In recent years we have become more and more aware of the causes and consequences of climate change. Because of this, people are replacing everyday essentials with eco friendly alternatives. This helps save the planet by reducing plastic pollution and our carbon footprint.
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How Should I Clean my Travel Mug?
Disposable cups and mugs
The UK throws away 2.5 billion disposable coffee cups every year. Less than 1% of these single-use cups are recycled. These non-recycled plastics take hundreds of years to break down. This means that plastic ends up spoiling land and oceans.
Styrofoam and paper cups lined or coated with polyethene, a type of plastic, can also take up to 500 years to degrade. The breakdown of these cups results in small pieces of plastic being ingested by animals. If mistaken for food, these plastic parts can choke and even kill animals. Burning plastics is another disposal technique. But this releases toxic emissions like carbon monoxide into the environment. This should be reason enough to switch from disposable cups to reusable mugs.
A step in the right direction
This year, the Government introduced a ‘latte levy’. This levy is a 25p tax on disposable coffee cups which aims to tackle plastic waste. Most coffee shops and cafés also offer a discount to those who bring their reusable travel mugs which you can then clean at home. This is a huge incentive to reuse and reduce the impact plastic has on the environment. Thus, switching to a reusable travel mug will reduce plastic pollution and save you money in the long-term.
Aside from plastic waste, 20 million trees are chopped down each year to retrieve virgin pulp to manufacture single-use paper cups. This causes the destruction of habitat for many animals and isn’t sustainable. For every 4 paper cups manufactured, 1 pound of CO2 emissions is released which contributes further to global warming. Is it right to chop down a tree and release harmful gases for a cup that is used for a few minutes then thrown away?
Reusable travel mugs, coffee cups and tumblers
The use of reusable mugs is an effective way of reducing the amount of plastic waste in landfill. This reduces the toxins that impact land, soil, water and animals. In times of diminishing landfill space, the use of disposable cups cannot continue. Stainless steel reusable travel mugs are designed to last a lifetime. This means that there is no excuse for using a single-use disposable cup. Using mugs reduces the impact disposable cup production and disposal has on nature and wildlife.
There are other advantages to eco friendly mugs. They don’t contain chemicals like BPA and melamine which are toxic to both humans and animals. These toxins have health implications including high blood pressure and kidney problems. Also, stainless steel and glass mugs do not require billions of trees to be cut down each year. Thus, saving vital habitat.
Using eco friendly mugs reduces plastic waste, energy, our carbon footprint and helps slow down global warming. So, if you love your caffeine fix, but you want to be more eco friendly, using a reusable travel mug is the perfect solution!
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