 Red plastic cups, a staple of almost every outdoor party, are, not surprisingly, pretty terrible for the environment. Obviously, they’re made of plastic, which is made of non-renewable resources that are impossible to get to without harming the earth. Although they’re usually recyclable, many plastic cups aren’t recycled and end up in landfills or out in the environment, where they become harmful to wildlife.
Each year, tens of billions of plastic cups are used in U.S.--9 billion of those are from the airline industry alone. These are big numbers, for sure, but they represent just a fraction of the disposable cups that are used. If you add foam cups and paper (usually plastic-lined paper) cups, the grand total is 100 billion per year. In the U.S. alone. The Challenge For the next two weeks, don’t use any plastic cups. Comment to let others know you’re taking the challenge! The planet thanks you. Eco-Friendly Alternatives If you’re hosting a party, use cups that aren’t single-use. If you don’t have enough of your own, borrow some from a friend. Guests can write their names on the cups with a glass marker or a dry-erase marker. If you’re going to a party, bring your own water bottle or cup that you can bring back home and wash.
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 Every year, 50 billion disposable coffee cups are thrown away in the US alone. According to eC02Greetings, if we stacked all of these coffee cups into a pyramid, it would reach 701m (almost 2300 ft). All of these cups go into landfills because they can’t be recycled, along with their plastic lids and plastic or wood stir sticks.
Even though most coffee cups are made of paper, they aren’t recyclable because they are lined with polyethylene plastic for durability. In addition, most plastic tops and stirrers are not recyclable. The Challenge For the next two weeks, don’t use disposable coffee cups (or lids or stirrers). Comment to let us know you’re taking the challenge! The planet thanks you! Eco-Friendly Alternatives Bring your own travel mug or coffee cup to your favorite coffee shop! Coffee shops often sell reusable cups and mugs, and many will give you a discount for bringing your own. |