MOUNT DORA — For a Girl Scout, Zoe Mueller sure likes to talk trash.
The 13-year-old Mount Dora resident has been on a months-long crusade to rid the world of single use plastic shopping bags, becoming an outspoken critic of just how much harm the grocery store staple does to the environment and wildlife.
“Once they are made, they are here forever. They are not recyclable in any way,” said Zoe, who recently launched a voluntary citywide plastic-bag reduction program for her Girl Scout Silver Award, even designing a logo for the cause.
“They never go away, they clog our waterways and kill wildlife,” she said. “There are millions and millions of these bags already in our environment, and we need to stop using them.”
In September, the honor roll student took her “trash talks” to downtown merchants, asking them to join her eco-friendly voluntary enterprise, the first of its kind in Florida. The initiative gained overwhelming approval of the City Council in July.
“The City of Mount Dora is proud of Zoe and we support her in her efforts,” said Lisa McDonald, public information officer.
Zoe’s discussions with the dozens of retail shop and restaurant owners about the negative impact plastic bags have on the earth convinced a handful to pledge to stop using them and switch to reusable, biodegradable or paper ones instead, including Las Palmas Cuban Restaurant, Magical Meat Boutique and Black Swan Mercantile.
“It’s absolutely something we support and can get behind,” Black Swan owner Lee Ann Ganung said. “In fact, we’ve already switched from plastic to paper.”
Ganung and the other participants now have a Mount Dora Bag Free Business decal to display in their windows, letting patrons know about their pledge and bringing community awareness to Zoe’s program.
“The ones that didn’t participate said it was mainly due to the cost,” Zoe said. “But I’m thrilled with the response from the city and the businesses so far.”
Her interest in her environmental cause began while a student at Montessori at Roseborough school in Mount Dora and peaked while attending a class trip to a Model United Nations convention in May 2017.
“I used to see trash lying around and never thought that much about it, until I found out how just how bad plastic pollution is on the earth,“ said Zoe, the daughter of Edward and Jennifer Mueller.
According to Zoe, who is homeschooled, plastic pollution kills 1 million seabirds and tens of thousands of sea mammals annually, and more than likely the fish you eat has ingested plastic particles.
One hundred billion plastic bags are used globally each year and most end up in landfills and waterways, including the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, a massive floating debris field comprised of micro-plastic.
“So, if you are eating fish at a restaurant, you’re probably eating plastic, too,” she said. “The problem is very big and we cannot fix it, we can only stop it from getting worse by not using plastic bags.”
Soon, Zoe hopes to conduct “trash talks” at local schools, hoping to convert students and staff to her cause, and ultimately plans to address the issue with lawmakers in Tallahassee.
“There’s actually a ban on banning plastic bags in Florida,” Zoe said. “So, this is a way for me and everyone else to join in a more positive, proactive approach and do something about plastic pollution.”
“I want to give kids an idea of what’s going on and I want legislators to repeal the law,” she said. “Florida is a beautiful state with waterways and wildlife that need protection.”
To learn more about her cause, go to plasticfreemountdora.wixsite.com/website-7.