Pledge to Be Plastic-Free: E.C. Businesses Take Steps to Limit Waste
Plastic-Free Eau Claire encourages individuals, businesses to take pledge
Evelyn Nelson, photos by Andrea Paulseth
Wisconsin’s plastic-free movement: what is it? In a decisive step towards a greener future, Eau Claire embraced a bold initiative earlier this year with the Plastic-Free Eau Claire pledge.
Since the unveiling of the pledge this April – authored by the Joining Our Neighbors Advancing Hope (JONAH) Environmental Task Force – a collaboration between local and regional organizers has propelled the city to question its plastic waste from various sources.
Greta Bergeron, owner of The Juggery and pledge author with JONAH, candidly shares her low-waste living journey with her audience. Online, the refill shop shares ways to reduce waste through her business and in her community, she said.
“Retail businesses are usually focused on selling items, and I don’t want my value to be too tied into that,” Bergeron said. “I decided to start volunteering to give back and make a change in our community that doesn’t require selling products.”
According to the task force website, Plastic-Free Eau Claire outlines the commitments individuals or restaurants can make to raise awareness of alternatives to single-use plastics. As the website notes, “Every bit of plastic that has ever been created still exists.”
In 2018, 89% of litter collected from Great Lakes beaches in Wisconsin and the Midwest was plastic. To address statistics like these, organizers across Eau Claire set collective goals to improve recycling and waste diversion opportunities and encourage community participation.
Such statistics also inspired Sue Waits, chairperson of the JONAH Environmental Task Force, to seek mentorship from Plastic-Free MKE and create a pledge to combat single-use plastic consumption in her town.
“Plastic is a huge problem in the state of Wisconsin,” Waits said. “(Plastic-Free MKE) has got a great program going – they would like to see this similar program in all the communities throughout Wisconsin,” Waits said.
In 2018, Plastic-Free MKE began as a small group of citizens concerned with the future of plastic pollution. Today, the coalition has received city-wide support from individuals, policymakers and other grassroots organizers, said Gabrielle de Gail, the group’s volunteer coordinator.
The coalition’s goal is to connect more cities with the resources to model their plastic-free pledges, de Gail said.
“The really beautiful thing about the coalition is that there are so many people involved and it keeps growing,” de Gail said. “It seems everyone is starting to care about this issue.”
When first connected with the Eau Claire task force, de Gail pointed the organization in the direction of creating individualized pledges for residents and businesses.
Residents of Eau Claire who sign on to Plastic-Free Eau Claire can select between the commitments shown here:
PLASTIC-FREE EAU CLAIRE PLEDGES
“It may look overwhelming – however, taking one action at a time, building that habit, and then committing to another action can feel more manageable and be more sustainable. Remember, progress over perfection.”
INDIVIDUAL PLEDGE
- Refuse plastic straws
- Refuse plastic bags
- Refuse plastic cups
- Refuse plastic utensils
- Refuse plastic water bottles
- Take plastic film to a recycling drop-off site
- Take batteries and electronic waste to drop-off site
- Compost food and lawn waste
- Recycle chemicals during “Clean Sweep” events
BUSINESS PLEDGE
- Provide reusable tableware
- Stop using styrofoam
- Provide compostable to-go packaging
- Follow proper recycling practices
- Provide biodegradable straws/stirrers only on request
- Stop using plastic bags
- Encourage patrons to bring their own to-go containers
Learn more about the JONAH Environmental Task Force and its plastic-free pledge at jonahjustice.org/environmental-task-force.
The volunteers of the JONAH Environmental Task Force embrace the term “plastic-free” to imagine a future where avoiding single-use plastics is an achievable choice, Bergeron said.
“Being free of plastic is practically impossible in our society; we are not asking people to be rid of all plastics that they come in contact with daily,” Bergeron said. “In the zero waste movement, I believe they have the same mindset – to promote plastic-free alternatives and changes in habits.”
The plastic-free movement in Milwaukee defines plastic-free as avoiding consuming any unnecessary single-use plastics, de Gail said.“There’s really no world without different kinds of plastic,” de Gail said. “When you just try to focus on single-use plastic, it does guide to goals and policies that can help us.”
Individuals and businesses who complete the pledge online have access to resources on how to begin a journey toward plastic waste reduction, provided by JONAH and staff at the Eau Claire County Recycling & Sustainability Program.
Regan Watts, recycling and sustainability coordinator for Eau Claire County, emphasized the positive community response to the set of plastic-free pledges in Eau Claire. These reactions serve as strong motivation for the county to sustain its environmental efforts, she said.
“(Eau Claire County) will be providing guidance on alternative practices that (businesses) can implement to their individual models and operations – to reduce single-use plastic – but also overall waste reduction practices,” Watts said.
Individuals vs. restaurants: breaking down Eau Claire’s plastic-free pledge
As momentum for Plastic-Free Eau Claire builds, the task force’s dedication to reducing plastic waste has not only transformed consumer habits, but also catalyzed a city-wide movement towards sustainability.
According to the pledge website, the JONAH Environmental Task Force welcomes all community levels to support the pledges and their expansion throughout Eau Claire.
Houligans (415 S. Barstow St.), SHIFT Cyclery & Coffee Bar (615 Graham Ave.), and Wonders of Nature (416 S. Barstow St.) are three establishments who committed to the pledge for restaurants. Chris Buske, owner of Wonders of Nature, operates a cafe alongside the dispensing of hemp and CBD products. He said the business values are rooted in low-impact solutions to waste, which made it easy to commit to Plastic-Free Eau Claire for restaurants.
“I do what I can because I can’t do it any other way,” Buske said. “I would rather not be in business. It’s that important – I’m not willing to have that big of a negative impact.”
Every initiative that Wonders of Nature has committed to within the pledge for restaurants was first modeled in Buske’s own home for years prior, he said.
“I have a unique opportunity here in my business,” he said. “Hopefully it inspires customers to come here that want to support these types of practices. I want to be an example.”
At Wonders of Nature, customers can enjoy compostable single-use cups and packaging with their food or drink. Through the support of Earthbound Environmental Solutions – a local waste disposal and educational service – Buske can follow proper waste-sorting practices and use biodegradable products as a result.
Kate Felton, a member of the Eau Claire City Council, said she committed to JONAH’s Plastic-Free Eau Claire for individuals because of her existing values to do more good for her community.
“I’ve always tried to be really conscious about the amount of plastic I’m using,” Felton said. “I do the best I can – I don’t expect perfection from myself and know that wherever I can cut plastic out of my day-to-day it makes a difference.”
The pledge asks Eau Claire residents to refuse specific single-use plastics: straws, cups, and bottles. It also promotes proper sorting of recyclables, compost, and landfill waste, according to the online form.
Since committing to the pledge, Felton has appreciated having an accessible driver to motivate herself and others to be a part of the solution.
“When I’m reaching for a plastic coffee container or a plastic bag, I remember I’ve signed the pledge and think to myself, ‘Can I do this without single-use plastic?’ Most of the time, I can,” Felton said.
In addition to the commitments outlined in the individual pledge, Felton has taken it a step further to patronize other local businesses that avoid single-use plastics that would otherwise be sent to the landfill.
“I love local coffee and take-out food, and I’ve started to learn which businesses offer plastic-free containers and try to go to these businesses more,” Felton said. “I have a mental list of businesses that are doing things to reduce plastic use.”
Resources for individuals and businesses who have signed the Plastic-Free Eau Claire pledge are available through the JONAH Environmental Task Force’s social media platforms.
A future beyond plastic: community-wide effort
Within his community, Buske emphasized the importance of prioritizing sustainable practices throughout our individual lives. If we increase awareness of the externalities plastic pollution creates on a local scale, it will draw attention to its importance on a global scale, he said.
“You might not see (pollution’s effects) in your time here, but ultimately we are seeing it all over the place,” Buske said. “I can’t imagine any harm in the future coming from using composting services.”
Half of all plastic produced falls under the single-use category to be discarded, the Wisconsin Public Interest Research Group (WISPIRG) writes. Because most plastic takes hundreds of years to degrade, almost all plastic waste will accumulate in landfills, litter in green infrastructures, and pollute our environment for future generations.
Plastic-Free MKE offers resources on collective action items, where residents of Wisconsin can engage in local and national efforts to curb plastic consumption and target corporate industries that produce large volumes of plastic waste.
de Gail said trustworthy resources to educate others on the myths of plastic production and national policies being introduced are essential to mobilize change in smaller communities that are new to the plastic-free movement.
“There’s no need to reinvent the wheel in this issue,” de Gail said. “There are a lot of resources out there with good solutions and educational opportunities – it’s nice to have this huge network that is already out there.”
Waits said both pledges – for individuals and restaurants – are just the initial momentum to increase awareness of our local and global plastic issue. The longer vision, she said, will be to emphasize how each person can make routine changes to reduce their environmental impact.
“We are excited to see (each pledge) grow and get some momentum,” Waits said. “JONAH is all about collaborating with lots of different groups – we welcome input from anybody and everybody on how to work towards this as a community.”
Since July began, six restaurants and 136 individuals have committed to the Plastic-Free Eau Claire Pledge, according to the task force.
Buske said with an effort from the greater city of Eau Claire, there could be incentives for restaurants and other businesses to participate in the pledge. Business promotion and money savings are just a sample of incentives to empower businesses to make the switch from single-use plastics, he said.
“There are things that we can do as a city to incentivize and encourage businesses to do the right thing,” Buske said. “Encourage that behavior and encourage those conversations on how can we do better as a community.”
Felton said she hopes these plastic-free initiatives evolve to become a tool to enact policy changes in the state. Everything she does individually will help, but the global problem we face requires a much bigger solution than individual action, she said.
“I believe that the most lasting and meaningful change comes from grassroots people organizing their community to create a better future,” Felton said. “JONAH really emulates that. I appreciate so much of what they’ve done in this community, the plastic-free pledge and beyond.”
Learn more about the JONAH Environmental Task Force and its plastic-free pledge at jonahjustice.org/environmental-task-force.
