Surfrider Central Texas Chapter Holiday Party

Tacos for Everybody!

I wanted to recap on the great time had at the Surfrider Central Texas Chapter Holiday Party two weeks ago at Wahoo's Fish Taco in downtown Austin. It was a great event to look back and celebrate a year filled with cleanups, activism, surfing, raising awareness about single use plastics, and many other victories along the way. We had an awesome night that included great food (tacos donated by Wahoo's), great activists, great films (we watched One Beach and One California Day),  and great prizes (including sweet shirts from Wavecation) for the top scores in our Rise Above Plastics quiz.

We are all excited for what 2012 will bring, and would like to thank everyone who attended the event and participated throughout the year.

If anyone was interested in taking the quiz, here you go!

1)     How many plastic bags are used annually in Austin?

a.     4 million

b.     33 million

c.     263 million

d.     127 million

2)     How much does it cost the city and taxpayers of Austin to cleanup plastic bags annually?

a.     $850,000

b.     $450,000

c.     $125,000

d.     952,000

3)     How many plastic bags are used by Americans each year?

a.     13 billion

b.     37 billion

c.     100 billion

d.     88 billion

4)     What percentage of floating marine debris is comprised of plastic?

a.     90%

b.     20%

c.     40%

d.     97%

5)     What percentage of the world’s communities have policies addressing the issues with plastic bags?

a.     25%

b.     3%

c.     11%

d.     40%

6)     How Many GLO Adopt A Beach cleanups does the Central Texas Chapter participate in Annually?

a.     2

b.     3

c.     4

d.     5

7)     How Many Keep Austin Beautiful at Lady Bird Lake cleanups does the Central Texas Chapter participate in?

a.     3

b.     5

c.     6

d.     7

What you can do:

1. Choose to reuse when it comes to shopping bags and bottled water.  Cloth bags and metal or glass reusable bottles are available locally at great prices.
2. Refuse single-serving packaging, excess packaging, straws and other 'disposable' plastics.  Carry reusable utensils in your purse, backpack or car to use at bbq's, potlucks or take-out restaurants.
3. Reduce everyday plastics such as sandwich bags and juice cartons by replacing them with a reusable lunch bag/box that includes a thermos.
4. Bring your to-go mug with you to the coffee shop, smoothie shop or restaurants that let you use them.  A great way to reduce lids, plastic cups and/or plastic-lined cups.
5. Go digital!  No need for plastic cds, dvds and jewel cases when you can buy your music and videos online.
6. Seek out alternatives to the plastic items that you rely on.
7. Recycle.  If you must use plastic, try to choose #1 (PETE) or #2 (HDPE), which are the most commonly recycled plastics.  Avoid plastic bags and polystyrene foam as both typically have very low recycling rates.
8. Volunteer at a beach cleanup.
9. Support plastic bag bans, polystyrene foam bans and bottle recycling bills.
10. Spread the word.  Talk to your family and friends about why it is important to Rise Above Plastics!

Cheers,

Matt Kuhn

Answers: 1: C  2: A  3: C  4:  A  5:  A  6: B  7: C