AIBU to think that our environmental awareness seems to go by the board

[helloclitty]

where children's toys are concerned.

I am guilty myself so I am not being judgemental but I am thinking that we should collectively be more responsible. I use my recycling bag when I shop and I cycle or walk my children to school, I try to reduce water and energy waste in the home BUT my house is full of plastic crap toys.

Aibu to think that we should totally stop buying plastic toys and stick to environmentally friendly ones even if it means our kids will have far less of them. And should we ask grandparents etc to stop too.

Buy 'em second hand. Cheaper and greener but that comes off with a baby wipe

I'm not sure I agree on the type of toy - I think there's some amazing stuff out there (as well as vast swathes of crap) and some of the good toys are plastic.

But WRT the amount, yes, I agree - my DCs have far too much. I don't spend anywhere near as much as some of my friends - a lot of our toys are second hand - but still they end up with loads.

But does the need for a good toy outweigh the environmental impact? And if we all voted with our wallets would cheaper environmentally friendly toys be produced due to competition? Rather than at the moment it's just top end in the main.
Do our kids really need massive plastic garden play houses (not that we have one).

I take the point about buying second hand but if we just stopped buying them it would surely force manufacturers to come up with alternatives.

I'm a bit of a plastic snob anyway, and I buy everything SH, as I said. But honestly - I think toys account for such a small percentage of the plastic used and generally get quite good use for their oil consumption - we're using plastic toys from my childhood and before. Lots of toys go through a family and then on to others.

I agree we could all make more informed decisions when buying toys, but I think I'd be more concerned about packaging waste (particularly food packaging) and the stupidly short life expectancy of electrical gadgets.

I totally agree Sue

But there's not so much we can do about food packaging (I don't think) I mean food is a necessity.

But plastic toys are not.

I am also not so sure that it is only a small percentage. Off to google

Stranded
Tree can be replanted and toys can be made from sustainable tree 'farms'. Plastic in the main never bio degrades and is starting to wipe out species of animals as the tiny particles of plastic are ingested it is making some species infertile.

Arf at buying wooden trees! Fab idea, that :o

There's quite a lot we can do about food packaging if we use your 'vote with your wallet' idea. And the amount of food and type of food we buy isn't always entirely down to necessity.

IMO it's no good saying 'Oh I need peaches packed in polystyrene, flown from NZ (in February) cos it's healthy food. Necessity, innit. But I wouldn't buy that Lego rubbish - bad for the environment, that'. Nonsensical.

Very true Sue

I get infuriated though when I go shopping with a recipe in mind and I need say 1 lemon and the are only sold in 4's in polystyrene packaging. I do try to go to the fruit and veg market but it's only open weekends.

what a disaster

Thought plastic toys maybe able to be recycled...., re-used....

Generally yanbu

I think it would help if we were more discernible about the plastic toys we buy and cut down on the "used once and never picked up again frippery" such as anything faddish - has distant memories of plastic Pokemon inspired toys, too many feedable dolls (now the Barbies we still have and can be passed on and they inspired imaginative play which many would dispute) and do not get me onto the subject of Polly Pocket .

But the good stuff like the duplo and the lego can be passed on from child to child throughout a family. The best toy we ever had was a plastic fort with cannon balls that could be fired. This was adored by every boy who came to the house, was auctioned at a school fair because so many "little brothers" wanted it, raised £20.00 second hand has gone through two boys in that family, went to their neighbours two boys and is now with their cousins.

I think if we all tried a little bit harder and tried to reduce our overall consumption of non bio degradeable products that would be best. For example - keeping a car a little longer than usual, turning down the heating a degree, using the dishwasher/wmachine only when full. Buying loose fruit and veg and meat and fish from the butcher/fishmonger or their counters. Longer term campaigning for plastic milk/juice/water bottles to be refillable - only buying eggs in cardboard packaging, etc., etc.. Actually determines in future only to buy cheese from the deli counter to avoid the plastic packaging.

originalplurker

Unfortunately most plastics can't be recycled (as in made into something else) they mainly end up in land fill and often in the ocean. This is because the rain water washes lots into it. Only 3% of plastic is truly recycled.

As far as recycling (giving to a second owner) many plastics can leak some of the poisonous materials they contain. The older the plastic the greater risk. Some of the chemicals used in kids plastics are proven to cause cancers and early puberty such as very early breast development. I suppose this might the same reason that broken down plastics ingested by fish and birds are playing around with their reproductive hormones and causing infertility.

marriedinwhite

I agree with everything you have written.

I do think though that we are all aware about grocery shopping packaging, heating and fuel etc but I just don't think we think about the massive impact of plastic toys. Especially those ubiquitous garden monstrosities which are now being sold as beds!
I've seen it all now

Tbh, it's all of the Mcdonald toys, lucky bag etc, crap that should be wiped out, at least with larger toys/furniture they can be used again. The same with pet toys/products.

Does the same non-biodegradableness apply to shoes, crocs, etc?

helloclitty I totally agree about the beds - they are hideous - when ours were young, toddler beds had just come in and we thought they were wasteful. 17 years on that sort of stuff shouldn't be available in plastic.

I'm not sure about the grocery shopping though - I think if awareness could be raised a bit and if everyone made a few changes, a huge amount of plastic could be avoided. But, thanks for the thread.

I agree with you, OP. Most of dd's friends have vast swathes of plastic tat that is played with once and discarded. Their mums do generally send it on to charity shops, but some of the low quality stuff is easily broken and has a very short life span, so will inevitably end up in landfill pretty quickly. Dd has far, far fewer toys because her grandparents buy her books or useful things she 'needs' like bits of furniture, and I don't want my house full of hideous plastic junk prefer to buy her fewer, good quality wooden toys which she loves and plays with time and again. I think in addition to it being more environmentally sound, children learn to value and look after their stuff more when they have fewer things.

birdsgottafly

Agree!

Why do we as parents do party bags then and fill them with crap? I think mainly it's down to peer pressure isn't it? Are we not responsible adults who can think of something better to give to children after a party.
Or are we incapable of just saying here's some cake thanks for coming.

YY to Happy meal/party bag shite. I hate it.

Planning DD's party for the first time, never done party bags before but I'm determined for it to be less but better stuff. Something that will be useful.

Have a look at this for a look at what plastic does.

I'm not trying to preach, by the way. I was emailed this link this morning and am now trying to re-post it in as many places as possible.

OMFG

Has anyone on here ever bought one of these?

Somebody recently put books in - rainbow fairy ones, which I hate, but still it is much better than a party blower or a gel pen which runs out instantly.

Some amount of plastic is not necessarily less sustainable than wood. A lot of 'sustainable forests' are monocultures which disrupt native vegetation and animal populations, and are industrially managed causing some level of atmospheric pollution. Carbon trapped in plastic is at least trapped there and will not biodegrade to produce methane and CO2 unless burned or chemically destroyed. If toys are plastic and are passed on through a family and then on to others, they may well be more sustainable than wooden toys. It's really hard to fully quantify environmental costs/benefits for any individual object tbh and I think the main emphasis needs to be on general reduction in consumption (by those who consume more, i.e. richer people), and not on material substitutions or 'plastic snobbery'.