· By Kiana Melendez
Turtles & Tampons
Periods can be such a drag, but did you ever stop and think about the effect your menstrual waste has on the environment? The amount of pad and tampons thrown into the landfill every year adds up to about 45 BILLION globally and 20 BILLION in just the North American Landfill. That’s almost 7 Million pounds of waste 😳 Personally, every menstruator is responsible for 10-15 thousand pads & tampons ( or 275-330 pounds ) in their lifetime. What’s worse is that most of these products are made with plastic, and harsh chemicals including bleach and dioxins and can take anywhere between 500-1000 years to decompose.
What does this have to do with turtles?
Well, millions of these menstrual products are flushed down the toilet contributing to the 8 million tons of plastic that enter our oceans every year. More than 1.000 sea turtles a year die from plastic debris. It’s the baby turtles that are effected by this most which is even more devastating when you consider that only 1 out of 1,000 hatchings will make it to adulthood as the chance of surviving predators and harsh conditions is already low.
It isn’t just turtles that are effected by plastic waste either. Almost 1 million marine animals die a year from plastic debris. That includes fish, sharks, mammals, birds as well as the turtles. 1 MILLON. A YEAR.
Why Turtles?
Besides being super cute, Sea Turtles play a very important role in the oceans ecosystem by maintaining seagrass beds and coral reefs. As of 2020, almost half of the worlds coral reefs are lost or severely damaged due to pollution, over fishing, coral mining and so much more. Although coral reefs take up a small percentage of the ocean, they are home to more than 25% of marine life including fish, corals, lobsters, clams, seahorses, and sponges just to name a few.
What can you do about this?
Reduce your footprint. Just a simple thing such as switching your period products to a more sustainable option can help keep our oceans clean.
If you’re in love with pads or tampons that’s great, we’ve got you! Biodegradable, organic, ocean friendly pads & tampons from August & Blume can be found in the shop. The great thing about them is that they only take around 5 years to decompose - and are chemical free 😍.
Leakproof Undies and Menstrual Cups are an ever better way to reduce your waste. Both can be used up to 12 hours a day and lasts for years, reducing your personal menstrual waste by about 300 pounds 🤯 Just think about how much money you will save too!