By now, most folks have heard of the “Great Pacific Garbage Patch”–a floating, Texas-size raft of plastic and debris in the North Pacific. It’s a symptom of a much larger problem: the wanton use of a disposable materials that will be with us for centuries. Just take a moment to think of how many plastic water bottles you’ve drained and then discarded in your lifetime. In 2015, Costa launched the Kick Plastic Campaign “to help reduce the amount of plastic we use as a company and to mobilize a movement.”
Since then, many companies, including Orvis, have joined the movement to reduce plastic use as a way to keep it out of the waterways we love. We ask that you join us in this effort.
Orvis provides associates with washable water bottles and cups to reduce plastic use.
Photo by Phil Monahan
Here at the Orvis home office, we do not provide any plastic water bottles to associates, each of whom is issued a reusable water bottle or cup on the day they start work. We also encourage the use of reusable coffee cups. Before the change, we were going through about 240 water bottles per week. We have also stopped using plastic water bottles at our fishing schools and Game Fair events, as well. The Orvis shipping facility in Roanoke, Virginia, stopped providing single-use cups for water and coffee way back in 2008, and they eliminated bottle-fed water coolers in 2012, switching to filter coolers.
We have also eliminated single-use plastic at our Orvis Guide Rendezvous events. Using this as a platform, Orvis has challenged all of our endorsed partners to follow suit and reduce or eliminate their own use of single-use plastics. Here’s a cool look at how one Orvis-Endorsed Outfitter, WorldCast Anglers, has embraced the concept:
We also have a robust recycling program, not just for associates, but for our manufacturing and packaging processes, as well. We recycled 44 tons of “single stream” material last year, and we’re on track to do an even better job in 2018. We also bale plastic bags and stretch wrap and send the material off for recycling, which allowed us to divert 14.5 tons of baled plastic from the landfill last year. Again, we continue to try to do better.
The recycling bins at Orvis HQ get a lot of use.
Photo by Phil Monahan
I took five minutes to walk around to the work areas near mine, and I shot pictures of the cups and bottles on people’s desks. The slideshow below is just a small sampling of how Orvis associates are “walking the walk” by embracing #kickplastic. Please consider doing the same in your own life. Our oceans, rivers, and lakes will be the better for our efforts.
Click here to learn more about the Kick Plastic Campaign.
Created with flickr slideshow.
I love the kick plastic campaign. In an effort to assist, shouldn’t we also get away from Flourocarbon leader and tippet material since it NEVER breaks down? At least our Superstron mono leaders and tippet will break down eventually. Does the miniscule advantage of flotation neutrality, abrasion resistance and “less visible” mean more than using something that will literally be around eternally?
What kind of coffee machines does Orvis have in their break rooms? Not the ones that require single-serve plastic pods, I hope.
fausto,
Can’t speak for home office but reusable keurig cups are awesome… until the lids break off then your hunting around like the tupperware lottery lol
Gordon, I am not sure which is worse, something that never breaks down but is large or something that does and becomes the microscopic particles that are ingested by animals and moves up the food chain.
I have started a free information website helping people find drinking fountains at world airports where they can fill their own bottles after security instead of buying one-use plastic bottles, I don’t want to upset anyone by advertising but a search on google for “water at airports” might help.
If the moderator feels they need to remove this post OK but please leave the first paragraph as I think it is an important question
Five years ago a friend and I were fishing on the Kern River. We noticed a lot of plastic bottles and beer cans on the banks. We started picking them up and putting them in our fishing vest. Our vests were full at the end of the day. We recycled the cans and bottles. We donate the money to Casting For Recovery and a fly club that does a Kids Academy teaching kids to fly fish. It’s not that hard to recycle the bottles and giving the money to non profits or even a conservation project.
Here is something to think about though. What about those Gatorade bottles and soda bottles. Can we start getting them off the water too?
WHY DOESNT ORVIS HAVE A PLASTIC POLICY AT THE RETAIL STORES? DOESNT MAKE ANY SENSE TO BE FOR A KICK PLASTIC MOVEMENT, WHEN AT THE STORE LEVEL THEY DISCARD PLASTIC IN THE TRASH WITHOUT A RECYCLE POLICY. TAKE ALL THE DAILY SHIPMENTS AND ADD UP HOW MANY STORES THERE ARE. THATS A TON OF PLASTIC.