A few weeks ago I had the chance to visit New Orleans, Louisiana or NOLA as it is affectionately called. It was fun to walk around the French Quarter and hear all of the live street music and gaze at some of the beautiful French and Spanish architecture. I also enjoyed the warm weather and riding on the old trolley cars. New Orleans has a rich history, being founded by the French and then ruled by the Spanish for 40 years. It was not until 1803 that it was bought by the United States.

New Orleans is well-known for Mardi Gras, and the carnival season of more than 60 parades, music, dances and hundreds of private parties which precede it. Mardi Gras is French for Fat Tuesday, and carnival, from Latin, means farewell to flesh. Carnival season begins on January 6th and ends on Fat Tuesday (which falls 46 days before Easter).

While I can appreciate a great parade, good music and dance, I am dismayed by all of the waste created by millions of plastic beads, drinking cups, and food containers. It ends up everywhere –on trees, in bushes, on fences and in the water. Scientific reports have already warned us of the dangers of plastic. Plastic water bottles leach off toxins into the very water we drink. And eventually, plastic ends up in the stomachs of the very fish we catch and eat. Plastic can cause cancer, birth defects, infertility, obesity and impaired immune function. It is time for New Orleans to change its ways. One solution would be to put a 5 cent charge on water and soda bottles, and start recycling. Another solution would be for New Orleans to totally ban plastic bags, like Mexico City. Come on New Orleans, it is time to reduce your waste!