Earth we call home than we need to get serious about plastic pollution and finding alternative solutions.

Some may believe that it's too late and that the damage is already done to the oceans and some may disagree. As citizens, we may not be able to solve all the problems of the oceans but we certainly don't need to be contributing to it any more, so that's where we believe our personal responsibilities are as a citizen living on this planet. We can stop ocean pollution. We are the problem and we are the solution. It may be easier for some of us to blame a company or point a finger at a government entity as the ones who should be responsible for cleaning it up. But that simply is not true.  We all bear a responsibility in the solution to ocean pollution. 

You may be asking yourself: How can I help? What can I do? The answer is very simple, but challenging. It requires you to make a noticeable change in your shopping habits. First you can start off by using reusable washable canvas bags instead of disposable plastic shopping bags. AND most importantly, reusing your plastic shopping bags as "garbage bags" only ensures that it ends up in a landfill, which eventually makes its  way to the beaches and oceans. We need to stop using plastic bags altogether. They do not biodegrade, they are not compostable, and they are not earth friendly.

The next thing you can do is to look for "compostable" packaging when buying your favorite products. Avoid any plastic containers if possible. For example: Laundry Soap, buy the cardboard packaging instead of the plastic container. Some may argue that it's more expensive to purchase eco-friendly products as opposed to the cheaper plastic packaging, and some may even be on a tight budget and can't afford it. But consider this: you WILL pay eventually. You'll pay for it now, or you'll pay for it later, in hospital bills for a lifetime of eating foods contaminated with plastic chemicals. Buying products with "compostable" packing is an investment in the future. It may seem more expensive to you, but we believe its a worthy investment to consider.

The next thing you can do is, especially if you have kids, encourage the schools to sponsor plastic litter cleanup programs around the rivers and beaches in your local area. If they can make it into a field trip while teaching the kids their responsibilities of being a pollution-free citizen on this very fragile planet Earth, the kids will love it! That's the generation we have to get too before it's too late. These young minds will eventually be inventing new products and paving new ways. So lets make sure they care about the environment and consequences of not taking care of such a fragile eco-system.

Earth, it's our only home. We should have earth day everyday. There is no other planet in this solar system that we can live on. So we must take care of this one. It's not too late, as this eco-system has remarkable healing and regeneration properites if we just give the planet earth a chance to replenish herself. We do not need to be contributing to the pollution problems anymore, we can change our ways and encourage a better quality of packaging from the companies who make the products we use everyday. 

Happy Earth Day ~ Love your Mother!