You already know that plastic is bad for the environment. You can guess that plastic garbage spoils an otherwise amazing beach. You have heard stories of millions of adorable sea animals, like turtles, dying from eating plastic trash or getting entangled in it. And you know that the more plastic you discard, the more it ends up in our seas. But did you know there are simple things you can do to be a little more plastic-free ? Here are some tips for you to help keep Bali beautiful when you come holiday here.
Plastic-Free Eating- You’ve been practicing eating with forks, knives, spoons, chopsticks, etc. for the better part of your life and you don’t want all that practice going to waste. That’s fine, you keep working those utensils, friend ! Just ditch the plastic ones. Going to eat at a Balinese Warung that only serves plastic cutlery ? Keep a re-useable set in your bag; it won’t take up that much room and your Nasi Goreng will taste better knowing you’re being a hero in our planet’s eyes. Want to treat yourself to some take-away Luwak coffee ? Bring your own re-useable cup. Sipping on a poolside pina colada ? Skip the straw. Straws are the piece of garbage most often seen ruining our beaches. Ladies, if you’re worried about smudging that lipstick, go for a glass or metal straw. Our stunning, eco-friendly resort at Menjangan has those !
Plastic-Free Shopping- You have just done all this fabulous shopping at the Beach Walk in Kuta and there is no way you can carry it all home with just your two hands. Good thing the store clerk is helpfully putt
ing all your goods into a plastic shopping bag, right ? Well, the turtles don’t think it’s so helpful. Go to the shop with a cloth bag. Or put your purchased items in your purse or backpack. In an effort to be more environmentally conscious, stores in other countries have even started to charge for plastic bags. And would you really want to pay the extra 5₵ to make turtles sad? No, we didn’t think so. Eliminating the plastic bag is a no-brainer. Anyway, it will just tear and spill all your shiny new souvenirs onto the street. Probably.
Plastic-Free Drinking- We’re divers and we live in Bali. So we would never advise someone to give up water. But we would suggest trying to phase out water bottled in plastic. When you travel to Bali, you will learn that the tap water here is un-drinkable. But even if you cannot eliminate plastic use, you sure can reduce it. Instead of buying single-serving bottles of water, get a big jug fo
r much cheaper, use it to refill your re-useable bottle and go on your merry way. And all that money you’ll save on bottled water ? Spend it on something fun, like a puppy. Or a dive trip. A re-useable metal bottle is a fantastic investment. And because at Blue Season Bali we want our divers to be responsible ambassadors for the ocean, we will be including a personal re-fillable bottle with every welcome package our GoPro Divemaster interns will get in the New Year.
So come enjoy Bali’s beautiful oceans and beaches. Eat, drink, shop, dive, and be merry. But do it all a little more plastic-free.
