​Charity urges people to break their reliance on plastic

Scots are being challenged to go through July plastic-free.

They are being urged by the Marine Conservation Society (MCS) to try and detox their life of the planet's toxic substance of convenience

With more plastic than fish in our seas predicted to be a possibility by 2050, our reliance on plastic in all its forms is clear.

With the nightmare that plastic pollution is creating in our oceans now high on political, personal and news agendas, the MCS is once again throwing down the gauntlet to the public to take on its Plastic Challenge.

MCS is asking people to give up single-use plastics for the whole of July.

Simon Reeve, TV presenter and MCS ocean ambassador, said: “Our planet is becoming poisoned by plastic. The vast amount in our oceans has become an environmental emergency as a direct result of our throwaway society.

“That’s why I’m supporting thousands of people living without single use plastic this July as part of the Marine Conservation Society’s Plastic Challenge. Don’t just get depressed about plastic - stop using it!”

The charity has run the Plastic Challenge for the last four years – more than 1,000 people took part in 2016, and last year over 5,035 registered to give up using single use plastic.

That includes food packaged in plastic, plastic water bottles, plastic milk bottles, shower gels, toothpaste and pasta to name but a few.

Among the things people found hardest to replace were milk containers, dried goods packaged in single use plastic like pasta rice and pulses, loo paper and toothpaste.

MCS says that many people who take on the challenge really do get stuck in.

“They know why it’s so important to cut down on our plastic use," said Dr Sue Kinsey, MCS’s technical specialist. "If these dedicated ditchers found it hard to find non single use plastic alternatives then that just goes to show how plastic dominates our lives even if you actively don’t want it to."

Last year people made their own bread, yogurt, cleaning and bathroom products like mouthwash and sugar scrubs so as not to use plastic containers that are used once and then thrown out.

MCS beach cleaning data has revealed a rise of 180% of plastic litter found on beaches in the last two decades posing a huge threat to wildlife and humans.

Plastic bags, bottles and tiny plastic pieces, are regularly found in the stomachs of turtles and other sea creatures and in some cases have caused their death from starvation or choking.

Sign up to take part in the Plastic Challenge here.