As it goes i was also thinking about this the other day. If gov wasn't so useless then they could/should just ban all non-recyclable packaging with 1 yr notice and all non-biodegradebale packaging (except for ally and glass) within 3-4 yrs. There are already alternatives from simply cardboard, waxed paper, cellophane and the like. Aluminium is very recyclable. But then you need the courage to say the same for all the other fibres like polyester, nylon etc and go back to jute, cotton, hessian, silk, linen, bamboo and wool.
The political will isn't there to upset trade partners and big business back-handers.
Actually cotton is pretty evil stuff, in spite of being natural. Huge amounts of water are needed to grow and process cotton (I believe it's the most water-heavy crop grown), large quantities of artificial fertilisers are used to grow it, it has to be bleached before dyeing, and so on.
I think there is a HUGE potential for the use of wool. Wool grows on sheep whether you intend it to or not, and has to be shorn anyway, wool is self regenerating as long as we continue to eat sheep meat, and it comes mainly in natural white so no bleaching. In spite of what the naysayers propound, sheep are easy on the environment, at least when they are grazed extensively and not kept indoors and grain fed. Wool can be worn in cool and hot climates, in fine suiting materials and other lightweight clothing, as well as cosier fabric needed for colder areas.
We certainly used to cope with shopping with nothing more that paper bags and Mum's string bag which she carried in her handbag, then dangled from her bicycle handlebars when full. No need for single use plastic trays, bags etc.
I think one of the big difficulties with simply proclaiming that all non-recyclable plastics are banned from sale with a year's notice (which would be great), is how lazy we have become as a nation. I don't think that applies to all countries, but in Britain it is the case. Remembering to take your own bags to the shops with you, when for a few pennies you can buy plastic bags. Having to wash your vegetables and prepare your salads before you eat, when you can just buy food all prepared and sold in plastic - grated cheese
for heaven's sake
how lazy is that?
There was a time when we were all told we had to use public transport and not own cars, because we were about to reach 'peak oil', so the internal combustion engine was not sustainable. But no-one would do that, we have to have our cars as we have become so used to driving everywhere, and travelling large distances, so now we run them on biofuel, grown at the expense of crops, when we can't feed the world.
It's all part of the bigger picture, which has culminated in Climate Change, and making our Earth filthy and polluted.
Don't let me get started on the huge ring of junk left encircling our planet from our use of Space.
Back to the garden, I do use terracotta pots for flowers etc, but I don't find them easy to use for veg growing, nor using wooden trays, unless as you say Steph Hen you use plastic to line them. Also I can no longer carry a pile of heavy terracotta pots, whereas plastic pots are lightweight. Although I use plastic pots, I haven't actually bought any for at least 20 years, when I stocked up with a bulk buy, still there to refresh the washed pots when some are broken.
What did gardeners of the past use to keep weeds down? Just hard work presumably, but now when plastic sheeting is available for peanuts, we take the easy way, not surprisingly.
The garden is as good a place to begin as any
(I hope that's a metal watering can emoji man is using
)