Raise your hand if you've ever felt guilty about the amount of single-use packaging you have to dispose of each week thanks to your contact lenses. Now, what if you knew there's a sustainable way to handle them?
This tip from Sustainability Matters (@sustainabilitymattersva) sheds light on what to do with your contacts when you're done using them.
@sustainabilitymattersva If you wear contact lenses, be sure to check out the recycling services listed below♻️ BioTrue Eye Care Recycling Program One by One Recycling Program #wastereduction #contactslenses #plasticwaste ♬ original sound - Sustainability Matters
The scoop
With over 15% of the U.S. population wearing contacts every day, the waste generated from these little lenses adds up fast. However, as Sustainability Matters said, there's a simple way to make a difference: recycling your contacts.
Programs like Bausch + Lomb's ONE by ONE Recycling Program and companies like TerraCycle are designed to keep your lenses out of landfills and waterways. These programs accept not just the lenses themselves but also the blister packs and contact lens cases.
If you're interested in similar eco-friendly initiatives, organizations like Trashie, ThredUp, and GotSneakers also provide fantastic options for recycling and upcycling everyday items.
How it's working
According to Contact Lens Spectrum, biweekly and daily lenses actually produce a similar amount of waste. This is largely due to the reusable cases and solution bottles needed for biweekly lenses. However, the real issue lies in what happens to those lenses after you're done with them.
Shockingly, Scientific American details that more than 2.9 billion lenses are thrown away in sinks and toilets each year in the U.S. alone, ending up in our waterways, releasing microplastics, and posing a threat to animal life. It's a stark reminder that what seems like a small habit can have a big impact on the environment.
🗣️ Which of these factors would most effectively motivate you to recycle old clothes and electronics?
🔘 Giving me money back 💰
🔘 Letting me trade for new stuff 👕
🔘 Making it as easy as possible ⚡
🔘 Keeping my stuff out of landfills 🗑️
🗳️ Click your choice to see results and speak your mind
By recycling, you're significantly cutting down on waste — each pair of lenses can take up to 500 years to decompose in a landfill, where it produces loads of planet-warming pollution as it does. This effort not only helps reduce crowding in landfills but also protects our oceans from plastic pollution, keeping aquatic life safer.
What people are saying
In the comments, people were surprised to find that the trash isn't the only way to properly dispose of their contact lenses. "I never knew they could be recycled! Love this," noted one user.
Another commenter shared their shock over how many contacts end up down the drain, saying, "...people flush their contacts? Wild, but good to know I can recycle them!"
Commenting on the creator's suggestion that swapping to glasses or getting Lasik surgery could lower your plastic footprint in the long run, another user said, "I never realized I was so environmentally friendly for wearing glasses."
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