• Hard 2 Recycle
  • Programs
    • Bee City USA Asheville >
      • Native Pollinator Plants and Nurseries
      • Pollination Celebration >
        • Pollinator Photo Contest
      • Pollinator Garden Certification
    • Rivers & Roads >
      • Adopt-a-Street
      • Clean Streams Day
      • Cleanup Supply Stations
      • Trash Trout
      • WNC Big Sweep
    • Education
    • Urban Forestry >
      • Adopt-a-Spot
      • Cool Green Asheville
      • Food Tree Project
      • RRI
      • Tree Nursery
      • Treasured Trees >
        • Treasured Trees Calendar
    • Waste Reduction >
      • Asheville Bag Monster
      • Composting Information
      • Flip Your Lid
      • Plastics Reduction Task Force
      • Recycling Information
      • Smash Don't Trash
  • Get Involved
    • Volunteer
    • Experiential Internships
    • Youth Environmental Leadership Program >
      • YELP Staff & Alumni
      • How to Apply
    • Make a Donation
    • Wish List
    • Sponsorship
  • Upcoming Events
  • About
    • Job Openings
    • History
    • Staff/ Contact
  • Newsletter
  • Blog Roll
    • Latest News
    • Protect our Pollinators
    • Voice for the Trees
    • Mind Your Plastic May
    • Fall Leaves
ASHEVILLE GREENWORKS
  • Hard 2 Recycle
  • Programs
    • Bee City USA Asheville >
      • Native Pollinator Plants and Nurseries
      • Pollination Celebration >
        • Pollinator Photo Contest
      • Pollinator Garden Certification
    • Rivers & Roads >
      • Adopt-a-Street
      • Clean Streams Day
      • Cleanup Supply Stations
      • Trash Trout
      • WNC Big Sweep
    • Education
    • Urban Forestry >
      • Adopt-a-Spot
      • Cool Green Asheville
      • Food Tree Project
      • RRI
      • Tree Nursery
      • Treasured Trees >
        • Treasured Trees Calendar
    • Waste Reduction >
      • Asheville Bag Monster
      • Composting Information
      • Flip Your Lid
      • Plastics Reduction Task Force
      • Recycling Information
      • Smash Don't Trash
  • Get Involved
    • Volunteer
    • Experiential Internships
    • Youth Environmental Leadership Program >
      • YELP Staff & Alumni
      • How to Apply
    • Make a Donation
    • Wish List
    • Sponsorship
  • Upcoming Events
  • About
    • Job Openings
    • History
    • Staff/ Contact
  • Newsletter
  • Blog Roll
    • Latest News
    • Protect our Pollinators
    • Voice for the Trees
    • Mind Your Plastic May
    • Fall Leaves
Picture
We are drowning in plastic.

From beauty products to grocery bags to water bottles to our daily cup of coffee, plastic is present in every aspect of our lives. Most of these items are designed to be used once and thrown away, usually heading to the landfill.

Some of the plastic that we think can be recycled, like drink lids, straws and utensils, end up in the landfill because they're either too difficult to recycle or there's no market for the end products. Even recyclable plastic such as water bottles are becoming harder to recycle.

The most effective approach to reducing our plastic waste is to REFUSE, REDUCE, and REUSE.

In January 2019, GreenWorks spearheaded the creation of the Plastics Reduction Task Force -- a group of motivated volunteers dedicated to reducing single-use plastic in our environment. 
​
Join the plastic-free movement and break free from the plastic ties that bind us.
Donate now for a plastic-free future
Mind Your Plastic May is meant to encourage and challenge us in our journey to live plastic free. These posts are created by GreenWorks staff, Plastic Reduction Task Force volunteers, and other plastic-free advocates in Buncombe County. If you've found these posts helpful and encouraging, please consider making a donation to support this work. If you have any questions, please email [email protected]
Picture

Stop Showering in Plastic!

5/15/2019

0 Comments

 
Over the past couple of weeks we've shared some great tips to curbing the addiction to single-use plastics in our daily lives. Now it’s time to explore our plastic use in the bathroom. As a society, we’re swimming in plastics in the bathroom and most of our shower items are contained in plastics. Take a look behind your shower curtain and you’ll most likely spot plastic shampoo and conditioner bottles, plastic face and body wash bottles, or maybe a plastic loofah...the list goes on. On the upside, many of these plastic items can be recycled...if you take the time to rinse them out. But let’s go a step further and change up the shower routine to completely wipe out that pesky plastic.

How do we get plastics out of our showers for good? It’s surprisingly easy. Let’s start with shampoos and conditioners. There are so many alternative to choose from for each hair type. Bars are becoming very popular and are among one of my favorite alternatives. Another easy option is to get a glass or aluminum refillable bottle and go to your local Earth Fare to fill up on shampoo and conditioner from the bulk bottles. The same goes for your face and body washes. Again, bars are an excellent alternative and come in many different formulas for each skin type. Refillable jars for face and body washes can be filled at Earth Fare as well or West Village Market.
Picture
Lastly, that plastic loofah. If you weren’t aware these guys are a hotbed for bacteria to grow and it is recommended that they be thrown out and replaced every two to three months! An excellent alternative to the loofah is a scrub brush. You can get a hand held one or even one with a long arm for those hard to reach spots on your back. Washcloths are another great alternative to a loofah -- soap it up and scrub away. For the DIYers out there, you can grow your own loofah sponge: https://www.theartofdoingstuff.com/growing-luffa-sponges/
Picture
Links
Shampoos & Conditioners: 
https://ethiquebeauty.com/collections/hair
​
https://broo.com/hair/bar-shampoo/ 
Body & Face Wash: 
https://shop.drbronner.com/castile-bar-soap
Scrub Brush: 
https://ecotools.com​​
Picture
Easier than you thought, right? Good luck and happy showering!
​

Shelby Hyatt
GreenWorks Water Quality Coordinator
​AmeriCorps Project Conserve
Picture
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    AuthorS

    Staff from Asheville GreenWorks, volunteers from the Plastic Reduction Task Force, as well as other guest writers who are advocates and friends.

    Archives

    May 2020
    May 2019
    April 2019

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed


​Asheville GreenWorks is a 501(c)3 non-profit environmental organization, governed by a Board of Directors. Established in 1973, GreenWorks mission is to inspire, equip and mobilize individuals and communities to take care of the places we love to live.
  • Hard 2 Recycle
  • Programs
    • Bee City USA Asheville >
      • Native Pollinator Plants and Nurseries
      • Pollination Celebration >
        • Pollinator Photo Contest
      • Pollinator Garden Certification
    • Rivers & Roads >
      • Adopt-a-Street
      • Clean Streams Day
      • Cleanup Supply Stations
      • Trash Trout
      • WNC Big Sweep
    • Education
    • Urban Forestry >
      • Adopt-a-Spot
      • Cool Green Asheville
      • Food Tree Project
      • RRI
      • Tree Nursery
      • Treasured Trees >
        • Treasured Trees Calendar
    • Waste Reduction >
      • Asheville Bag Monster
      • Composting Information
      • Flip Your Lid
      • Plastics Reduction Task Force
      • Recycling Information
      • Smash Don't Trash
  • Get Involved
    • Volunteer
    • Experiential Internships
    • Youth Environmental Leadership Program >
      • YELP Staff & Alumni
      • How to Apply
    • Make a Donation
    • Wish List
    • Sponsorship
  • Upcoming Events
  • About
    • Job Openings
    • History
    • Staff/ Contact
  • Newsletter
  • Blog Roll
    • Latest News
    • Protect our Pollinators
    • Voice for the Trees
    • Mind Your Plastic May
    • Fall Leaves