Dear Steemians,

In this post I want to talk about a whole lot of __trash__. This may sound funny, but it’s actually a worrisome topic, and one that not enough people are concerning themselves with.

We’re all guilty of producing large amounts of trash each day (4.4 pounds per person in the US according to the stats I found). We buy, we use, and then we dispose of an item. What happens after it hits the trash can is something we rarely even think about, because it simply disappears from our sight and thoughts. Especially in developed countries, where the streets are so clean that you could eat from the floor.

I live on a small island in a developing country, so my reality is quite different. Bocas del Toro is a very popular tourist destination, and like anywhere in the world, tourism brings its pros and cons. The pros are the jobs that are created and the income that flows in from travelers, but unfortunately it also brings trash. Therefore, here it’s not so easy to forget about it because I’m reminded of its existence everywhere I look. 

![DSCN0627_Fotor.jpg](https://steemitimages.com/DQmd2pMzLkVWydzk6Vi8oMEXKNBKzfRVX3waypMcEkEPgds/DSCN0627_Fotor.jpg)

I see quite a lot of trash in and around the center of our little town: bags lying on the beach or floating in the water where the current accumulates them, empty drink and food containers on the curve of the street, used tires on people’s lawns, you name it. This is the ugly side of my paradise. It's not visible everywhere of course, the beautiful beaches are kept clean mostly, but especially in the center of town where there's a concentration of people, it's a huge problem. 

Our garbage disposal system is inefficient and recycling is virtually nonexistent, which makes us more aware of how much damage we inflict on our environment. 

![DSCN0616_Fotor.jpg](https://steemitimages.com/DQmPNL6aPxV3vyWBtZPgsqYnXACt5CAmX37FVikKqcsLvpD/DSCN0616_Fotor.jpg)

__Tourists come to our island and say _it’s gorgeous, if only there wasn’t so much trash everywhere_, but the irony of the situation is that most of our trash is brought here by these same tourists.__

You see, with only around 12,000 inhabitants, our archipelago would not even be half as dirty as it is, if it weren't for tourism. I'm not saying that most tourists behave badly and litter. It's just that we don't have the infrastructure to dispose of the trash that is generated here. Right now, the only landfill we have is privately owned, because the government has insufficient resources  to deal with the trash issue. 

We welcome more than hundred thousand tourists yearly, and each one of them consumes beverages, take-away food, cosmetic & hygiene products on a daily basis. Normally, in order to have no impact on our environment, each tourist should be obligated to take their belongings with them when they leave (because logically, your trash belongs to you!). Unfortunately, in reality every plastic bottle, can, plastic wrap or bag that a tourist consumes will inevitably end up either in a landfill if we’re lucky, or worse, in our ocean.

Of course, the local residents are also to blame. Tourism isn't the only culprit. The lack  of education with regards to environmental issues plays a huge role, and more efforts need to be done to make sure that the younger generations grow up being aware of this problem and learn to recycle. 

__In the meantime we can only control our own behavior.__

## So how can you reduce your carbon footprint? 

#### Reduce your plastic waste!

There are several things that can be done on an individual  level. Most tourists criticize what they see because it looks ugly, but most people don’t actively look for a solution or want to give up their own comfort. Complaining is easier of course, but what if we all did the following simple things from now on:

- Avoid using single-use plastic bags when you go shopping. In most European countries and other developed nations, supermarkets don’t offer them anymore, but where I live, we’re given a plastic bag even when we purchase gum at the supermarket. Please try to use recyclable bags whenever you can, even when you travel. Turtles and other animals confuse plastic bags for food, and end up dying because of them.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLtRi-w7AUE
[source](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLtRi-w7AUE)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dgv5uV64j44
[source](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dgv5uV64j44)


- Please do not accept plastic straws when you order a drink! These will end up in the ocean, along with the rest of the trash, and do loads of damage. If you haven’t seen it yet, look what a plastic straw did to this turtle: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4wH878t78bw. 
[source](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4wH878t78bw&t=8s)

- Please avoid buying bottled water. Bottles are usually thrown away tight after we’re done drinking the beverage they contain, and some are so ridiculously small that it is not even an option to refill and keep reusing them. Please use a reusable bottle, and fill from the tap if it’s drinkable in your region. If not, consider collecting and filtering rainwater (that’s what we do here).

- Avoid buying things that come wrapped or bottled in plastic. I choose my products this way, especially vinegar and olive oil, or dressings and sauces. If one brand comes in plastic and the other comes in glass, I will always choose glass even if it costs a tiny bit more. I also don’t buy vegetables and fruit at the supermarket because they wrap it in cellophane. I buy it from the vegetable stand instead and use my own bag.

![17795946_10158985413875355_1144379786322756569_n_Fotor.jpg](https://steemitimages.com/DQmSWPLqiMzqQaiNCMWgjmZoxUg2cJBdtYEWBCshuUhBKkj/17795946_10158985413875355_1144379786322756569_n_Fotor.jpg)
 
There’s more than just the esthetic aspect to trash in our environment. I wish that everyone would pay more attention to how we consume, what we buy and always think about where it ends up after you’re done using it.

##### <center>Remember that we all vote with our wallets, meaning that we can force companies to be more environmentally friendly by boycotting certain brands and choosing their competition instead.</center>
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## Solutions we have implemented so far

Local residents are doing their part in resolving the trash issue.

- Private businesses have invested in public trash cans, which makes it look nicer from an esthetic point of view as we now have less trash on the streets:

![DSCN0618_Fotor.jpg](https://steemitimages.com/DQmYFYNwxu968oPTVoKWZNKY8qs64Yi7LXuHXqWydCvaXmb/DSCN0618_Fotor.jpg)



Unfortunately this doesn’t resolve the root of the problem which is __garbage generation__.

- A Canadian expat here had the brilliant idea of creating a __Plastic Bottle Village__. He collects used plastic bottles, and uses them for construction in his gated community. You can see a pictures below. He's also implemented a sticker system that will give value to empty plastic bottles, and motivate people to collect them. He sells 10 stickers for $5 to each incoming tourist. Every time a tourist uses a bottle, he or she puts a sticker on it, and that will give a monetary value to that bottle. People can collect these bottles with stickers, and for every 25 bottles collected, a local supermarket gives $5 in cash to be spent either on food or on school supplies in their store.

I will write a separate post about him, because there is so much to tell about his amazing initiative.

![HomePage_Photo3.jpg](https://steemitimages.com/DQmV3Dq6ggnh5r9U4sog2oRevgVxLdCe1rusjojFs1wLAJh/HomePage_Photo3.jpg)
[source](https://www.plasticbottlevillage.com/english#gallery-1-page)

![Untitled-1.jpg](https://steemitimages.com/DQmTJBCrTbrHH2isKwYAKbz9LNkUd3e29bkU3x2A89GP2RK/Untitled-1.jpg)
[source](https://www.plasticbottlevillage.com/english#gallery-1-page)

![HomePage_Photo2.jpg](https://steemitimages.com/DQmT4MmGG3NsRYfYnZ9PMpL9uNGszwmDtspigh9d3JFCFFW/HomePage_Photo2.jpg)
[source](https://www.plasticbottlevillage.com/english#gallery-1-page)
- Plastic bags will be banned in supermarkets in April of this year thanks to the community group [__Cero Basura__](https://www.facebook.com/groups/675014202674365/), and this will be a major step in the right direction. They are currently educating people to implement this change smoothly.

![17426218_10155090955797856_6336967154767975874_n.jpg](https://steemitimages.com/DQmZC8u3yZQBZVMwJdaDfAVcnRwugvKcbUCUWrBfKNWc8iM/17426218_10155090955797856_6336967154767975874_n.jpg)
[source](https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10155090955797856&set=g.675014202674365&type=1&theater&ifg=1)
_This was the moment that the group was able to get every leader of the different districts of Bocas del Toro to vote YES for the plastic bag ban, at the Mayor's office_

![WhatsApp Image 2018-01-31 at 8.44.29 PM.jpeg](https://steemitimages.com/DQmeefEaCcMH4Vyb1cg8gNFV3Qy9g617rDB9EKzy3vGtiZq/WhatsApp%20Image%202018-01-31%20at%208.44.29%20PM.jpeg)

Any initiative or idea to eradicate garbage is welcome, but everyone has to play their part, no matter how small. It all starts with self-awareness and education.

If you’ve followed my blog, you’ve probably already seen that I try to make my own products to avoid buying and polluting. I make my own deodorant, toothpaste, cleaning products, dog food and sunscreen. I do that to save money, but also in an attempt to lower my carbon footprint as much as possible.


#### <center>What you have done for the planet lately? I would love to hear your stories about the things YOU do to make this planet great again, so that we can inspire each other mutually and learn from each other.</center>
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Sources
https://archive.epa.gov/epawaste/nonhaz/municipal/web/html/


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