Boycott plastic... A boycott worthy of your time and energy.

[Baron Von Murderpaws]

Oh great

Well, yeah, we eat those things, so it's going to be in us as well.

 

[petro]

It’s likely in human DNA too.

Microplastics are in our bodies. How much do they harm us?

The science is unsettled, but researchers say there is cause for concern.

www.nationalgeographic.com

 

[Concerned American]

Some grocery stores don't even use plastic bags anymore,

There seems to be a government program against paper--stupid, like most gov't programs. The new push seems to be for plant based bags that resemble the single use plastic bags in use now. Europe is producing aseptic water bottles that are plant based.

 

[petro]

One single boat on one small stretch of the Mississippi in one small cleanup.

Repeat at thousands of locations every single year.

 

[Donald H]

Wow

A few comments.
Maybe a return to cellophanes, which most probably don't know even existed. But only 'maybe' because I don't know the environmental impact.

And maybe a ban on single use plastics, or at least government action to discourage their use more.

Taking your own containers to the stores to use for products out of bulk bins.

I won't get into it any further on account of the usual spammers having shown up. Just to say that the problem will have to be faced sooner or later.

It's impact on wildlife is my biggest concern, as opposed to displeasing appearance of plastic waste.

 

[Concerned American]

One single boat on one small stretch of the Mississippi in one small cleanup.
View attachment 793990
Repeat at thousands of locations every single year.

We live in a society of PIGS.

 

[Crick]

While people around the world are busy with culture boycotts our global trash problem continues to grow exponentially. While it is a many pronged and complex problem one of the most obvious emergencies is plastic pollution. Right now it is destroying parts of the global oceans. What can you do?

Do your best to reduce your purchase of products that are packaged in plastic. Recycling is a feel-good activity that has little impact in the final analysis. Source reduction is a much better approach.

jo

I agree it's a worthy idea, but far easier said than done.

 

[ozro]

One single boat on one small stretch of the Mississippi in one small cleanup.
View attachment 793990
Repeat at thousands of locations every single year.

And the mostly plastic litter is picked up and put in..... plastic bags.
Ironic

 

[Votto]

 

[justoffal]

I agree it's a worthy idea, but far easier said than done.

Sigh.... I'm just now making those changes and yes they are complex and difficult.

Jo

 

[gipper]

One single boat on one small stretch of the Mississippi in one small cleanup.
View attachment 793990
Repeat at thousands of locations every single year.

That’s f’ed up.

I’m continually amazed at the amount of litter I’ve seen along our roadways. Apparently many Americans have no problem throwing garbage out the car window.

 

[ReinyDays]

Marine biologists have already discovered that all the plastic dumped into the oceans from the 50's to the 70's has degraded to the extent that it's been injested by scavenging marine life...........this includes shrimp, lobster, clams, urchins, and such. Plastic has literally been found in their DNA structures.

The plastic degrades to the point that pieces easily fit inside individual cells ... floating around in the cytoplasm of one-celled algae ... we don't know if this is bad or not ... could even be good ... plastic is made up of reduced carbon, which all life requires ... indeed DNA is made up of this reduced material ... the carbon atoms that are included in your own DNA may well have been plastic in the oceans just a decade or two ago ...

Reduce, reuse and recycle ...

We can use less plastic, but then costs go up ... it bothers me terribly to buy something for $1.19 when I know the part is only 14¢ ... that's $1.05 in packaging, mainly to stop shoplifting ... the part fits in your knickers, the packaging won't ...

We can reuse plastic by burning it for electricity ... instead of virgin fossil fuels ...

SOME plastics can be recycled {Cite} ... but will we bother to sort them out? ... the alternative is to outlaw the production of plastics that aren't readily recyclable ... but without #4 LDPE, food prices are gonna increase biggily ...

 

[1srelluc]

Meh, I just just toss them in the burn barrel.

 

[bodecea]

Well, yeah, we eat those things, so it's going to be in us as well.

I remember seeing old (late 50s/early 60s) commercials bragging about how plastic containers, packaging, wrappers would last FOREVER.....as if that was a good thing. They sure weren't thinking.

 

[1srelluc]

I remember seeing old (late 50s/early 60s) commercials bragging about how plastic containers, packaging, wrappers would last FOREVER.....as if that was a good thing. They sure weren't thinking.

I have Tubberware that's damn near as old as I am....Still going strong.

 

[elektra]

Plastic, we get plastic from inside the earth, seems like it wont hurt to put it back in the earth

 

[Baron Von Murderpaws]

There seems to be a government program against paper--stupid, like most gov't programs. The new push seems to be for plant based bags that resemble the single use plastic bags in use now. Europe is producing aseptic water bottles that are plant based.

It sill takes time for them to decay, and they are still a toxic substance, regardless of what they claim.

Paper is not toxic, unless it contains toxic materials. Hell, when I was in school, I was around kids that loved to eat paper......including the newspapers........and they never got sick from any of it.

Paper products degrade rapidly, usually within one month. Paper is a non-toxic, non-deadly substance that is perfectly safe for humans and wildlife. Some marine life even prefer paper, because the pulp is a treat for them, and it doesn't do any damage to them at all, unless they consume too much of it.

Humans can replant forests over and over and over again.
Plastic is derived from petroleum, which is solely based on "fossil fuels".....which is toxic, no matter how you cut it.

 

[Baron Von Murderpaws]

I remember seeing old (late 50s/early 60s) commercials bragging about how plastic containers, packaging, wrappers would last FOREVER.....as if that was a good thing. They sure weren't thinking.

Well, depending on the grade of the plastic, yes........this is true. Remember the old Tupperware? It was created to last a lifetime.

But most plastics today aren't made to last, they are made as cheap packaging.

Glass and paper are still the most non-toxic, easily recyclable, and cheaply renewable sources there are.

WHY aren't there REAL recycling companies paying people to recycle glass and paper?

 

[elektra]

I just walked around my house, my neighborhood, just a couple of blocks, I could not find any plastic.

Ban plastic because somebody or some natural event polluted a tiny portion of the earth?

 

[justoffal]

I just walked around my house, my neighborhood, just a couple of blocks, I could not find any plastic.

Ban plastic because somebody or some natural event polluted a tiny portion of the earth?

It may be out of sight.....but

Jo