Happy New Year! It is 2022 and I am excited to see what Eco Maniac Company’s 15th year will bring! But before we get to that, I wanted to document some of our major events and accomplishments from 2021.

A New Website

I started 2021 with a goal to rebuild EcoManiacCompany.com on a more user-friendly platform, not only making it easier for me to edit and keep up with inventory, but make it easier for you, my faithful customers, to shop online with us. While I started working on the website in January, 2021, it took me almost 8 months to complete it! Now, it’s a much easier to navigate online store with almost 200 products and their variations, a very easy to read event page, and now, one year later, I’m finally writing my first blog post! I hope to make it more informative and interactive in the future, let me know your thoughts anytime!

**2021 Markets & Events**

It is safe to say that Eco Maniac Company participated in close to 100 events, markets and pop-ups in 2021. We participated in our usual regular markets such as Old Beach Art & Eco Market and King’s Grant Farmers Market. We added Ghent Farmers Market and Farmer Johns market to our regular schedule. We set up at The Shack several times throughout the spring and fall for some of their special occasion markets.

We were invited to participate in Plastic-Free July at the Norfolk Botanical Garden and were subsequently invited back to set up on a regular basis on Wednesday mornings (which we will continue to do starting late February/early March). We did some big events such as Roanoke Go Outside Festival and Bodacious Bazaar, tons of local events including the Earth Day Pop-Up Market (see below), Fair Trade Festival and NEON Holiday Market, as well as a few pop-ups at local businesses such as My Vegan Sweet Tooth and Green Leaf and Pebble Cafe.

I can’t thank you all enough for coming out to these events and supporting my small business. Together, I believe we have saved thousands of single-use plastic items and pieces of plastic packaging from entering our environment, waterways and landfills. Let’s keep that momentum going in 2022!

**Other Work in 2021**

Eco Maniac Company isn’t my only gig. In 2021 I also
led 4 balloon litter monitoring surveys on Virginia’s eastern shore;
continued as Director of the Virginia Plastic Pollution Prevention Network. We now have more than 100 members from approximately 75 organizations in Virginia working on the issue of plastic pollution;

spoke at several events (most online) including a panel discussion with Nauticus during their Planet or Plastic exhibit, Mid-Atlantic Marine Debris Conference, Virginia Green Travel Conference, and 2 classes for Norfolk Botanical Garden during Plastic-Free July and the Washed Ashore exhibit;

participated in the creation and implementation of the mid-Atlantic Marine Debris Action Plan and the Virginia Marine Debris Reduction Plan;
and continued to work as a Naturalist/Educator/Mate for Rudee Tours on their dolphin and whale watching trips as well as wind turbine trips.

**Balloon Releases Banned in Virginia**

After more than a decade of research and three attempts at Virginia’s General Assembly, we were finally able to change Virginia’s outdated balloon release law. Virginia’s law allowed up to 49 helium filled balloons to be released legally. In other words, it allowed for the littering of balloons and made it impossible to enforce the litter law if someone did release less than 50 balloons. We attempted to change the law in 2015 and 2020, but both attempts failed.

Finally, in 2021, Delegate Nancy Guy was able to get the bill passed and Governor Northam signed it into law in June during a ceremony at the Brock Center in Virginia Beach. It is now illegal to intentionally release any balloon outdoors that does not biodegrade within 5 minutes of contact with air or water (that balloon does not exist). Thanks to the many people and organizations that helped get this bill passed including and especially the Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center and Lynnhaven River NOW.

(Image by Lynnhaven River NOW, from left to right: Virginia Whitmer: Virginia Coastal Zone Management Program, Christina Trapani: Eco Maniac Company, Delegate Nancy Guy, Governor Ralph Northam, Karen Forget: Lynnhaven River NOW, Katie Register: Clean Virginia Waterways, Mark Swingle: Virginia Aquarium, Jim Deppe: Lynnhaven River NOW, Kathy O’Hara: Marine Debris Researcher.

**Earth Day Events**

Eco Maniac Company was involved in organizing TWO Earth Day events in 2021.
**Earth Day Pop-Up Market:** Because the City of Virginia Beach was not planning to hold their Annual Earth Day event at Mt. Trashmore in 2021, due to Covid, I decided to organize a smaller version of this event and planned an Earth Day Pop-Up Market at Pembroke Mall on April 18th.

The event ended up being a very well attended and fun day in the mall parking lot with live music by Dave Johnson, shoe recycling and bicycle repair with REI, a Ben & Jerry’s ice cream truck, lots of amazing eco-friendly vendors with and environmental organizations and fabulous weather.

The good news is that Earth Day at Mt. Trashmore will be back on April 23, 2022 and yours truly is serving on the planning committee. Thank you to everyone who came out and supported eco-friendly businesses and organizations at this event.

Image by Michael Schimmel: Joy Lucero of Get Me Growin’ selling succulents and more.

Earth Day Beach Clean-up — **Earth Day Beach Cleanup:**

On April 22nd, Eco Maniac Company partnered with several local organizations to help organize an Earth Day Beach Clean-Up. With 8 sites at and near the Virginia Beach Oceanfront, approximately 250 volunteers helped remove more than 1200 pounds of trash from the beach, boardwalk, Lake Holly, ViBe District, nearby neighborhoods and everything in-between. The cleanup was considered a success and the partners will likely be coming together for another similar cleanup in 2022!

Thank you!

Clean Virginia Waterways/Keep It Beachy Clean, Virginia Beach Hotel Association, Virginia Beach Restaurant Association, Lynnhaven River NOW, WINDSdays, Atlantic Avenue Association, ViBe Creative District, Rudee Tours, Desmond’s Island Soul Grill, Coastal Edge, MOCA, Virginia Beach Fishing Center, Virginia Beach Surf & Rescue Museum, Americans for Prosperity, the Virginia Beach Resort Area Ambassadors and the many volunteers who came out to clean up. I’d also like to thank Dominion Energy for donating 300 t-shirts for our volunteers.

Image by Lori Golding Zontini. From left to right: Stacey Shiflet: Virginia Beach Restaurant Association, Max Bartholomew: Dominion Energy, Sara Jo and Joel Rubin: Rubin Communications and WINDSdays.

**WINDSdays Warriors**

The first wind energy farm in federal waters is being built 27 miles off the coast of Virginia Beach and is expected to power approximately 650,000 homes by 2026. I was asked to be a part of what was soon to become known as the WINDSdays Warriors: “An energetic group of citizens leading a movement to build a culture around clean energy, a green environment and the power of wind, all inspired by a pair of large offshore wind projects off the coasts of Virginia Beach and Kitty Hawk, NC.”

I think I’ll write more about this in another blog. But for now, check out windsdays.com for more information.

Image by Alexis Rabon, Rudee Tours (that’s me in the photo :)

The Mobile Eco Store also deserves its own blog post so I’ll keep this simple. I was able to purchase and bring home the truck in May. I helped design the wrap, complete with sea turtles and whales, and AG Wraps completed the job in early July. In late July, Solar Services installed a solar power system to provide power in the store part of the truck, including lights, iPad, and heat/AC (in the right conditions). I can fit soooo much more inventory in this setting to bring to you at events and I even held my first few “home party” pop-up shopping events in the late fall. I can’t wait to see where this mobile store takes me in 2022. Stay tuned!

**HeartStraws.earth**

In October, 2021, I partnered with my Dad to purchase a close-out inventory of reusable glass straws. HeartStraws was a business based in Virginia Beach that had been forced to shut down due to Covid. The owner was looking for someone to purchase the inventory so that the straws would not sit in a warehouse for any longer. He reached out to me and my Dad and I decided to go for it. We are the proud owners of lots of beautiful reusable glass straws.
We have glass straws in sets with cleaning brushes that come in pouches and boxes. We also have a number of

“bulk” straws that can be used in restaurants, for retail, and in the near future, custom engraved for gifts, fundraisers and marketing. We have tall and short straws; skinny, original and jumbo straws; clear, blue, green, teal, black and more color straws; and even a few straws with dolphins and mermaids on them. You may have seen them at my table in the last few months, but if you would like to check out the website (it’s still under construction), it’s www.heartstraws.earth.

What’s in Store for 2022?

I’m not even going to try to answer that question! Hopefully, I will blog on a regular basis so I can better keep you up to date on new events, products and environmental initiatives and issues. But the main goal is to provide you with lots of eco-friendly alternatives to single-use plastics and plastic-free options for items normally found in plastic packaging. I hope to participate in more events, pop-ups and home parties and make it as easy as possible for you to continue to be my customers so together we can strive for a cleaner, greener environment!

Christina

Looking Back at 2021

Make it an Eco-Friendly Valentine’s Day

Eco Maniac Company