Partners in Plastic Reduction
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Date
2019-04
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Ohio State University. Office of Outreach and Engagement
Abstract
Plastic pollution is everyone's problem, and it is time we join together to find a solution. Through research and outreach programs targeted at behavior change, Ohio Sea Grant and Stone Laboratory, along with local partners, are leading the effort to reduce plastic pollution in Ohio's waters. Several research and outreach programs have been initiated to work with consumers to reduce their use of single-use plastics and ensure proper disposal of any waste item. The first project works with a local grocery store to implement and pilot the effectiveness of reminder strategies in the parking lot and inside the store to encourage customers to remember to use their reusable bags. The second project will initiate an island-wide outreach and awareness program at Put-in-Bay. Ohio Sea Grant and Stone Laboratory will educate tourists visiting the island on the hazards of single-use plastics and offer suggestions for reducing consumption.
Description
Ohio Sea Grant and Stone Laboratory have been working with local partners to reduce the amount of plastic debris ending up on coastal Ohio beaches through programs targeted at changing consumer behavior in regards to consumption and disposal methods for single use plastics. Plastic, primarily single use plastics, makes up 89 percent of the litter profile on Great Lakes beach cleanups according to data from the Adopt-a-Beach™ Program of the Alliance for the Great Lakes (Adopt-a-Beach™, 2017). Plastic leaches chemicals into the water causing drinking water contamination and water quality reduction. Larger pieces of plastic reduce beach aesthetics negatively affecting tourism and costing local municipalities thousands of dollars to remove each year. Wildlife are negatively affected by plastic pollution. Birds and fish species mistake plastic for food and ingest the plastic leading to death or are easily tangled in plastic such as balloon string and monofilament line often leading to death (Derraik, 2002). Beach cleanups are one solution to reducing plastic found on beaches, but they cannot beach the option. Plastic must be reduced at the source. That source being humans consuming and discarding the plastic. Through research and outreach programs targeted at behavior change, Ohio Sea Grant and Stone Laboratory, along with local partners, are working to address the issues of single use plastic consumption along Ohio's Lake Erie coast. Several research and outreach programs have been initiated to work with consumers to reduce their use of single use plastics and ensure proper disposal of any waste item. The first project is a continuation of a project funded by the NOAA Marine Debris program in 2016. This project works with a local grocery stores to implement reminder strategies in the parking lot and inside the store to encourage customers to remember to use their reusable bags. A study by Bartolotta and Hardy (2018) found that the number one reason people do not always use their reusable bags is that they forget them. By piloting reminder strategies, including signs in store parking lots, educational displays inside the store, education with cashiers and baggers, and a reminder decal for cars, Ohio Sea Grant will determine which strategies are most successful for encouraging use of reusable bags. The second project, also funded by the NOAA Marine Debris program, will initiate an island wide outreach and awareness program at Put-in-Bay. Ohio Sea Grant and Stone Laboratory will educate tourists visiting the island on the hazards of single use plastics and offer suggestions for reducing consumption. Proper disposal of all items will also be addressed and encouraged. Curriculum and other educational materials will be created for use by educational partners on the island and Great Lakes wide. Information will be gathered on behavior change of tourists and partners involved in the project.
AUTHOR AFFILIATION: Jill Bartolotta, OSU Extension educator, Ohio Sea Grant, bartolotta.2@osu.edu (Corresponding Author); Scott Hardy, OSU Extension educator, Ohio Sea Grant; Susan Bixler, educator, Stone Laboratory
AUTHOR AFFILIATION: Jill Bartolotta, OSU Extension educator, Ohio Sea Grant, bartolotta.2@osu.edu (Corresponding Author); Scott Hardy, OSU Extension educator, Ohio Sea Grant; Susan Bixler, educator, Stone Laboratory
Keywords
plastic pollution, marine debris, social science, behavior change
Citation
Engaged Scholars, v. 7 (2019).