When it comes to stopping pollution (or, for example, reducing greenhouse gas emissions!), we are often confronted by skeptics and deniers who claim that “we cannot change anything” and that “everything we are trying to do is in vain.” But a study of ocean cleanups proves them wrong!
This post was written by Dr. Andrej Kržan, Chief Science Officer and Cofounder of PlanetCare
This week, an article appeared in the journal Science (1), showing that our actions do have consequences—and when those actions are positive, the consequences are positive too! It may sound logical, but evidence is always important—especially since, proverbially, the road to hell is paved with good intentions.
In the U.S., the authors of the paper analyzed data from more than 45,000 (!!) shoreline cleanups and combined it with information on over 600 policies aimed at reducing plastic bag use—such as bans and taxes. Litter collected during cleanups is typically categorized, and the data is entered into a shared database maintained by the Ocean Conservancy. This allowed the researchers to cross-reference cleanup results with policy measures geographically.
Their findings?
Plastic bag policies led to a 25–47% decrease in plastic bags as a share of all plastic items collected during cleanups. While the total number of plastic items (including bags) is still increasing, these measures have successfully slowed the growth of plastic bag pollution.
So yes—measures do work!
This study carries a powerful message: we should never give up. Every effort to reduce our environmental impact matters. Often, taking action is simple and doesn’t burden us. And this also highlights the value of volunteer cleanups and citizen science—they provide meaningful, actionable data. Thank you!
Reducing microfiber pollution is another area that often attracts skepticism—after all, unlike plastic bags or bottles, we can’t see the fibers. And as we all know, seeing is believing. At PlanetCare, we consistently say that every microfiber filter counts in the fight against pollution. We hope that, in time, a study similar to the one on plastic bags will validate our message—and the actions of thousands of our customers.
- https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adp9274
At Planetcare we develop solutions that help solve the problem of microplastic pollution. As 35% of microplastics in the oceans coming from washing machines (synthetic clothes shed microfibers during washing), we have developed an easy to use and super effective microfiber filter that captures 98% of these microfibers. It's a small but effective step towards a cleaner future.
To help you become part of the solution, we prepared a special offer: a 10% discount on the PlanetCare 2.0 microfiber filter, or One Month Free for the Planetcare GO Easy subscription.
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