Nature – Page 50 – My Outdoor Living Room

It’s been a funny old week. Four days of snow brought things to a standstill. I, and a few others still managed to get out for a run or two. For me, the snow is a great chance to use some of my winter and mountain kit. My fell running shoes got a good run out, resulting in easy traction and bone dry feet. Much less stressful than trying to drive in it too I might add.

A half marathon that I was entered into was cancelled too, which was probably wise, given the risk of safety for not just everyone competing, but also everyone getting there to compete, marshall or spectate.

Only a few days prior to all this I entered an ultra marathon in May and my thoughts drifted towards summer days, heatstroke risk and staying cool. Next thing, I’m digging my car out of a snow drift. All this happens at the same time that my studies cover weather fronts, so I can go some way to explain this Siberian atmosphere to myself as best I can. It’s not the sort of weather I’d like to be caught up in on the hills though, even if it does make for beautiful photographs.

Outdoor life goes on though. In the snow, I have always loved the silence. The ghost-like qualities of a busy town shut down by mother nature jamming her spanner in the works. Us humans can have a snow day, moan incessantly, watch TV and turn up the thermostat. I couldn’t help but notice the tiny tracks in across the path, made by a small bird, no doubt looking for food. They can’t have a day off. Imagine that, your whole life is your job. No leisure time, just survival from dawn til dusk, birth to death. Would we still have so many ‘problems’? Would our lives have more purpose, satisfaction and meaning? Think of things from nature’s point of view and they might start making sense.

I’m usually anti anything that’s trending as it’s usually something irrelevant to me and my lifestyle, ‘celebrity’ antics for example or getting the Royal look for your summer wardrobe so you’ll look nothing like a Royal when you’re sat on your arse watching the Royal wedding.

What is trending now though, significantly, is the problem of plastic. It baffles me it’s taken this long for the majority of superpowers to start taking action. Maybe it’s thanks to several TV documentaries on the subject, bringing it to the attention of the (voting) majority. It affects us all.

I have a deep personal regard for the environment in which I live and recreate. To me, recycling and renewable energy are the two most important and achievable changes we can make in the world now. My previous blog covered the subject of littering. There are several crossovers here. The majority of litter I see is recyclable. Plastic left sitting in the town, countryside and ocean does just that – sits. It doesn’t break down. It’s a massive problem.

Let’s look at the facts.

90% of all trash floating in our oceans is plastic.
That is roughly 46,000 pieces of plastic per square mile.
1 million seabirds, and 100,000 marine mammals are killed annually as a result of plastic pollution.

So that’s the current damage that’s happening now. What about the long term future? Let’s see. Some plastics take 1000 years to decompose. Meaning that every single piece of plastic ever produced is still around somewhere.

Between 2004 and 2014, more plastic was produced than in the entire 20th century! And what happens to the plastic we throw away? 50% of it is only used once, and that’s it. Currently we recover a paltry 5% of the plastic we produce. But if it’s in the ground or bobbing around in the sea, it’s not causing us harm is it? Well it is. It gets into our food chain too, among other things. 93% of Americans tested, showed up positive for BPA (a plastic chemical).

Despite the bleak facts, we can do something to help and there are organisations already trying to do their bit. In the UK, Surfers Against Sewage are making great strides to fight the tide of plastic (bad pun). You can also sign up for beach clean ups, or just clean up where you live or where you walk. Recycle as much as you can, both at home and what you pick up. You can turn your back on plastic packaging altogether or just single use plastics. If you find a single use plastics in your home, be creative and think of another use for it before tossing it away. I’m considering using unrecycleable plastic food trays as seedling trays at my allotment.

I generally hate huge corporations. I also hate huge corporations that sell unhealthy food and drink. But I was impressed with Coca-Cola’s plan recently to recover all of their plastic bottles. I’m not quite sure how they will achieve it, but credit where credit’s due, it’s a bloody good start.

The bottom line is it may not be all of us to blame but all of us can make a difference.