Trash Talking

Believe it or not, living on an island surrounded by beautiful blue water and waves has its challenges. Aside from the obvious, (being disconnected from the mainland & family) we have to find innovative ways to handle other problems as well.

Trash. 

Where is it all supposed to go?

A lot of it ends up in landfills or washes down rivers to end up in our oceans. Truth is, the problem extends around the world, but becomes much more evident when you're living on an island. We all need to be more conscious of what we use, how we dispose of it, and ask ourselves - where will this end up - and when (if ever) will it break down? Which brings me to our main topic:

Plastic.

When I first moved to Kauai I thought it was a little strange plastic bags weren't readily available at every grocery store. It was paper, or you could buy a reusable bag at the checkout stand. It quickly became obvious once I realized there would be nowhere for this trash to go. I was shown the growing landfill out on the westside and was devastated to see it was no more than half a mile from the ocean. Oh, and the plastics? They can take hundreds if not thousands of years to break down. Ok. Got it. No more plastic bags. 

So what happens in other places that don't have restrictions on use of plastics? Have a look:

Images Courtesy of Bali Advisor

Above are some shocking images we received when Bali Advisor contacted us regarding the plastic problem in Bali. Every year monsoon rains wash plastics and other rubbish down to the oceans which in turn end up on Bali's beaches. This problem has been compounding over the years and campaigners are now gathering signatures to enforce a ban on plastic bags. Bali's governor has promised a ban will happen if one million signatures are gained. So what should you do?

First, join the KaiKini Wahines and sign the petition:

SIGN THE PETITION HERE

Second, read on below and learn more about the Plastic Problem:

WHAT YOU CAN DO TO HELP

Here's a few plastic facts from the Ecowatch website that really put things in perspective:

• In the Los Angeles area alone, 10 metric tons of plastic fragments—like grocery bags, straws and soda bottles—are carried into the Pacific Ocean every day.
• Enough plastic is thrown away each year to circle the earth four times.
• Annually approximately 500 billion plastic bags are used worldwide. More than one million bags are used every minute.
• One million sea birds and 100,000 marine mammals are killed annually from plastic in our oceans.
• Virtually every piece of plastic that was ever made still exists in some shape or form (with the exception of the small amount that has been incinerated).

We understand the ban on plastic bags is only the first step of a bigger change that needs to happen, but we would love for you to join us in spreading awareness. We're doing our part to keep Kauai and our oceans clean. In honor of Earth Day we gathered our extended family and organized a beach clean up! Thanks to all the volunteers here on Kauai & a big thank you to Bali Advisor for inspiring us to take action!