All About Plastic Free July: How to Participate and Why It Matters!

By Mia Fitzloff

430 million tons of plastic are produced every year, and every piece ever made still exists today. While that’s a difficult concept to fully grasp, it’s true. This plastic sits in landfills, pollutes our oceans, and slowly breaks down into toxic microplastics. Although we never see our straws, wrappers, or lids after we’re done with them, their effect on the world will outlive us. 

As we head into July of 2025, the effects of climate change and human pollution, from diminishing air quality to extreme heat events, can be seen throughout the Earth.

It is imperative that we reduce our reliance on plastic, not just for the month of July, but permanently. The adverse effects of plastic aren’t going away or minimizing, they’re getting worse. 

Take the pledge to go Plastic Free this July!

Here are some quick ways to reduce single-use plastic in your everyday life:

1. Use a reusable container instead of a plastic water bottle and take it with you when you leave the house;
2. Use reusable cloth bags, including those for vegetables, and take them with you whenever you leave the house;
3. Purchase items loose or those in compostable or reusable containers. Shopping at your local farmers market makes this easier;
4. Start a plastic-free program at a business, school, building or in your community;
5. Use reusable sandwich bags to pack your lunch, like beeswax ones for example
6. Use refillable shampoo/conditioner containers or bar soaps instead of buying new bottles;
7. Use your own reusable cup when purchasing to-go coffee or other drinks.

It’s more urgent than ever to rethink our daily habits and push for real change. Plastic production, transport, and waste contribute substantially to global warming and plastic pollution is a global disaster, choking oceans, contaminating water supplies and endangering human, plant and animal health. 

While corporations and large governments are responsible for much of this waste, we as individuals can take small steps to reduce our own pollution. If we all make these changes together, we can make a big difference.

Plastic Free July was established in 2011 by the Plastic Free Foundation in Australia to bring attention to the overwhelming dangers of plastic pollution. July in particular is a month that sees high rates of plastic consumption and waste, as people get outside more and celebrate July 4th and summer weather. Over the last 14 years, hundreds of millions of people have participated with a stated goal of eliminating all plastic waste around the world. In 2024, it’s estimated that 174 million people from 190 countries participated in various ways, from educational programs to clean-up days to establishing new plastic-free habits. 

Join us this Plastic Free July by taking our pledge to eliminate single-use plastic from your life for one month. Just that one month can help establish plastic-free habits that will last a lifetime. A lifetime without plastic may seem like a large undertaking, but starting with July will show you that there are many easy, low-cost ways to begin. 

To put into context just how severe the problem is, in 2022, about 400 million tons of plastic were produced globally, while just 9% of all plastic produced is recycled, with 50% going to landfills and 20% getting burned and releasing toxic greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. These recycling rates are scarily low.

An estimated 11 million metric tons of plastic enter the ocean every year, polluting water and food sources and harming wildlife. That number is expected to triple by 2040 without serious intervention. A garbage truck equivalent of plastic waste is dumped into the ocean every minute. In 2022, a study showed that 1 in 3 fish sampled for major food markets contained small particles of plastic. 

Plastic pollution doesn’t just pose a threat to our oceans, wildlife, and natural areas, it poses a significant health threat to us. Microplastics, which are tiny plastic particles from broken down plastics, have been found in human blood, reproductive organs, and in many samples of drinking water. 

The chemicals in plastics, such as phthalates, BPA, and PFAS, are known as ‘forever chemicals’ because they can persist in bodies and in the environment for very long periods of time. These chemicals are linked to hormonal disruption, reduced fertility, and increased chance of cancer, metabolic diseases, and gut problems. 

“Plastic is now in our blood stream, attaching itself to our heart, lungs, kidneys, and brains,” earthday.org says, adding that “Plastic particles can last for thousands of years.” 

The MIT Climate Portal reports, not surprisingly, that the United States produces more plastic waste than any other country. “Something from Amazon.com that was packaged one day ago, you throw the packaging out,” said Christopher Noble, MIT’s Environmental Solutions Initiative’s Director of Corporate Engagement. “That packaging was used for 24 hours and then was thrown into a landfill.” It will take decades to decompose, and this produces dangerous greenhouse gasses as it does.

According to Our World in Data, plastic production and disposal emits 3.3% of global emissions. Plastics originate from fossil fuels, with the plastic industry accounting for six percent of global oil consumption. If we reduce the use of plastic, we reduce our dependence on this greenhouse-gas producing process. Open burning of plastic and other waste is a common practice in South Asia and the developing world, with it a particular problem in India and Nepal. This burning leads to the dangerous air pollutant called black carbon and is responsible for half the visible smog in New Delhi. The global warming potential of black carbon is up to 5,000 times greater than that of carbon dioxide.  

We need to take action now. A solution won’t wait! Search the internet for Plastic Free July events near you. Listen to this podcast by NPR about living plastic-free longterm! Finally, take the pledge and join us in ditching the plastic for the whole month of July! These sacrifices can turn into habits that make a real difference. 

Mia Fitzloff, an undergraduate intern at the New York League of Conservation Voters since June 2025, is a third-year student at Syracuse University pursuing a double bachelor’s degree in policy studies and French.