Look what Mainstream Green’s #PlasticFreeFridays Facebook Group Led To!

Marcellus biology teacher makes news with Boomerang Bags

When Marcellus High School chemistry teacher Ellen Spencer started following Mainstream Green's  "#Plastic Free Fridays" group on Facebook, "a group dedicated to helping its followers find ways to use less plastic, she had no idea she would start a movement in her town, "  and be the subject of this Syracuse . com story.  We congratulate Ellen Spencer on her initiative, creativity, persistence and we congratulate the Town of Marcellus NY for having such a great teacher,  and a community that pitches in to help the planet.

Read the news story here: https://www.syracuse.com/news/2018/04/marcellus_school_district_community_ditches_plastic_bags.html

Marcellus NY teacher Ellen Spencer started a Boomerang Bag program in her town

Marcellus NY chemistry teacher, Ellen Spencer, started a Boomerang Bags program in her town.

Put Less Plastic Packaging on my Hershey’s Syrup Please

Hershey's please use biodegradable string to couple your syrup bottles for bulk purchase

Hershey’s please use biodegradable string to couple your syrup bottles for bulk purchase

We use #PlasticStuff so much in our homes and lives, it’s hard to imagine life before it was invented 110 years ago! Since then, some 5 billion tons of plastic has been produced.  And it’s all still here, somewhere on land or in the water, because it does not decompose for centuries, if at all.

So much plastic has accumulated in rivers, lakes, and oceans that it has infiltrated the food chain for animals and humans, with terrible results. Now 93% of Americans test positive for BPA, the plastic chemical, in their blood streams. This is very bad for our health, because it harms our endocrine and immune functions. When sea life, birds or other animals mistake plastic for food, and eat it, it kills them.

Pay attention to the amount of plastic you use daily. If you avoid using, buying, accepting anything plastic, even just one day a week, you can cut your plastic consumption by 14%, instantly and easily! Try it! Consider joining our Facebook group,  #PlasticFreeFridays, and share your experiences and ideas!

Really Bad Elf Perpetuates Plastic Pollution

The Planet Friendly Way to use your Keurig

This naughty elf is Unsustainable Scott!, and he perpetuates plastic pollution profusion!

What a gift it would be if this little elf would use a reusable coffee filter with loose ground coffee in his Keurig! Not only could he add the used coffee grounds to his compost pile, or mix it into soil around his evergreens or roses, but he could also save himself money by buying ground coffee or beans in bulk, AND prevent more plastic waste at the same time! (Especially if he used a PAPER or stainless steel straw, instead of a plastic one.)

Keurigs, which are basically little on-demand water heaters, are a very energy efficient way to heat water for single serving hot drinks, more efficient than teapots or saucepans.

It is super convenient and fast to put a tea bag or a powdered hot chocolate mix right in your mug, and then, using the empty holder that would hold one of the single serving cups,  tap the the “brew” button to get just the right amount of hot water you need to to fit the capacity of your mug.

A coffee filter like this one may be filled with loose ground coffee to make the perfect single serving size cuppa joe.

A Keurig type machine is the most energy efficient way to heat water for hot beverages including tea and hot chocolate.