Day 64 of 365 Days Of Low Carbon Living: finding a plastic-free nailbrush.
There’s a big push on to bring an end to ‘single-use’ plastic and shift to alternatives to plastic. Much of this push has come from people being disgusted about the impact of plastic on animals and the marine environment. We see pictures of birds, fish and turtles choking on plastic or dying of starvation with bellies full of plastic. The huge plastic ‘garbage patches’, particularly the gyre in the northern Pacific Ocean feature prominently in discussions.
Plastic Free July and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s War On Waste are gathering momentum.
Yet what about the other, longer lasting sources of plastic? After all, plastic is plastic when it comes to the plastic layers that are forming on the Earth’s surface. This is one of the markers that will determine the geological epoch being called the Anthropocene.
Reducing the amount of plastic in our world means ceasing to use plastic, or at least dramatically reducing the amount of plastic we use.
Unfortunately, so many of our goods that are now made predominantly – or even solely – in plastic.
That can make the search for alternatives to buy difficult, if not impossible.
And even when you seem to have found alternatives, they may not be made entirely of natural materials.
A plastic-free nailbrush?
Some years ago, my family were looking for a nailbrush made from natural materials.
We found what appeared to be a nail brush that fitted our requirements.
Its handle is made of wood, the most common material used for ‘natural’ brush handles. It happened that the wood was carved into a cute animal shape – perfect for encouraging our children to use it.
Unfortunately, the bristles are plastic. At that time, we could not find alternatives.
We now know what problems plastic causes in our environment.
In the case of brushes, plastic bristles eventually come out or break off…and go down the drain and into our waterways. This is not good for the animals that live in the waterways. With nailbrushes, the simple action of scrubbing can cause suffering in animals.
We also now know that the plastic breaks down into smaller and smaller pieces, eventually becoming a pollutant.
And so the search began for a nailbrush made completely of natural materials. In other words, both the handle and the bristles.
A plastic-free nailbrush!
We are increasingly seeing brushes made of natural materials in shops, particularly shops focussed on health or the environment.
They are beautiful. And they often come with a price tag to match.
I was surprised, therefore, to find a plastic-free nail brush in a discount store – at a discount price.
Like its expensive counterparts, it came in plastic-free packaging. This should be an obvious way of packaging plastic-free goods (any goods, really!) but sadly it is not. So this was a bonus!
More importantly, though, it had natural bristles.
This picture shows the difference between plastic (often called nylon) bristles on the left and natural bristles on the right.
There are two key features that indicate bristles are plastic:
- they are very shiny
- they are all the same thickness, and the consistent thickness along the length of the bristle
In contrast, natural bristles have a more dull and variable appearance.
Why buy a plastic-free nailbrush
The two main reasons for buying plastic-free anything (that is, made of natural materials) are:
- the natural materials break break and become part of nature’s nutrient cycles
- it keeps fossil oil and gas in the ground, avoiding some damage our atmosphere and local environments during extraction, transport or use.
This infographic sums up the problem with plastic, including outlining how the oil and gas companies push plastic.
How to buy a plastic-free nailbrush and other brushes
If you live in a town or city, the least damaging way to buy plastic-free brushes is in a shop. Health shops, environment shops, food coops and chemists are the most frequent places to find them.
- Check that the brush has natural bristles. They will usually be boar/pig bristle but you can also find plant-based bristles.
- Check that the packaging contains no plastic.
- If you have any questions or problems, ask the shop staff or owner.
Otherwise, you can buy online.
- There is a bigger range, so you may be more able to get what you are seeking.
- However, you get no say about the packaging…and the package is likely to come in a plastic satchel…and probably a raft of other packaging too.
The challenge
Next time you need to buy a durable item, like a brush for your nails, do your best to buy one made from natural materials. If you are having trouble finding one, ask the people running the shop – or your friends (social media is great for that!).
Join me!
Any change or challenge is easier if you have company along the way.
So let’s go on this journey together.
- Read my blog every day for ideas, thoughts and experiences for living a lower carbon lifestyle, more in harmony with nature – while also adapting to the consequences of our damaged climate.
- Subscribe to get posts direct to your inbox.
- Commit to taking action yourself.
- Add a comment to let me know you’re joining in the effort to turn around our world so it can remain liveable – and what your experiences are.
- Share with others my posts and what you’re doing – our efforts, progress, experiences and challenges – on Facebook, on Twitter, in conversations with friends, on talkback radio and in letters to the editor.
A problem shared is a problem halved. We’re all affected by the changes to our world so we need to be all in on the action!
Till next time…