Here are some links to articles related to the plastic problem and what to do about it, and first-person stories on source reduction efforts.

If you have a personal story to tell about how you are working to address the problem with plastic, send it in (preferably with photos) to info@greenfriendsna.org.

PBS Newshour: An inertatcive video discussion on plastic straws. A movement to ban the use of plastic straws in restaurants is spreading across the United States.

NPR - Emissions from plastics production and incineration could account to 56 billion tons of carbon between now and 2050 - almost 50 times the annual emissions of all of the coal power plants in the U.S.

The garbage that humans leave behind as a by-product of civilization and consumption is becoming an environmental hazard not only to the land, but also to the world's oceans, seas, and waterways.

NPR - Surprisingly high amounts of microplastic are raining down on France's Pyrenees mountains, according to scientists who say such particles could potentially be floating everywhere.

China doesn’t want to sort your trash anymore. The NIB explains the recycling crisis.

The Guardian - As a record-breaking sailor, Dame Ellen MacArthur has seen more of the world’s oceans than almost anyone else. Now she is warning that there will be more waste plastic in the sea than fish by 2050, unless the industry cleans up its act.

Forbes Magazine says there are estimates that a plastic bag has a 12-minute lifespan from when it's initially filled with groceries at the grocery store to when it is discarded. Here is a list of 349 known cities, counties, and states to have, in some way, banned or taxed plastic bag use.

Anita Horan goes undercover to a recycling plant in Australia to try and unravel the secret the plant is trying to hide. Is recycling an effective method to deal with the enormous amount of waste that we constantly generate?

Nature has amazing packaging. Fruits and vegetables like bananas, avocados, lemons, potatoes, etc. in a plastic bag is totally pointless. Eva Pollard and Rebecca Miller use signs in the produce dept. to encourage shoppers to go plastic-free.

NPR - Microplastics are as objects smaller than 5 millimeters .They're in oceans, rivers and lakes. They're also in soil, drinking water, beer,sea salt, fish and shellfish.

Are all plastics bags recyclable? Are their differences between plastic bags? How are you supposed to know? This great resource explains both where and how to recycle plastic bags.

NPR - Slurping up smoothies, sodas and slushies through disposable plastic straws could one day become a thing of the past. The call to toss plastic straws out of our food system is growing louder and louder.

BBC - Researcher Sarah-Jeanne Royer set out to measure methane gas coming from biological activity in sea water. Instead, she found that the plastic bottles holding the samples were a bigger source of this powerful warming molecule than the bugs in the water.

NPR - From June to September, monsoon rains fall on Mumbai, India's largest city, but they also bring an unwelcome visitor: tons of garbage with most of it plastic.

NPR - A curious fourth grader who had just started an environmental project to discourage restaurants from providing straws, came up with the statistic of 500 million straws per day.

The Yummy Life - Wonderful and totally do-able. Simple guidelines with pictures on easy ways to wash, dry, and store used plastic bags.

NPR - A sobering new study shows that reefs in four countries, Australia, Thailand, Indonesia and Myanmar are heavily contaminated with plastic that is killing them.

The best way to recycle packing peanuts, plastic bags, cap & lids, jugs & bottles and plastic wrap & film: Earth911 Recycling Guide (click on Plastic)

Plastics can enter into the marine environment a number of ways: through ineffective or improper waste management, intentional or accidental dumping and littering on shorelines or at sea, or through storm water runoff.

PBS - Tea bags: Forget about sugar. There could be something else in your cup of tea: microplastics. A recent study showed billions of microplastics in a single tea bag.

Just like when your dentist says you can avoid further problems with your gums if you brush better and floss often, a change in how we live could be the catalyst for cleaner oceans in the future.

PBS - In 93% of plastic water bottles, researchers found more than 10 pieces of plastic thicker than a human hair and hundreds of smaller pieces.

Even Your Sea Salt Contains Microplastics

Sea salt may be healthy and rich in minerals, but a new study found it is also rich in plastic. A team of researchers tested 17 sea salt brands from eight different countries and found that only one brand was plastic-free.

Karuna Poole details how folks in Seattle have dealt with the seeming indestructibility of plastic.

Beth Adler has committed to bringing her own, reusable grocery bags to the store

An average family without a dish washer could go through at least a bottle of Eco dish detergent a month. Vandita Smith details how you can make your own dish soap and never have to buy a plastic bottle of it again.

Vandita Smith explains how to make homemade Multi-Purpose Cleaner that is incredibly cheap to make and very effective. This article shows how much the average family spends in N. America. It’s a surprising amount.

By making our own recipes instead of buying commercial detergent products, we reduce the burden of harmful chemicals on the environment, along with reducing purchase of single use plastics. Vandita Smith explains how you can make your own laundry detergent.

Overuse of antibacterial ingredients - like triclosan - is helping create superbugs. Our increasing obsession with avoiding germs could actually be making us sick. Softeners are also designed to stay in clothes and not fully rinse out, which means lingering chemicals come into contact with skin. Vandita Smith shows how you can make your own eco hand sanitizer .

This article shows Edmunds OK reuses plastic bags to create plastic sleeping mats for the homeless. The mats are made out of PLARN (Plastic Bag Yarn).

A musical rendition of how we've got to reduce and replace by MA Center DC's Amrita Bala Kendra.

The 3 Step Plastic Challenge is now underway and the Northwest Region is off to a rockin' start! Read about an effort for a statewide beach clean-up, focusing on plastic cleanup at Nye Beach in Newport,OR.

From forming a recycling program for hard-to-recycle items, to conducting an ashram audit for plastic, to increasing awareness of plastic usage, MA Center Atlanta is addressing plastic source reduction.

Individuals from the Chicago ashram step up to the plate to implement source reduction

MA Center Atlanta provides an easy-to-use recipe for using beeswax and fabric to make an environmentally friendly alternative to plastic wrap.

Small things matter, when each individual does it, this small thing can become so large, the scope of impact could be global.

Diya Heal and Richard Heal extend source reduction awareness through a local farmer's market with gratifying results.

The PNW keeps finding more ways to make an impact locally and abroad

Any reference in this website to a specific product, process, or service does not constitute or imply an endorsement by GreenFriends North America or MA Center.