New Beyond Plastics Guide Helps Dry Cleaners Reduce the Use of Plastic
For immediate release: August 1, 2022
Contacts:
Megan Wolff, PhD MPH, (917) 653-3165, meganwolff2@bennington.edu
Judith Enck, (518) 605-1770, judithenck@bennington.edu
As some workers are returning to the office, many are once again facing an overflow of single-use film plastic, hangers, clips, and ties from their dry cleaned clothes. As none of these items are recyclable, they end up in the trash, leaving customers feeling frustrated and landfills and incinerators packed with needless plastic waste that pollutes our air, water, soil, and bodies while speeding climate change.
Fortunately, a new guide called “In The Bag: A Guide For Dry Cleaners To Move Beyond Plastic” from Beyond Plastics offers dry cleaners the information they need to ditch plastic in their operations.
The free guide offers practical guidance for reducing plastic usage, including recommendations for reusable garment bags, guidance for calculating potential savings, suggestions for shop front signage, printed items, website and social media messaging, green business listing websites, and more.
The guide is available at https://www.beyondplastics.org/dry-cleaner-guide.
In the fall of 2021, 85% of people polled indicated that they had shifted their purchasing behavior in the past five years towards being more sustainable.
“As public awareness of plastic waste grows and consumers shift their buying habits to favor greener options, businesses are increasingly seeing single-use plastic bags as a public relations liability. Making the switch to reusable garment bags and hangers gives dry cleaners a valuable edge in a tough market,” said Megan Wolff, Ph.D., MPH, lead author of the guide and Beyond Plastics Policy Director.
“Most film plastic is not recycled and consumers are looking for ways to avoid it. Dry cleaners have an enormous opportunity to stand out by ditching plastics and attracting new customers because of that move. This guide is invaluable for dry cleaners and we urge customers to bring this to the attention of their local dry cleaners and start a conversation about the need to move beyond plastic,” said Judith Enck, President of Beyond Plastics and former US EPA Regional Administrator.
David Meyer, who introduced reusable bags to his dry cleaning establishment in Phoenix, Arizona, estimated a jump of nearly $160,000 in extra revenue due to customer enthusiasm and a growing clientele, including a series of positive, enthusiastic Yelp and Google reviews. “Those who liked it really liked it,” said Meyer. “The marketing is stupendous.”
Consider the following facts to help put the growing plastic pollution crisis into perspective:
The United States generates more plastic waste than any other nation in the world. Plastic litters our streets, beaches, national parks, and communities. Between 20 and 33 billion pounds of plastic pollution enter the ocean each year globally – the equivalent of dumping a garbage truck of plastic into the ocean every minute. Most of this plastic comes from litter that washes into streams and rivers and then flows into the ocean.
Plastics damage our planet and endanger human health at every phase of their lifecycle. The manufacture of plastics involves toxic chemicals including PFAS, phthalates, and heavy metals. Plastics persist in the environment, where they can kill seabirds and animals and eventually break down into tiny pieces called microplastics that contaminate the food chain and travel through our air and water. Even when used under regular conditions, the chemical additives in plastics can leach into food. Tiny fragments of plastics called nanoplastics have been found in all three sides of the human placenta, in breast milk, in the bloodstream, and in lung tissue.
Plastics release toxins when they are burned in incinerators, polluting our air, water, and soil. It’s important to note that plastics manufacturing facilities, incinerators, and landfills are overwhelmingly located in low-income communities and communities of color, jeopardizing the health of the people who live in those fence line communities. This is particularly a problem in Louisiana, Texas, and Pennsylvania.
Plastics are also a major contributor to climate change. As of 2020, the U.S. plastics industry is responsible for at least 232 million tons of CO2e gas emissions per year, and is on track to surpass the greenhouse gas emissions of the U.S. coal industry by 2030.
Plastics recycling has been a failure, achieving an anemic recycling rate of 5-6% in 2021. About 40% of virgin plastic production is used for plastic packaging and about 30% of our waste stream consists of packaging. The obvious solution to this problem is to reduce the creation of plastic packaging and single-use disposables.
Already, many dry cleaning business owners are choosing to ditch single-use plastics and embrace reusable alternatives. Their actions send an important message to consumers that they’re listening to their concerns and taking action to protect the planet and retain their business.
The potential for increased business and customer satisfaction is real, and Beyond Plastics urges dry cleaners everywhere to join the growing movement working to reduce plastic pollution and slow climate change. Beyond Plastics offers this free, short guide to help businesses make the changes needed to reduce their use of plastics while improving their relationship with customers and gaining a competitive edge in the marketplace.
You can find the guide for dry cleaners at: https://www.beyondplastics.org/dry-cleaner-guide.
In the Bag follows closely on the heels of Hold The Plastic, Please - a free guide Beyond Plastics released in July 2022 to help restaurants reduce their use of plastic which can be found at: https://www.beyondplastics.org/restaurant-guide.
###
