How Scientists Could Cut Down Plastic Waste

To all scientists out there: How many pipette tips and plastic tubes did you waste today? I guess quite a lot.

Indeed, the amount of thrown-away consumables in laboratories adds a lot to the global plastic waste. Fortunately, many scientists in the US seem to be aware of the problem and have come up with creative solutions to cut down plastic waste, as described in Katarina Zimmer’s article published in The Scientist on August 1st, 2018.

Zimmer reports how scientists either find their own way to reduce the consumption of plastic or cooperate with their universities to do that. One company switched to the production of recyclable consumables and the other is specializing in recycling gloves. In the end, labs or institutions are even awarded with certificates for lab sustainability.

One can hear regularly in the news that non-compostable plastic spreads through the oceans and microplastic contaminates marine animals. Is it not ironic that the scientists studying life are co-responsible for the massive amount of global plastic waste?

I hope that this article raises awareness of the problem in the scientific community and that every scientist asks themselves: “What can I personally do to reduce my daily plastic waste?” For me, this piece provides great inspiration.

https://www.the-scientist.com/careers/life-scientists-cut-down-on-plastic-waste-64547