Happily, it has gotten beyond individual efforts. Companies are listening and reacting. Our local Ohio giant grocery chain has pledged to stop using plastic bags.

Share holder action is forcing other companies to change practices as well.

States are acting on their own. California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington have banned disposable bags. Over 200 counties and municipalities have enacted ordinances either imposing a fee on plastic bags or banning them outright. California has adopted a microplastics reduction strategy. Many cities tax plastic drink bottles.

An important branch of the federal government, the Interior Department, is acting to end all single-use plastic on public lands.

But there is still you and me. We are on the front line. Here are ten things we can do to fight plastic pollution so that by next Plastic Free July there is even less needless plastic in our lives.

Thanks for your commitment to caring for God’s creation!