Working to reduce plastic use in Missouri

"The Great Rivers State"

We can break free from plastic, Missouri!


The turn of a New Year is often a time of great reflection on the year we're leaving behind and new goals and intentions for the year to come. As we begin the adventure that will be 2025, consider how you might take steps in your life to break free from plastic, whether through lifestyle changes, engaging in advocacy efforts, or somewhere in between.


Wishing you Happy Holidays and a 2025 full of hope, health, and prosperity!


Here's our December Plastic Awareness news!

Exciting News!

Stream Teams United recently launched a new website page for the Show-Me Less Plastic project! Visit https://www.streamteamsunited.org/show-me-less-plastic.html to learn about the project, learn how to take action, and explore helpful resources.

How can YOU reduce your personal use of plastic?

  1. Bring your own reusable steel, ceramic, or glass beverage container when you order to-go drinks. Keep it in your car or your bag so it's easy to remember!
  2. Purchase your cheese and meat from the deli and ask for it to be wrapped in paper! You can store it in a glass container, or a plastic container that you already own.
  3. Line small trash bins in your house with paper bags.
  4. Use cloth based toys for your pets, like catnip mice and soft squishy balls.
  5. Use junk mail and other paper to stuff into gift boxes or big packages to ship instead of bubble wrap or air filled plastic.

Plastics in the News

Consumers sue Exxon, Dow, others over plastic recycling claims

Reuters


Four residents of Missouri, Kansas, California and Florida filed the lawsuit on Monday in federal court in Missouri on behalf of a proposed class of millions of purchasers of plastic products nationwide.

Texas Attorney General sues 3M and Dupont over PFAS

The Texas Tribune


Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit Wednesday against chemical giants 3M and DuPont, accusing them of decades-long misrepresentations and omissions regarding the safety of PFAS...

 

Kansas county sues Big Oil for plastic recycling lies

Center for Climate Integrity


A Kansas county’s class action lawsuit over the fraud of plastic recycling could pave the way for more communities to take major fossil fuel and petrochemical companies to court...

Shop like our nan!

The Guardian


Supermarkets should be banned from selling fresh produce such as bananas, apples and potatoes in plastic packaging...

Coca-Cola accused of quietly dropping its 25% reusable packaging target

The Guardian


Coca-Cola has been accused of quietly abandoning a pledge to achieve a 25% reusable packaging target by 2030 in what campaigners call a “masterclass in greenwashing”.

 

The Hidden Truth Behind Recycling Labels Revealed

Just Zero


Amidst the doom and gloom of the climate crisis, one thing many Americans take comfort in is recycling. Recycling provides us with a sense of power...

 

Petrochemical plants send millions of pounds of pollutants into waterways each year

Environmental Health News


Nearly 70 petrochemical companies across the nation, including 30 in Texas, are sending millions of pounds of pollutants into waterways each year due to weak or nonexistent regulations...

NPR Interview on the dangers of Microplastics

NPR


Microplastics have turned up in all corners of our anatomy. So much remains unknown about how these particles work their way through our bodies, and what that means for our health.

Women's proximity to incinerators and chemical levels in breast milk

The Guardian


Toxic chemicals in breast milk have been identified in mothers living near waste incinerators in the UK, a study has found.

Plastic Waste increases by 25% during the Holidays

CBS News


According to Stanford Researchers, during the holidays, from Thanksgiving to New Year's Eve, Americans create a gigantic mountain of plastic waste, about 25% more waste compared to the rest of the year. 

Recent Research

Toxic Plastic Chemical Exposures to Plastics Treaty Stakeholders

November 2024


IPEN engaged UN officials and others connected to the Plastics Treaty talks to assess their exposures to toxic plastic chemicals, as a way to highlight...

 

Plastics Poison the Workplace: Chemical Exposers to Plastic Waste and Recycling Workers

November 2024


Plastics are made with thousands of chemicals, mostly petrochemicals derived from fossil fuels, many of which are known to be hazardous to our health...

Plastic's Toxic River: EPA's Failure to Regulate Wastewater from the Petrochemical Plants That Make Plastic

November 2024


Fueled by cheap natural gas and oil, the plastics industry has grown rapidly in recent decades.

Associations between prenatal exposure to PFAS and cardiometabolic health in preadolescents

December 2024


While a number of studies have examined the effects of prenatal exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) on childhood obesity, the results reported have been inconsistent and...

 

5 Gyres 2024 Plastic Free Parks TrashBlitz Report

2024


The Plastic-Free Parks TrashBlitz, a project by 5 Gyres Institute, completed its third year harnessing the power of community science to identify and mitigate plastic pollution...

 

Microplastics in stools and their influencing factors among young adults from three cities in China: A multicenter cross-sectional study

December 2024


Microplastics are plastic particles with diameters ranging from 100nm to 5mm. Microplastics are now ubiquitous...

Webinars & Videos to Watch

January 8 at 1:00PM - Health Hazards of Plastics: From Production to Disposal hosted by the 2025 St. Luke's Health System Climate and Health Lecture Series


January 9 at 6:00PM - Polluted Pregnancies: How microplastics and hormone disruptors affect moms and infants hosted by the Beyond Plastics Virtual Group


January 15 at 4:00PM - Microplastics Within Us: Are We Becoming Plastic People? hosted by the Plastic Pollution Coalition


January 22 at 6:00PM - Gamechanger: California Sues ExxonMobil Over Plastic Recycling Lies hosted by Beyond Plastics


January 28 at 1:00PM - Evaluating and Strengthening Your Advocacy Efforts hosted by Missouri Foundation for Health

Upcoming Webinars and Events from Missouri River Bird Observatory


January 6 to March 31, 2025 - MRBO is hosting a Winter Learning Series every Monday at 6:30PM. Learn more and sign up here!


January 14, 2025 at 10:45AM - Join MRBO's Co-Director, Dana Ripper, at The Ethical Society of St. Louis for a presentation on Our Planet's Plastic Crisis.

Dr. Imani Walker is a research scientist at Research Triangle International (RTI). Her graduate school work focused on endocrine disrupting chemicals like Bisphenol A (BPA) that are of concern to human health and the environment.

Imari uses her science communication-based YouTube channel to share information about plastic pollution, microplastics, and chemicals associated with these consumer products.


Check out these two videos to learn 14 facts you NEED to know about microplastics.

December Spotlights

Plastic-Free Product Highlight


Blueland's dishwasher detergent tablets have all of the power without any of the plastic. Unlike conventional detergent pods that come wrapped in plastic, our dry-form tablets cut grease, grime, and lift food stains for a sparkling clean without dissolving plastic film onto your dishes. These tablets are effective, space-saving, and are made with clean ingredients.

Book of the Month


Dr. Leonardo Trasande is the Director of Environmental Pediatrics at NYU School of Medicine and an internationally renowned leader in environmental health and author of the book Sicker, Fatter, Poorer.


This book tells the story of how our everyday surroundings impact our health and exposes the chemicals that disrupt our hormonal systems and damage our health in irreparable ways

 

Plastic Podcast Picks

Microplastics are everywhere — from the ocean to our bloodstream — raising urgent questions about their impact on human health. How concerned should we really be?


On this episode of CNN's Chasing Life, Dr. Sanjay Gupta sits down with Dr. Leonardo Trasande, the Director of Environmental Pediatrics at NYU School of Medicine, to talk about how to realistically reduce our exposure and the future of combating microplastics.

Learn more about The Effects of Microplastics on Your Health & How to Reduce Them on this episode of The Huberman Lab, hosted by Dr. Andrew Huberman, a neuroscientist and tenured professor in the department of neurobiology, and by courtesy, psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford School of Medicine.


Dr. Huberman defines microplastics, explains their prevalence in the human body and environment, common sources, and their potential negative health impacts.

In Case You Missed It

November 7 - Microplastics in the Brain hosted by the Beyond Plastics Virtual Group


November 13 - The Overturning of Chevron Deference: Impacts on Environmental Health Decision Making hosted by the Collaborative for Health and Environment


November 20 - Endocrine Disruptors and Women's Health hosted by the Health and Environment Alliance


December 2 - Waste Less, Celebrate More: Tips for a Zero Waste Holiday hosted by US PIRG


December 4 - The Future of Plastics: Reducing Waste and Rethinking Materials hosted by Newsweek


December 4 - Fighting Artificial Turf in New Jersey hosted by the NJ Chapter of Sierra Club


December 6 - Climate Conversations: Reimagining Household Products hosted by National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine


December 9 - Behind the Scenes at EPA: What's gone wrong and what does it mean for our work? hosted by the Collaborative for Health and Environment


December 10 - Perspectives on Plastic Lifecycle: Plastics Use and Demand hosted by National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine


December 10 - EPA Trash Free Waters: Escaped Trash Risk Map hosted by the US Environmental Protection Agency

  • Check out the mapping tool here!


December 11 - State of the Science: Shaping a Global Plastics Treaty hosted by the 5 Gyres Institute


December 12 - Policy Matters: Tracking Plastic Laws After Global Treaty Negotiations hosted by the Plastic Pollution Coalition

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