Man made “stuff” now outweighs the living world. How did we get here?

Man-made “stuff” now outweighs the mass of the entire living world.

Think about it. The Earth has been turning for 4.5 billion years. Life began a few hundred million years later. It took homo sapiens only a century to produce enough stuff made of plastic, concrete and other materials to outweigh all living things. 

Sure, some of this stuff is important and a testament to our success in putting clothes on our backs and roofs over our heads. But open the door and look inside, and you’ll be quick to notice the clutter accumulating and the trash overflowing.

One thing is clear: We need to get a handle on all this wasteful “stuff.” Let’s cut back on single-use plastic. Let’s make things easier to repair so people don’t have to buy new ones as often. And let’s stop putting harmful chemicals into our food, air and water that make people and animals sick. 

There are at least 1.3 trillion tons of man-made stuff on the planet

According to scientists at the California Institute of Technology, there are now 1.3 trillion tons of man-made stuff on the planet. That’s around 162 tons per person.

How much of that is necessary? How much is causing more harm than good?

Every time you act to reduce plastic waste, promote the Right to Repair, or call for safe alternatives to toxic chemicals, you’re putting a thumb on the scale in favor of our health, safety and wellbeing.

The pollution problem is big, but people everywhere are working to tip the balance away from overproduction and waste, and toward a happier, healthier world for us all.

Together, we can cut back on plastic pollution

When your sink is overflowing, the first thing you do isn’t reach for a mop. You turn off the tap.

To confront the plastic pollution problem facing our planet, we need to stop producing so much single-use plastic in the first place. That’s why people are calling on plastic producers and retailers to cut back their use of plastic – and slowly but surely, we’re making progress.

For example, Amazon committed to phasing out padded plastic shipping envelopes in favor of recyclable alternatives, and removed plastic air pillows from virtually all North American deliveries. This is an important first step on the road to the retail giant completely eliminating single-use plastic packaging from all of its shipments.

Any one company reducing its plastic waste may feel like a drop in the bucket compared to the immensity of the plastic problem, but each and every victory adds up to more than the sum of its parts. When big companies change their practices to become less wasteful, their influence can transform entire industries.

Modern synthetic plastics only began to flood our lives after their invention in the 1930s. A century is a long time for plastic pollution to pile up, but it really represents just a few generations of human life. By returning to useful reusable alternatives we can glean from history, and continuing to innovate sustainable technology that our ancestors couldn’t have dreamed of, a future beyond plastic is very possible.

Supporting the Right to Repair will cut waste

When our stuff is designed to last and we use it for longer, we throw less away. That’s why securing the right to repair is a vital part of securing a less wasteful future.

Americans dispose of 416,000 cell phones per day, and only 15 to 20 percent of electronic waste is recycled. Technology enhances our lives in a lot of important ways, but there’s no reason to accept that much excess waste as the cost of using electronic devices.

It’s time to imagine a different kind of system, where instead of throwing things out, we reuse, salvage and rebuild. 

But that means taking on the big companies who would push us into buying more and throwing more away. 

It is possible. Eight states have already passed strong right to repair laws, providing consumers with the parts and tools they need to repair the stuff they own. And parents, teachers, school districts and environmentalists helped convince tech giant Google to extend support for Chromebooks, preventing thousands of laptops from becoming trash.

When we all do our part to waste less and repair more, we are building a less wasteful future together.

A healthier future is possible with safer alternatives to toxic chemicals

We all need clean air to breathe, clean water to drink, and healthy foods to nourish us. But unfortunately, a lot of the “stuff” in our lives comes with a side of toxic threats.

Consider the toxic pesticides that we use to grow our food, the PFAS “forever chemicals” used to make stuff non-stick or waterproof, or even the way plastic pollution breaks down into tiny particles that can infiltrate the human body.

These risks are everywhere. It can feel like they are too overwhelming to confront. But we know overcoming these risks is possible. America – and the world – has experience confronting sweeping toxic threats and eliminating them from daily life before.

Leaded gasoline was the most common type of fuel sold in America for decades. Leaded fuel was absolutely everywhere – resulting in emissions that clouded our cities’ air and terrible impacts on peoples’ health. 

But the passage of the Clean Air Act in 1970 marked the beginning of changes for the better. Leaded gasoline, formerly ubiquitous, began to disappear. Starting in 1994, states began to outlaw its use in roadgoing vehicles. And today, we enjoy an atmosphere free from hazardous lead emissions from our cars.

A safer, healthier future is in sight

At PIRG, we’re dedicated to seeking out solutions to problems that affect our health, our safety and our wellbeing. If we work together, wasteful “stuff” can become a thing of the past.