Covid-19 came into our lives with many negative side effects. But another symptom of the pandemic is climate amnesia. politikorange journalist Teja Miklavčič talks about what a pandemic can’t let us forget – that saving lives only makes sense, if we’re saving the life-giving planet along with them.
I have been in Provence, Rome, Hamburg; Munich, Plymouth, Venice; Vienna, London, Salzburg, and Graz. And that’s just a few I can remember off the top of my head. I saw some cities. I’ve seen some cultures and people. And I’ve seen so much pollution and waste of plastic in stores, at gas pumps, in parks, bars, and restaurants. Statistics show that here, in Slovenia, every resident creates an average of 1,3 kg communal waste per day. Communal waste is waste that comes from household, production, store, or service activities. More than 1 million seabirds die every year; one in four fish has plastic in their stomach; there are more than 150 million tons of plastic in the ocean right now and 83% of water has micro plastic in it. We could go on.
It’s fine if we make mistakes
The corona crisis forced us to make some very significant mistakes. We’ve been through some terrible times, and it’s not over yet. A few years ago, the Slovenian president told us that we will abolish small plastic products for good. Indeed, we have seen some great improvement. In Slovenia, plastic cutlery and cups in stores are very hard to find. That made me happy. But we still have tons of plastic.
And then, this pandemic arrived. All of a sudden, plastic gloves were everywhere. Masks for single use were everywhere. And not just on people’s faces, but on the streets and in the ocean. I understand that this situation is unprecedented, and that people reacted to take care of themselves. But we all forgot about the environment. Everything was just about people and health, all over again. We forgot about everything else overnight.
There is no Planet B
We need to save planet earth, because there is no alternative. If we forget about this little Earth, we will all soon be gone and nothing will matter anymore – not our problems, not Covid-19, not if we gain a little bit of weight.
Plastic is a huge intruder in life, so make good decisions. It’s up to you: you can buy a mask for single use or you can buy a unique, well designed, cotton mask, that lasts forever.
