Wednesday 8th May 2019 marked a significant date in aviation history. Australia's very own Qantas trialed the world's first zero-waste flight, with plans to cut 100 million plastic items from its flight operations over the next year. This environmentally conscious move is being driven by concerns for our planet and is a brilliant change to see.
Image Source: Nine News
So what does this mean exactly? The world's first zero waste, or certainly low waste, flight from Sydney to Adelaide saw biodegradable meal containers made from sugar cane, starch cutlery, paper cups and absolutely no single use plastic.
A regular flight of this length (with single-use plastic items on board) would normally produce roughly 34kgs of waste that is destined for landfill, which equates to a massive 150 tonnes of waste each year! It’s an extreme number of waste, and we’re thrilled to see Qantas lead the way. By the end of 2021, they plan to have cut their use of single-use plastics by 75% across Qantas and Jetstars flights domestically & internationally.
While flying isn’t ideal, sometimes it happens and there are many ways to reduce your impact. It will take some time before this is implemented on all Qantas flights and even longer for other airlines to follow, so if you’re flying anytime soon, here are some easy ways to reduce your impact:
- Bring a KeepCup and ask the air hostess to refill and rinse your cup for you. We’ve done this and the team have been more than happy to rinse and refill your own cup.
- Say no to the snack for shorter flights. It comes wrapped in plastic.
- Bring your own bamboo cutlery. We suggest a bamboo fork and spoon.
- Offset your carbon emissions for the flight.
There’s no denying that flights produce an enormous amount of waste. At the moment, airline companies use plastic cutlery, cups and plates that are all single-use and eventually end up in landfill. Here at F&F, we can’t wait to see this change implemented on all Qantas flights, and eventually across the entire aviation industry.
If you’re looking for products to reduce your environmental impact and single use plastic, we have over 5500 ethical, vegan and eco-friendly products available online now at Flora & Fauna.
