Join Our Plastic Free July Challenge

We challenge you to stop eating fish for one week  

It’s no secret that plastic pollution is one of our biggest global crises. While there are more and more initiatives or projects arising that are trying to fight environmental destruction caused by plastic pieces, the amount of plastic waste ending up in our oceans still increases dramatically. According to statistics, every day approximately 8 million pieces of plastic pollution find their way into our oceans.

So let’s talk about how stopping eating fish is related to reducing plastic pollution. Did you know that dumped fishing gear is a huge plastic polluter in our oceans? Abandoned nets, lines and traps are deadly for marine life, and they are referred to as “ghost fishing gear”, as most of them are hard to detect from above the sea level and therefore remain unseen, harming both animals and their environment. If you want to read more about the cruel consequences of discarded fishing gear, scroll down and follow the links I’ve added. Also, if you haven’t seen the Netflix documentary ‘Seaspiracy’ yet, I can definitely recommend it to you. It launched last year and highlighted how even sustainably promoted fishing is not sustainable at all. 

Human-caused waste (any persistent solid material that is manufactured or processed) that has either deliberately or accidentally been released in the sea or ocean is referred to as marine debris. If you have witnessed a used water bottle, plastic bag, a bunch of deflated balloons or even a car tire floating in the water or being stuck in the mud next to a river – all of that junk that is either in the water or on the shoreline is considered marine debris. It is literally anything solid and human-made that sooner or later ends up in the ocean and, most importantly, that is not supposed to be there. Always remember: Anything we use every day can become marine debris if we don’t dispose of it properly or if it goes into the water by accident!

While marine debris is not only plastic, but also glass, metal or glass litter, plastic pollution is extremely harmful for marine wildlife and their ecosystems. Studies suggest that about 60–80% of marine debris consists of plastic! Plastic debris that is very small in size is called microplastic. These tiny particles become part of the prey of marine animals, are ingested by other animals and, this way, easily enter the human food chain too, threatening our health and food security. 

Together, we can raise awareness for the environmental impact of commercial fishing. Together, we can make a statement. 

We believe that with our growing reach on social media comes a growing responsibility. That’s why we’re beyond happy to kick off this year’s Plastic Free July campaign with a challenge like never before! 

Hier kannst Du Dich für unsere Challenge anmelden: 

https://purelei.com/pages/purelei-aloha-challenge 

Ich freue mich auf Dich!  

Lauri  

PS: I would love seeing your IG feed posts and stories on sustainability actions! Tag them with #mauopurelei so everyone joining our movement can find them. 

Sources: 

https://news.un.org/en/story/2017/02/552052-turn-tide-plastic-urges-un-microplastics-seas-now-outnumber-stars-our-galaxy

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/nov/06/dumped-fishing-gear-is-biggest-plastic-polluter-in-ocean-finds-report

https://www.biologicaldiversity.org/campaigns/ocean_plastics/

https://www.sas.org.uk/our-work/plastic-pollution/plastic-pollution-facts-figures/

https://www.worldwildlife.org/stories/ghost-fishing-gear#:~:text=Plastic%20pollution%20plagues%20every%20corner,in%20the%20ocean%20every%20year.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-021-81499-8