Ghostface Goes Plastic-Free

The Scare Trade needs some Fair Trade

Photo by Nik on Unsplash

My masks are discarded, replaced and left behind, most often because they’re covered in blood. They aren’t permanent, nor are my victims, but only one of those creates long term waste issues.

They’re a core part of my work and an important part of my customer service. I pretty much only get one chance to make an impression. But I began wondering where my masks really eventually ended up.

The victims decompose. But the masks do not. They leave their own persistent impression, in landfill, unfortunately.

For years I never questioned the material. I had other priorities. Logistics, voice modification, economical mobile plans with decent reception, robe fittings, and sourcing the perfect college students. Vapid, attractive ones. The kind who still answer calls from unknown numbers and tell their friends they’ll “be right back.”

That changed after I started reading about microplastics.

It began with my cheap Teflon frying pan. I watched the coating flake off while washing it one night and imagined those particles in my lungs. Or worse, a turtle’s.

Even if I’m taking people out, I should still be taking my rubbish out. That’s just accountability.

People don’t realise how dependent I am on a healthy environment. My business model requires functioning suburbs, structurally sound houses, clean drinking water, and a steady supply of unsuspecting people in their late teens and early twenties. I try to think of them as a renewable resource, tragically they are not infinite.

Environmental collapse helps no one. Least of all me.

So, I thought long and hard about it and I made changes.

My current mask is cotton with 100% natural-fibre stitching. It doesn’t perform well in humid weather and clings unflatteringly to me, outlining my face in an almost legally identifiable manner. But it will break down over time and the fact that it doesn’t retain fingerprints is an added bonus.

I’m working towards a lower environmental impact model. I’m not pretending this can solve everything. Some aspects of my work remain difficult to reconcile with my environmental values. Certain tools remain problematic: my voice modulator that runs on single use AAA batteries and my plasticky burner SIM cards.

But I’ve started auditing my supply chain. I now source fewer things from ethically challenged chain stores. Especially if I can’t verify staff working conditions. I boycotted Spirit Halloween after realising they accounted for 40% of my annual plastic waste.

I’m okay with people misunderstanding my motivation. The point isn’t to change who I am. The point is that if I intend to keep doing this indefinitely, then the conditions that allow it to continue also need to be sustainable.

Sustainability isn’t about perfection.

It’s about leaving less behind.

Particularly evidence.