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Responsibility
Oliver

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Who Is Responsible for Plastic Pollution? - Plastic Soup Foundation

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Plastic polluters, companies, governments, indifferent people: who is responsible for the plastic pollution problem, and who can help solve it? Read more.

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Responsibility
Oliver

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This constant barrage (the equivalent of 136 billion milk jugs each year, estimates a study published in the journal Science) poses a serious danger to marine life. Animals can get tangled up in this trash or ingest it-either because they mistake it as prey or because the plastic has been broken down into tiny particles by seawater.

Plastic, of course, is uniquely problematic because it's nonbiodegradable and therefore sticks around for a lot longer (like up to 1,000 years longer) than other forms of trash. And we're not just talking about people dumping their garbage overboard. Around 80 percent of marine litter actually originates on land-either swept in from the coastline or carried to rivers from the streets during heavy rain via storm drains and sewer overflows.

So the best thing we can do to protect our waterways is try to keep as much plastic as possible out of the waste stream in the first place. The good news? There are many small ways you can have a big impact.

1. Wean yourself off disposable plastics.

Ninety percent of the plastic items in our daily lives are used once and then chucked: grocery bags, plastic wrap, disposable cutlery, straws, coffee-cup lids. Take note of how often you rely on these products and replace them with reusable versions. It only takes a few times of bringing your own bags to the store, silverware to the office, or travel mug to Starbucks before it becomes habit.

2. Stop buying water.

Each year, close to 20 billion plastic bottles are tossed in the trash. Carry a reusable bottle in your bag, and you'll never be caught having to resort to a Poland Spring or Evian again. If you're nervous about the quality of your local tap water, look for a model with a built-in filter.

3. Boycott microbeads.

Those little plastic scrubbers found in so many beauty products-facial scrubs, toothpaste, body washes-might look harmless, but their tiny size allows them to slip through water-treatment plants. Unfortunately, they also look just like food to some marine animals. Opt for products with natural exfoliants, like oatmeal or salt, instead.

4. Cook more.

Not only is it healthier, but making your own meals doesn't involve takeout containers or doggy bags. For those times when you do order in or eat out, tell the establishment you don't need any plastic cutlery or, for some serious extra credit, bring your own food-storage containers to restaurants for leftovers.

5. Purchase items secondhand.

New toys and electronic gadgets, especially, come with all kinds of plastic packaging-from those frustrating hard-to-crack shells to twisty ties. Search the shelves of thrift stores, neighborhood garage sales, or online postings for items that are just as good when previously used. You'll save yourself a few bucks, too.

It seems obvious, but we're not doing a great job of it. For example, less than 14 percent of plastic packaging is recycled. Confused about what can and can't go in the bin? Check out the number on the bottom of the container. Most beverage and liquid cleaner bottles will be #1 (PET), which is commonly accepted by most curbside recycling companies. Containers marked #2 (HDPE; typically slightly heavier-duty bottles for milk, juice, and laundry detergent) and #5 (PP; plastic cutlery, yogurt and margarine tubs, ketchup bottles) are also recyclable in some areas. For the specifics on your area, check out Earth911.org's recycling directory.

7. Support a bag tax or ban.

Urge your elected officials to follow the lead of those in San Francisco, Chicago, and close to 150 other cities and counties by introducing or supporting legislation that would make plastic-bag use less desirable.

8. Buy in bulk.

Single-serving yogurts, travel-size toiletries, tiny packages of nuts-consider the product-to-packaging ratio of items you tend to buy often and select the bigger container instead of buying several smaller ones over time.

9. Bring your own garment bag to the dry cleaner.

Invest in a zippered fabric bag and request that your cleaned items be returned in it instead of sheathed in plastic. (And while you're at it, make sure you're frequenting a dry cleaner that skips the perc, a toxic chemical found in some cleaning solvents.)

10. Put pressure on manufacturers.

Though we can make a difference through our own habits, corporations obviously have a much bigger footprint. If you believe a company could be smarter about its packaging, make your voice heard. Write a letter, send a tweet, or hit them where it really hurts: Give your money to a more sustainable competitor.

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The first step towards a plastic pollution solution is learning how to reduce plastic use. Follow these steps to do your part in keeping our earth a cleaner place.

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https://theoceancleanup.com/oceans/

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Hannah Ritchie and Veronika Samborska and Max Roser

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How much plastic ends up in the ocean? Where does it come from?

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Plastic
Oliver

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Plastic accumulating in our oceans and on our beaches has become a global crisis, with a direct and deadly effect on wildlife. The Center is working to stop plastic pollution at the source.

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Websites
Oliver

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Miles
https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/story/plastic-planet-how-tiny-plastic-particles-are-polluting-our-soil

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Plastic banns
Oliver

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The Statista "Chart of the Day" currently focuses on two sectors: "Media and Technology", updated daily and featuring the latest statistics from the media, internet, telecommunications and consumer electronics industries; and "Economy and Society", which current data from the United States and around the world relating to economic and political issues as well as sports and entertainment.

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Infographic: The Countries Banning Plastic Bags

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The Statista "Chart of the Day" currently focuses on two sectors: "Media and Technology", updated daily and featuring the latest statistics from the media, internet, telecommunications and consumer electronics industries; and "Economy and Society", which current data from the United States and around the world relating to economic and political issues as well as sports and entertainment.

# data[].attributes.body
Miles
https://theoceancleanup.com/faq/what-are-the-long-term-effects-of-plastic-pollution-in-the-oceans/

# data[].attributes.body
Miles
https://www.zymergen.com/all-products-and-initiatives/global-initiatives/tackling-the-worlds-plastic-problem/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIxcelyfSS7wIV2QorCh1o-woQEAAYASAAEgK1JfD_BwE

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Miles
https://www.forbes.com/sites/grrlscientist/2018/04/23/five-ways-that-plastics-harm-the-environment-and-one-way-they-may-help/?sh=3f49c17c67a0

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How does plastic pollution effect humans

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How does plastic pollution effect humans

# data[].attributes.body
Miles
https://growensemble.com/how-does-plastic-pollution-affect-humans/

# data[].attributes.body
Miles
https://www.positivityblog.com/how-to-take-action/

# data[].attributes.body
Miles
https://nonplasticbeach.com/blogs/latest/how-does-plastic-harm-the-environment

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Miles
https://www.marinabaysands.com/museum/exhibitions/planet-or-plastic-exhibition-guide.html?utm_source

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Miles
https://www.wwf.org.uk/updates/how-does-plastic-end-ocean

# data[].attributes.body
Miles
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/plastic-breaks-down-in-ocean-after-all-and-fast#:~:text=Though%20ocean%2Dborne%20plastic%20trash,that's%20not%20a%20good%20thing.

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Miles
https://www.ibanet.org/Article/NewDetail.aspx?ArticleUid=76F8D2A9-1A1D-4A2F-8A6F-0A70149FD4D5

# data[].attributes.body
Charlie
https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/singapore-to-have-new-electronic-waste-disposal-system-this-year

# data[].attributes.body
Miles
https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/story/plastic-planet-how-tiny-plastic-particles-are-polluting-our-soil

# data[].attributes.body
Miles
https://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/health/case_studies/plastics.html

# data[].attributes.body
Miles
https://www.ciel.org/project-update/plastic-and-human-health-a-lifecycle-approach-to-plastic-pollution/

# data[].attributes.body
Miles
https://encounteredu.com/multimedia/images/the-top-causes-of-ocean-plastic-pollution

# data[].attributes.body
Miles
https://www.condorferries.co.uk/plastic-in-the-ocean-statistics

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Miles
https://www.greenpeace.org/new-zealand/story/how-does-plastic-end-up-in-the-ocean/

# data[].attributes.headline
What is the Great Pacific Garbage Patch?

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What is the Great Pacific Garbage Patch?

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Charlie
https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/great-pacific-garbage-patch/

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What are the causes of plastic pollution?

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What are the causes of plastic pollution?

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Kristopher
https://clinmedjournals.org/articles/ijtra/international-journal-of-toxicology-and-risk-assessment-ijtra-5-021.php?jid=ijtra

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Causation and affects ocean pollution facts
Oliver

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Ocean Pollution: Causes, Effects, Solutions | TDS

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The impacts of ocean pollution are far-reaching. Take a look at the causes of ocean pollution, its effects, and the steps needed to combat it.

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Kristopher
https://www.zymergen.com/all-products-and-initiatives/global-initiatives/tackling-the-worlds-plastic-problem/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIg6_FrPSS7wIVDzUrCh1MWQodEAAYASAAEgJyDvD_BwE

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A website with causation and form and function
Oliver

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Causes, Effects and Solutions to Ocean Pollution That Could Save Our Planet - Conserve Energy Future

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Ocean pollution, also known as marine pollution, is the spreading of harmful substances such as oil, plastic, industrial waste and chemical particles into the ocean. Here are various causes, effects and solutions to ocean pollution.

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More info
Oliver

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Image

stockphoto-graf/shutterstock

Marine pollution is a growing problem in today's world. Our ocean is being flooded with two main types of pollution: chemicals and trash.

Chemical contamination, or nutrient pollution, is concerning for health, environmental, and economic reasons. This type of pollution occurs when human activities, notably the use of fertilizer on farms, lead to the runoff of chemicals into waterways that ultimately flow into the ocean. The increased concentration of chemicals, such as nitrogen and phosphorus, in the coastal ocean promotes the growth of algal blooms, which can be toxic to wildlife and harmful to humans. The negative effects on health and the environment caused by algal blooms hurt local fishing and tourism industries.

Marine trash encompasses all manufactured products-most of them plastic-that end up in the ocean. Littering, storm winds, and poor waste management all contribute to the accumulation of this debris, 80 percent of which comes from sources on land. Common types of marine debris include various plastic items like shopping bags and beverage bottles, along with cigarette butts, bottle caps, food wrappers, and fishing gear. Plastic waste is particularly problematic as a pollutant because it is so long-lasting. Plastic items can take hundreds of years to decompose.

This trash poses dangers to both humans and animals. Fish become tangled and injured in the debris, and some animals mistake items like plastic bags for food and eat them. Small organisms feed on tiny bits of broken-down plastic, called microplastic, and absorb the chemicals from the plastic into their tissues. Microplastics are less than five millimeters (0.2 inches) in diameter and have been detected in a range of marine species, including plankton and whales. When small organisms that consume microplastics are eaten by larger animals, the toxic chemicals then become part of their tissues. In this way, the microplastic pollution migrates up the food chain, eventually becoming part of the food that humans eat.

Solutions for marine pollution include prevention and cleanup. Disposable and single-use plastic is abundantly used in today's society, from shopping bags to shipping packaging to plastic bottles. Changing society's approach to plastic use will be a long and economically challenging process. Cleanup, in contrast, may be impossible for some items. Many types of debris (including some plastics) do not float, so they are lost deep in the ocean. Plastics that do float tend to collect in large "patches" in ocean gyres. The Pacific Garbage Patch is one example of such a collection, with plastics and microplastics floating on and below the surface of swirling ocean currents between California and Hawaii in an area of about 1.6 million square kilometers (617,763 square miles), although its size is not fixed. These patches are less like islands of trash and, as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says, more like flecks of microplastic pepper swirling around an ocean soup. Even some promising solutions are inadequate for combating marine pollution. So-called "biodegradable" plastics often break down only at temperatures higher than will ever be reached in the ocean.

Nonetheless, many countries are taking action. According to a 2018 report from the United Nations, more than sixty countries have enacted regulations to limit or ban the use of disposable plastic items.

National Geographic Society

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Marine pollution is a combination of chemicals and trash, most of which comes from land sources and is washed or blown into the ocean. This pollution results in damage to the environment, to the health of all organisms, and to economic structures worldwide.

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Info on plastic
Oliver

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.authors[].name
Hannah Ritchie and Veronika Samborska and Max Roser

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
How much plastic ends up in the ocean? Where does it come from?

# data[].attributes.body
Kristopher
https://www.greenpeace.org/aotearoa/story/how-does-plastic-end-up-in-the-ocean/

# data[].attributes.body
Charlie
https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/microplastics.html

# data[].attributes.body
Kristopher
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/plastic-pollution-huge-problem-not-too-late-to-fix-it

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Plastic Waste and climate change what is the connection?

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Plastic Waste and climate change what is the connection?

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Charlie
https://www.wwf.org.au/news/blogs/plastic-waste-and-climate-change-whats-the-connection#gs.tm8jug

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More than 100 fact about plastic in the oceans
Oliver

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100+ Ocean Pollution Statistics & Facts 2023

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Almost 1,000 species of marine animals get impacted by ocean pollution. Read over 100 of the latest facts and statistics for 2020 here.

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How does plastic pollution effect Singapore?

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How does plastic pollution effect Singapore?

# data[].attributes.body
Charlie
https://www.wwf.sg/get_involved/useless_plastic_/

# data[].attributes.body
Miles
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/plastic-not-so-fantastic/

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Nathaniel
https://www.conserve-energy-future.com/causes-effects-solutions-of-plastic-pollution.php

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Cypress

Plastic is made out of chemicals and cellulose, coal, natural gas, salt and crude oil. It won’t decompose because it is made out of those. It builds up and we don’t know what to do with it so we throw it in the seas.

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Cypress

100 million marine animals die each year of plastic waste alone.
From https://www.condorferries.co.uk/marine-ocean-pollution-statistics-facts

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Nathaniel
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/habitats/plastic-pollution/

# data[].attributes.body
Charlie  https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/articles/2018/09/24/plastic-pollution-affects-sea-life-throughout-the-ocean

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https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/quick-questions/how-much-plastic-is-in-the-ocean.html
How much plastic goes in the ocean every year

Christina

# data[].attributes.body
Miles
https://cleanstreets.westminster.gov.uk/plastic-waste-complete-guide/

# data[].attributes.body
Miles
https://www.iucn.org/resources/issues-briefs/marine-plastics

# data[].attributes.body
Nathaniel
https://ourworldindata.org/plastic-pollution

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.iberdrola.com/environment/how-does-plastic-get-into-the-ocean Charlie

# data[].attributes.body
Miles
https://www.greenpeace.org/international/campaign/toolkit-plastic-free-future/learn-about-plastic-pollution/

# data[].attributes.body
https://www.nrdc.org/stories/10-ways-reduce-plastic-pollution
Charlie

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https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/01/here-s-how-indonesia-plans-to-tackle-its-plastic-pollution-challenge/

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Article found by Cypress

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Nat Geo Article - Cypress

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This story is part of Planet or Plastic?-our multiyear effort to raise awareness about the global plastic waste crisis. Learn what you can do to reduce your own single-use plastics, and take your pledge.

Read this story and more in the June 2018 issue of National Geographic magazine.

If plastic had been invented when the Pilgrims sailed from Plymouth, England, to North America-and the Mayflower had been stocked with bottled water and plastic-wrapped snacks-their plastic trash would likely still be around, four centuries later.

If the Pilgrims had been like many people today and simply tossed their empty bottles and wrappers over the side, Atlantic waves and sunlight would have worn all that plastic into tiny bits. And those bits might still be floating around the world's oceans today, sponging up toxins to add to the ones already in them, waiting to be eaten by some hapless fish or oyster, and ultimately perhaps by one of us.

We should give thanks that the Pilgrims didn't have plastic, I thought recently as I rode a train to Plymouth along England's south coast. I was on my way to see a man who would help me make sense of the whole mess we've made with plastic, especially in the ocean.

Because plastic wasn't invented until the late 19th century, and production really only took off around 1950, we have a mere 9.2 billion tons of the stuff to deal with. Of that, more than 6.9 billion tons have become waste. And of that waste, a staggering 6.3 billion tons never made it to a recycling bin-a figure that stunned the scientists who crunched the numbers in 2017.

No one knows how much unrecycled plastic waste ends up in the ocean, Earth's last sink. In 2015, Jenna Jambeck, a University of Georgia engineering professor, caught everyone's attention with a rough estimate: between 5.3 million and 14 million tons each year just from coastal regions. Most of it isn't thrown off ships, she and her colleagues say, but is dumped carelessly on land or in rivers, mostly in Asia. It's then blown or washed into the sea. Imagine five plastic grocery bags stuffed with plastic trash, Jambeck says, sitting on every foot of coastline around the world-that would correspond to about 8.8 million tons, her middle-of-the-road estimate of what the ocean gets from us annually. It's unclear how long it will take for that plastic to completely biodegrade into its constituent molecules. Estimates range from 450 years to never.

Meanwhile, ocean plastic is estimated to kill millions of marine animals every year. Nearly 700 species, including endangered ones, are known to have been affected by it. Some are harmed visibly-strangled by abandoned fishing nets or discarded six-pack rings. Many more are probably harmed invisibly. Marine species of all sizes, from zooplankton to whales, now eat microplastics, the bits smaller than one-fifth of an inch across. On Hawaii's Big Island, on a beach that seemingly should have been pristine-no paved road leads to it-I walked ankle-deep through microplastics. They crunched like Rice Krispies under my feet. After that, I could understand why some people see ocean plastic as a looming catastrophe, worth mentioning in the same breath as climate change. At a global summit in Nairobi last December, the head of the United Nations Environment Programme spoke of an "ocean Armageddon."

And yet there's a key difference: Ocean plastic is not as complicated as climate change. There are no ocean trash deniers, at least so far. To do something about it, we don't have to remake our planet's entire energy system.

"This isn't a problem where we don't know what the solution is," says Ted Siegler, a Vermont resource economist who has spent more than 25 years working with developing nations on garbage. "We know how to pick up garbage. Anyone can do it. We know how to dispose of it. We know how to recycle." It's a matter of building the necessary institutions and systems, he says-ideally before the ocean turns, irretrievably and for centuries to come, into a thin soup of plastic.

In Plymouth, under the gray gloom of an English autumn, Richard Thompson waited in a yellow slicker outside Plymouth University's Coxside Marine Station, at the edge of the harbor. A lean man of 54, with a smooth pate rimmed with gray hair, Thompson was headed for an ordinary career as a marine ecologist in 1993-he was working on a Ph.D. on limpets and microalgae that grow on coastal rocks-when he participated in his first beach cleanup, on the Isle of Man. While other volunteers zoomed in on the plastic bottles and bags and nets, Thompson focused on the small stuff, the tiny particles that lay underfoot, ignored, at the high tide line. At first he wasn't even sure they were plastic. He had to consult forensic chemists to confirm it.

There was a real mystery to be solved back then, at least in academic circles: Scientists wondered why they weren't finding even more plastic in the sea. World production has increased exponentially-from 2.3 million tons in 1950, it grew to 162 million in 1993 and to 448 million by 2015-but the amount of plastic drifting on the ocean and washing up on beaches, alarming as it was, didn't seem to be rising as fast. "That begs the question: Where is it?" Thompson said. "We can't establish harm to the environment unless we know where it is."

In the years since his first beach cleanup, Thompson has helped provide the beginnings of an answer: The missing plastic is getting broken into pieces so small they're hard to see. In a 2004 paper, Thompson coined the term "microplastics" for these small bits, predicting-accurately, as it turned out-that they had "potential for large-scale accumulation" in the ocean.

When we met in Plymouth last fall, Thompson and two of his students had just completed a study that indicated it's not just waves and sunlight that break down plastic. In lab tests, they'd watched amphipods of the species Orchestia gammarellus -tiny shrimplike crustaceans that are common in European coastal waters-devour pieces of plastic bags and determined they could shred a single bag into 1.75 million microscopic fragments. The little creatures chewed through plastic especially fast, Thompson's team found, when it was coated with the microbial slime that is their normal food. They spat out or eventually excreted the plastic bits.

Microplastics have been found everywhere in the ocean that people have looked, from sediments on the deepest seafloor to ice floating in the Arctic-which, as it melts over the next decade, could release more than a trillion bits of plastic into the water, according to one estimate. On some beaches on the Big Island of Hawaii, as much as 15 percent of the sand is actually grains of microplastic. Kamilo Point Beach, the one I walked on, catches plastic from the North Pacific gyre, the trashiest of five swirling current systems that transport garbage around the ocean basins and concentrate it in great patches. At Kamilo Point the beach is piled with laundry baskets, bottles, and containers with labels in Chinese, Japanese, Korean, English, and occasionally, Russian. On Henderson Island, an uninhabited coral island in the South Pacific, researchers have found an astonishing volume of plastic from South America, Asia, New Zealand, Russia, and as far away as Scotland.

As Thompson and I talked about all this, a day boat called the Dolphin was carrying us through a light chop in the Sound, off Plymouth. Thompson reeled out a fine-mesh net called a manta trawl, usually used for studying plankton. We were close to the spot where, a few years earlier, other researchers had collected 504 fish of 10 species and given them to Thompson. Dissecting the fish, he was surprised to find microplastics in the guts of more than one-third of them. The finding made international headlines.

After we'd steamed along for a while, Thompson reeled the manta trawl back in. There was a smattering of colored plastic confetti at the bottom. Thompson himself doesn't worry much about microplastics in his fish and chips-there's little evidence yet that they pass from the gut of a fish into the flesh we actually eat. (See We Know Plastic Is Harming Marine Life. What About Us?) He worries more about the things that none of us can see-the chemicals added to plastics to give them desirable properties, such as malleability, and the even tinier nanoplastics that microplastics presumably degrade into. Those might pass into the tissues of fish and humans.

"We do know the concentrations of chemicals at the time of manufacture in some cases are very high," Thompson said. "We don't know how much additive is left in the plastic by the time it becomes bite-size to a fish.

"Nobody has found nanoparticles in the environment-they're below the level of detection for analytical equipment. People think they are out there. They have the potential to be sequestered in tissue, and that could be a game changer."

Thompson is careful not to get ahead of the science on his subject. He's far from an alarmist-but he's also convinced that plastic trash in the ocean is far more than an aesthetic problem. "I don't think we should be waiting for a key finding of whether or not fish are hazardous to eat," he said. "We have enough evidence to act."

How did we get here? When did the dark side of the miracle of plastic first show itself? It's a question that can be asked about many of the marvels of our technological world. Since helping the Allies win World War II-think of nylon parachutes or lightweight airplane parts-plastics have transformed all our lives as few other inventions have, mostly for the better. They've eased travel into space and revolutionized medicine. They lighten every car and jumbo jet today, saving fuel-and pollution. In the form of clingy, light-as-air wraps, they extend the life of fresh food. In airbags, incubators, helmets, or simply by delivering clean drinking water to poor people in those now demonized disposable bottles, plastics save lives daily.

In one of their early applications, they saved wildlife. In the mid-1800s, piano keys, billiard balls, combs, and all manner of trinkets were made of a scarce natural material: elephant ivory. With the elephant population at risk and ivory expensive and scarce, a billiards company in New York City offered a $10,000 reward to anyone who could come up with an alternative.

As Susan Freinkel tells the tale in her book, Plastic: A Toxic Love Story, an amateur inventor named John Wesley Hyatt took up the challenge. His new material, celluloid, was made of cellulose, the polymer found in all plants. Hyatt's company boasted that it would eliminate the need "to ransack the Earth in pursuit of substances which are constantly growing scarcer." Besides sparing at least some elephants, celluloid also helped change billiards from solely an aristocratic pastime to one that working people play in bars.

That's a trivial example of a profound revolution ushered in by plastic-an era of material abundance. The revolution accelerated in the early 20th century, once plastics began to be made from the same stuff that was giving us abundant, cheap energy: petroleum. Oil companies had waste gases like ethylene coming out the stacks of their refineries. Chemists discovered they could use those gases as building blocks, or monomers, to create all sorts of novel polymers-polyethylene terephthalate, for example, or PET-instead of working only with polymers that already existed in nature. A world of possibilities opened up. Anything and everything could be made of plastic, and so it was, because plastics were cheap.

They were so cheap, we began to make things we never intended to keep. In 1955 Life magazine celebrated the liberation of the American housewife from drudgery. Under the headline "Throwaway Living," a photograph showed a family flinging plates, cups, and cutlery into the air. The items would take 40 hours to clean, the text noted-"except that no housewife need bother." When did plastics start to show their dark side? You might say it was when the junk in that photo hit the ground.

Six decades later, roughly 40 percent of the now more than 448 million tons of plastic produced every year is disposable, much of it used as packaging intended to be discarded within minutes after purchase. Production has grown at such a breakneck pace that virtually half the plastic ever manufactured has been made in the past 15 years. Last year the Coca-Cola Company, perhaps the world's largest producer of plastic bottles, acknowledged for the first time just how many it makes: 128 billion a year. Nestlé, PepsiCo, and others also churn out torrents of bottles.

The growth of plastic production has far outstripped the ability of waste management to keep up: That's why the oceans are under assault. "It's not surprising that we broke the system," Jambeck says. "That kind of increase would break any system not prepared for it." In 2013 a group of scientists issued a new assessment of throwaway living. Writing in Nature magazine, they declared that disposable plastic should be classified, not as a housewife's friend, but as a hazardous material.

In recent years the surge in production has been driven largely by the expanded use of disposable plastic packaging in the growing economies of Asia-where garbage collection systems may be underdeveloped or nonexistent. In 2010, according to an estimate by Jambeck, half the world's mismanaged plastic waste was generated by just five Asian countries: China, Indonesia, the Philippines, Vietnam, and Sri Lanka.

"Let's say you recycle 100 percent in all of North America and Europe," says Ramani Narayan, a chemical engineering professor at Michigan State University who also works in his native India. "You still would not make a dent on the plastics released into the oceans. If you want to do something about this, you have to go there, to these countries, and deal with the mismanaged waste."

The Pasig River once flowed majestically through downtown Manila, capital of the Philippines, and emptied into pristine Manila Bay. It was a treasured waterway and civic point of pride. It's now listed among the top 10 rivers in the world that convey plastic waste to the sea. As many as 72,000 tons flow downstream each year, mostly during the monsoon. In 1990 the Pasig was declared biologically dead.

The Pasig River Rehabilitation Commission, established in 1999, is working to clean up the river, with some signs of success. Jose Antonio Goitia, the commission's executive director, says he is optimistic that the Pasig could be restored someday, although he acknowledges he has no easy way of doing that. "Maybe the best thing to do is ban plastic bags," he says.

The remaining challenges are clearly visible every day. The river is fed by 51 tributaries, some of them overflowing with plastic waste from squatter settlements that cantilever precariously over creek banks. A tributary near Chinatown, where rickety shanties are wedged between modern buildings, is so choked with plastic debris you can walk across it, forgoing the footbridge. Manila Bay's beaches, once recreational respites for greater Manila's 13 million residents, are littered with garbage, much of it plastic. Last fall Break Free From Plastic, a coalition including Greenpeace and other groups, cleaned a beach on Freedom Island, which is advertised as an ecotourism district; volunteers picked up 54,260 pieces of plastic, from shoes to food containers. By the time I visited a few weeks later, the beach was littered again with bottles, wrappers, and shopping bags.

The scene in Manila is typical of large, overcrowded urban centers across Asia. The Philippines is a densely populated nation of 105 million people that is still struggling with the most basic public health issues, including waterborne diseases such as typhoid and bacterial diarrhea. It's no surprise that it has trouble managing the explosion of plastic garbage. Manila has a metropolitan garbage collection system that stretches across 17 separate local governments-a source of chaos and inefficiency. In 2004 the region was already running out of land to safely dump garbage. The shortage of landfill space, and thus the crisis, continues today.

A small part of the slack is taken up by Manila's informal recycling industry, which consists of thousands of waste pickers. Armando Siena, 34, is one of them. He and his wife, Angie, 31, have lived their entire lives surrounded by trash. They were born on Smokey Mountain, an internationally notorious dump that was officially closed in the 1990s. They now live with their three children near Manila's waterfront in a one-room flat lit by a single bulb, furnished with a pair of plastic chairs, and lacking plumbing, bedding, or refrigeration. The flat is in a garbage-filled slum named Aroma, next to another slum named Happyland.

Every day Siena rides a rickety bicycle beyond Aroma's boundaries, scanning the streets for recyclable rubbish that he can stuff into his sidecar. Plastic soup containers are high-value finds, paying 20 pesos (38 cents) a kilogram. Siena sorts and sells his load to a junk shop owned by his uncle, who trucks the waste to recycling plants on the outskirts of Manila.

Waste pickers like Siena are part of the solution, some activists argue; they just need a living wage. In the Baseco waterfront slum in Manila, a tiny recycling shop operated by the Plastic Bank of Vancouver, British Columbia, pays a premium for bottles and hard plastic collected by waste pickers. It then sells that plastic at a higher price to multinationals, which market their recycled products as socially responsible.

Siegler, the Vermont economist, has worked in enough countries and run enough numbers to be skeptical of such schemes. "There is not enough value in plastics to make that work," he says. "It's cheaper to fund a solid waste management system than to subsidize collecting plastic."

The waste that clogs Manila's beaches and waterways reinforces Siegler's point. Much of it consists of sachets-tear-off packets that once held a single serving of shampoo, toothpaste, coffee, condiments, or other products. They are sold by the millions to poor people like Siena and his family, who can't afford to buy more than one serving at a time. Sachets blow around Manila like leaves falling from trees. They're not recyclable, so no waste picker will retrieve them. Crispian Lao, a member of the National Solid Waste Management Commission, says, "This segment of packaging is growing, and it has become a real challenge for solid waste management."

When Greenpeace cleaned the Freedom Island beach, it posted a tally of the brand names of the sachets its volunteers had collected. Nestlé ranked first, Unilever second. Litterbugs aren't the only ones at fault, says Greenpeace's Abigail Aguilar: "We believe that the ones producing and promoting the use of single-use plastics have a major role in the whole problem." A Unilever spokeswoman in Manila told me the company is developing a recyclable sachet.

After Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 disappeared from radar screens in March 2014 while on its way from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, the search for it extended from Indonesia to the southern Indian Ocean. It captivated a global audience for weeks. No sign of the wreckage appeared. On several occasions, when satellite images revealed collections of objects floating on the sea surface, hopes soared that they would turn out to be aircraft parts. They weren't. It was all trash-pieces of broken shipping containers, abandoned fishing gear, and of course, plastic shopping bags.

Kathleen Dohan, a scientist and the president of Earth and Space Research in Seattle, saw opportunity in the horror: The images from space were pushing a problem into view that had long been neglected. "This is the first time the whole world is watching," she told me at the time. "It's a good time for people to understand that our oceans are garbage dumps." Dohan sensed a tipping point in public awareness-and the events since suggest she may have been right.

The most heartening thing about the plastic waste problem is the recent explosion of attention to it, and even of serious, if scattered, efforts to address it. A partial list of the good news since 2014 would include, in no particular order: Kenya joined a growing list of nations that have banned plastic bags, imposing steep fines and jail time on violators. France said it would ban plastic plates and cups by 2020. Bans on plastic microbeads in cosmetics (they're exfoliants) take effect this year in the U.S., Canada, the U.K., and four other countries. The industry is phasing them out.

Corporations are responding to public opinion. Coca-Cola, which also produces Dasani water, announced a goal to "collect and recycle the equivalent of" 100 percent of its packaging by 2030. It and other multinationals, including PepsiCo, Amcor, and Unilever, have pledged to convert to 100 percent reusable, recyclable, or compostable packaging by 2025. And Johnson & Johnson is switching from plastic back to paper stems on its cotton swabs.

Individuals are making a difference too. Ellen MacArthur, a British yachtswoman, has created a foundation to promote the vision of a "circular economy," in which all materials, including plastics, are designed to be reused or recycled, not dumped. Actor Adrian Grenier has lent his celebrity to the campaign against the plastic drinking straw. And Boyan Slat, 23, from the Netherlands, is charging ahead with his teenage vow to clean up the largest garbage patch in the North Pacific. His organization has raised more than $30 million to construct an ocean-sweeping machine that is still under development.

All of these measures help at some level-even beach cleanups, futile as they sometimes seem. A beach cleanup hooked Richard Thompson on the plastic problem a quarter century ago. But the real solution, he now thinks, is to stop plastic from entering the ocean in the first place-and then to rethink our whole approach to the amazing stuff. "We've done a lot of work making sure plastic does its job, but very little amount of work on what happens to that product at the end of its lifetime," he says. "I'm not saying plastics are the enemy, but there is a lot the industry can do to help solve the problem."

There are two fundamental ways industry can help, if it wants or is forced to. First, along with academic scientists such as Jambeck, it can design new plastics and new plastic products that are either biodegradable or more recyclable (see You Can Help Turn the Tide on Plastic. Here's How.). New materials and more recycling, along with simply avoiding unnecessary uses of the stuff, are the long-term solutions to the plastic waste problem. But the fastest way to make a big difference, Siegler says, is low tech. It's more garbage trucks and landfills.

"Everyone wants a sexy answer," he says. "The reality is, we need to just collect the trash. Most countries that I work in, you can't even get it off the street. We need garbage trucks and help institutionalizing the fact that this waste needs to be collected on a regular basis and landfilled, recycled, or burned so that it doesn't end up going all over the place."

That's the second way industry could help: It could pony up. Siegler has proposed a worldwide tax of a penny on every pound of plastic resin manufactured. The tax would raise roughly six billion dollars a year that could be used to finance garbage collection systems in developing nations. The idea never caught on. In the fall of 2017, though, a group of scientists revived the concept of a global fund. The group called for an international agreement patterned after the Paris climate accord.

At the Nairobi meeting in December, 193 nations, including the U.S., actually passed one. The United Nations Clean Seas agreement doesn't impose a tax on plastic. It's nonbinding and toothless. It's really just a declaration of a good intention-the intention to end ocean plastic pollution. In that way it's less like the Paris Agreement and more like the Rio de Janeiro treaty, in which the world pledged to combat dangerous climate change-back in 1992. Norway's environment minister, Vidar Helgesen, called this new agreement a strong first step.

Staff writer Laura Parker and photographer Randy Olson last worked together on a feature on the vanishing Ogallala aquifer, which was published in the August 2016 issue.

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We Depend on Plastic. Now We're Drowning in It.

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The miracle material has made modern life possible. But more than 40 percent of it is used just once, and it's choking our waterways.

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The singaporean’s perspectives on plastic pollution👇            👇

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55% of Singaporeans state that global warming/climate change is the top environmental issue of concern for the country

4 in 5 Singaporeans agree that the excessive use of plastics is a problem with 47% claim that they usually separate their plastic waste for recycling

38% of Singaporeans agree they would support policies to phase out single-use plastics or disposable non-biodegradable plastics in favour of those made with more biodegradable materials or reusable alternatives, if there were a small price increase

Singapore, 29th August 2019 - New analysis from Ipsos, drawn from results of latest studies in Singapore over the period of April to August 2019 reveals that 55% of Singaporeans deem that climate change is the top environmental issue that should receive the greatest attention from local leaders.

Elodie Causier, Head of specialist research unit Market Strategy and Understanding at Ipsos in Singapore and Per-Henrik Karlsson, Head of Ipsos Business Consulting in Singapore, presented the key findings and insights encompassing plastic waste in Singapore along with an exploration of the paths that businesses need to navigate through this global challenge of plastic reduction, at a special event today in Singapore.

Attitudes towards Climate Change

There is a general understanding among Singaporeans (97%) that climate change is at least partly influenced by human activity.

Singaporeans recognise that everyone has some responsibility in driving real change, but two-thirds of Singaporeans believe that governments and international organisations like the UN, ASEAN, EU etc, should be most responsible for taking action on climate change. This may be in part due to 50% of Singaporeans who feel that there are too many conflicting opinions for the public to be confident about claims made around climate change and 24% who say that the seriousness of climate change is exaggerated.

Attitudes towards Plastics and Recycling

Despite the lack of clarity on climate change, Singaporeans (78%) recognize that their behaviour has an impact on the environment, and they take a rather serious view specifically on the use of plastics. Singaporeans agree that the excessive use of plastics is a problem (79%), and nearly 1 in 2 Singaporeans say that they usually separate their plastic waste to be sent for recycling.

The reasons for the practice of recycling not being more wide-spread are varied. 47% agree that engaging in environmentally-friendly practices is inconvenient and only 26% are confident in interpreting the recycling symbols on packaging.

According to a survey conducted by PACT of WWF in November 2018, 70% of Singaporeans say that they would recycle more if it was more convenient and easier to recycle. 60% would recycle more if there is a cash incentive to recycling. 43% would if the recyclable information is clearly printed on packaging products. 33% would recycle more if it was legislated by the government.

Based on Ipsos analysis, given the current infrastructure and conditions in Singapore, the number of recycling sessions every week can be increased by up to 20% if there is a change in mindset among individuals - that they believe that their personal behaviour can impact overall environmental outcomes.

Policies and Regulations

In the Sustainable Singapore Blueprint published in 2015, the National Environment Agency describes initiatives like the Singapore Packing Agreement, an integrated waste management facility and other plans to move the country to a Zero-Waste Nation.

Organisations like PACT (Plastic Action), a voluntary business initiative of the WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature) has also made significant strides on a sectoral level as well as individual company level. For example, in June 2019, PACT together with Zero Waste SG have signed 270 food and beverage (F&B) outlets in Singapore to phase out plastic straws by 1 July 2019.

So far, such Government-led and NPO-led initiatives have been largely focussed on helping businesses make changes. Similar initiatives to drive behavioural change among consumers is still relatively in its early days in Singapore. Local and community-led initiatives tend to lack scale and durability too.

When asked if there were policies in place to phase out single-use plastics or disposable non-biodegradable plastics such as plastic bags, straws, food containers, plastic bottles, etc., in favour of those made with more biodegradable materials or reusable alternatives, 38% of Singaporeans agree they would support it if there were a small price increase, and 64% would support it if there were no price increase. The remaining 9% would not support such policies.

Businesses

There is also an expectation from Singaporeans on businesses that produce packaged goods and businesses that sell packaged goods to take responsibility in reducing the amount of unnecessary packaging which is sold.

Brand owners' initiatives to help reduce plastic waste and promote a sustainable environment include replacing all plastic packaging with recycled plastic products, replacing single-use plastic containers and straws with eco-friendly products and launching promotions to encourage non-plastic use.

Retailers are also moving towards using eco-friendly packaging such as banana leaves and bio-plastic bags and eco-friendly stores including refilling stations using consumers' own non-plastic packaging for soaps and shampoo that have become increasingly popular.

The recycling industry in Singapore however face several demand and supply challenges where there is lack of local demand, a low supply of recycled materials and where limited industry growth is expected.

In Singapore, consistent with markets all over the world, consumer sentiment is shaping new expectations and new behaviours around sustainable packaging which creates a new commercial imperative that will drive future profitability of brands.

Elodie Causier, Director at Ipsos in Singapore said, "Plastic waste and packaging sustainability are critical global environmental and commercial issues. Conditions are ripe for innovation in alternative packaging, community action and innovative ways to recycle and reuse plastic waste. We are now entering a third 'moment of truth' where brand owners have the opportunity to leverage packaging sustainability as an additional and new, distinctive brand asset."

Per-Henrik Karlsson, Head of Ipsos Business Consulting in Singapore adds, "The Ipsos analysis looks at the role of the value chain and related stakeholder initiatives along with consumer sentiment and innovations around packaging. Companies today are challenged to optimize their business models in a landscape where the game is changing both in technological progress and social consciousness."
Note to Editors

Analysis provided in this article was conducted by global market research agency, Ipsos.

Unless otherwise stated, data cited on Singaporean attitudes and behaviour towards plastics and recycling was derived from multiple studies conducted in Singapore over the period of February to August 2019.

Surveys were conducted online among nationally representative samples of Singaporeans and Singapore PRs, totalling 2,449 respondents.

Other sources: https://www.nea.gov.sg/programmes-grants/schemes/singapore-packaging-agreement https://www.eco-business.com/news/ready-to-report-how-singapore-firms-are-preparing-for-new-packaging-mandate/ https://www.wwf.sg/business/pact/

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A Singapore Perspective on Plastic Pollution

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55% of Singaporeans state that global warming/climate change is the top environmental issue of concern for the country 4 in 5 Singaporeans agree that the excessive use of plastics is a problem with 47% claim that they usually separate their plastic waste for recycling 38% of Singaporeans agree they would

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What happens if we don’t recycle👇             👇              👇

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The properties that have made plastic popular, like its light weight, water impermeability, and long life are the same reasons that make its disposal difficult. The fact that it is inexpensive has made it ubiquitous, and the volumes of plastic waste generated has lead to a cascade effect. It is important to know what happens to old plastic to understand what will happen if it is not recycled.

Plastic Disposal

The American Plastics Council (APC), reports that "94% of Americans can recycle plastic bottles locally, and more than 70% of us can recycle flexible wraps and bags at 18,000 grocery stores across the U. S." In this way, 32% of bottles and 17% of flexible wraps and bags were recycled in 2014. Though it is possible to recycle more types of plastic due to new technology, most plastic that is recyclable is discarded.

Related Articles

A 2016 Worldwatch Institute Report found that Americans and Europeans use an average of 100 kilos of plastic packaging every year. Less than 10% of the plastic used is recycled every year in the U.S. The remaining 33 million tons goes to waste, with 22-43% ending up in landfills, and the rest being incinerated or littered; all three impact the environment and affect human and wildlife health leading to enormous costs.

Plastic Pollution in Landfills

Recycling at consumer, community, and national levels is fairly inadequate and inefficient. PET (1), HDPE (2) and polystyrene-PS (6) are commonly accepted for recycling. While polypropylene-PP (5), LDPE (4), Polyvinyl Chloride -PVC (3) are sometimes recycled, polycarbonate and polylactide (7) used for medical devices, or in electrical and electronics, are seldom recycled.

Most plastic can be recycled. The partial amounts of PET, HDPE and PS recovered make up only 16.5% of the plastic which can be recycled, with 65% of material made of other kinds of plastic ending up landfills according to a study from Columbia University (p. 28).

Decomposition estimates - In the landfill, PET can take 10 years, PS 50, HDPE 100, LDPE 500, and PP 1000 years to break down; the MDPI notes that PET can take up to 50 years to fully degrade. This process could occur faster if plastic is exposed to light. The material recovery facility Mercer Group International notes that most plastics take 200 to 400 years for decomposition.

Health concerns - The toxic chemicals in plastic interact with water and leach into the ground and pollute groundwater reservoirs harming wildlife and people. Plastic uses bisphenol A (BPA), a carcinogen, and more recently bisphenol S (BPS) and bisphenol F (BPF) as hardening agents. Other chemicals are added as flame-retardants or coloring agents, all of which affect hormone activity. Phthalates, contained in food packaging and medical devices, and BPA are found in 90% of premature babies according to Environment Health News, while BPS and BPF have effects similar to BPA.

Incineration Controversy

Incineration, another common plastic waste management method, can be injurious to health, due to release of toxic chemicals listed as Persistant Organic Pollutants, or POPs, when they are inhaled. Materials made of HDPE, LDPE, PS and PP burn fast with an explosion and cause drips. PET needs higher temperatures and longer to ignite; while PVC and other thicker plastics are ones that require the highest temperatures. PVC, which burns with an acrid smell, produces dioxins, and products with flame retardants release many toxins. These cause severe health problems like cancer, neurological damage, birth defects and child developmental disorders, asthma, and multiple organ damage to name a few issues for people, and are also toxic for animals.

While some countries still incinerate plastic to generate energy, groups like the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives are quick to point out the health hazards and problems of incineration. Incineration is a controversial option for dealing with plastics that aren't recycled.

Marine Pollution

The largest impact has been on marine ecosystems, with 10% of all plastic produced ending up in the oceans. Plastic is very 'mobile' given its low density and light weight, and items from illegal litters, dumps, and landfills blow over to streams and rivers, and is carried to oceans or is washed up on beaches. Eighty percent of marine waste comes from land sources and an additional 20% is dumped by ocean liners and platforms, and the Environment Protection Agency (EPA) has found that 33 to 66% of these are single-use plastic packaging for food and drinks, cups, utensils and cutlery, that could be recycled.

Floating plastics - HDPE, LDPE and PP items float, and gyres are formed when they accumulate due to currents and cyclonic action. Some gyres are colossal in size. The Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch is larger than the state of Texas. There are four large gyres in the Atlantic and Indian Oceans too.

Sinking plastics - The other kinds of plastics are heavy and sink to ocean floors. Thousands of animals from small finches to great white sharks are killed as they get entangled in discarded fishing nets. Three hundred species of animals ingest plastic mistaking it for food; for example sea-turtles mistake bellowing plastic for jellyfish. Nearly 100,000 animals die every year; some starve to death as plastics fill their bellies and there is no place left for food. Others are affected by the toxic elements added to plastic according to National Geographic.

Micro-plastics - Plastic breaks down into micro-plastics rapidly, though it takes a long time to decompose completely. Because of the size, even small insects eat micro-plastic. Once ingested by small animals, plastic can find its way to people's tables by a process called bioaccumulation. When animals are eaten by bigger predatory fish and other sea-life, plastics, and the chemicals in them, get more concentrated as they move up the food-chain. Up to 67% of edible species of seafood, and 25% of catch in the U.S. has plastic in them.

Waste of Resources

Energy used to make base plastic from feedstock and manufacture different products accounts for 2.5 to 4% of U.S. energy consumption. If a plastic item is thrown away, it cannot be reused or remade into another plastic item. The base plastic in the item becomes a total waste. Raw materials and natural resources, such as water and energy, are needed to create new plastics. If the plastic item is recycled, the base plastic can be reused to create a new plastic item, frequently using fewer natural resources in the manufacturing process.

Economic Costs

Most of the beaches worldwide suffer from littering of single-use packaging of food and beverages, leading to loss in livelihoods when tourism is affected. In California, more than half a billion dollars are spent annually to clean beachfronts for tourism. Countries in the Asia-Pacific region report losses of $622 million a year due to littered beaches, while fishing industries lose $364 million per year, and the shipping industries lose $279 million each year. So the total cost of marine debris in this region alone is $1.265 billion per year.

The UN News also estimates a "natural capital cost" of $75 billion due to use of plastic. Thirty percent or more of the cost derives from greenhouse emissions due to petroleum extraction and energy use in its production. On the other hand, recycling of plastics has helped recover plastics worth $4 billion each year.

Reduce Plastic Waste

Decrease plastic production by increasing the amounts of plastic recycled. Without recycling, this "wasted" plastic cannot be reworked and reused. Instead, new plastic must be made, requiring additional natural resources. You can help to save the environment by keeping wasted plastics out of the landfills, air, and oceans as well as cut down on natural resource use to make new plastics.

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What Will Happen if You Do Not Recycle Plastic | LoveToKnow

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The properties that have made plastic popular, like its light weight, water impermeability, and long life are the same reasons that make its disposal difficult. The fact that it is inexpensive has made it ubiquitous, and the volumes of plastic waste generated has lead to a cascade effect.

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The recycling history 👇      👇

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Although recycling may seem like a modern concept introduced with the environmental movement of the 1970s, it's actually been around for thousands of years. Prior to the industrial age, you couldn't make goods quickly and cheaply, so virtually everyone practiced recycling in some form. However, large-scale recycling programs were very rare -- households predominantly practiced recycling.

The mass production of the industrial age is, in many ways, the very reason we need to worry about large-scale recycling. When products can be produced (and purchased) very cheaply, it often makes more economic sense to simply throw away old items and purchase brand new ones. However, this culture of "disposable" goods created a number of environmental problems, which we'll discuss in detail in the next section.

In the 1930s and 40s, conservation and recycling became important in American society and in many other parts of the world. Economic depressions made recycling a necessity for many people to survive, as they couldn't afford new goods. In the 1940s, goods such as nylon, rubber and many metals were rationed and recycled to help support the war effort. However, the economic boom of the postwar years caused conservationism to fade from the American consciousness [source: Hall]. It wasn't until the environmental movement of the 1960s and 70s, heralded by the first Earth Day in 1970, that recycling once again became a mainstream idea. Though recycling suffered some lean years -- due to public acceptance and the market for recycled goods not growing -- it has generally increased from year to year [source: Hall] The success of recycling traces to wide public acceptance, the improved economics of recycling and laws requiring recycling collections or enforcing recycled content in certain manufacturing processes.

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Although recycling may seem like a modern concept introduced with the environmental movement of the 1970s, it's actually been around for thousands of years. Prior to the industrial age, you couldn't make goods quickly and cheaply, so virtually everyone practiced recycling in some form. However, large-scale recycling programs were very rare -- households predominantly practiced recycling.

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Introducing the SHRUDER
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Resource Recovery & Recycling in Remote Locations, Shruder - Plastic Collective

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We help establish community operated plastic recycling micro-enterprises. View our Shruder, a shredder and extruder integrated into one portable unit.

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Let's see how plastic is recycled here👇                 👇                👇

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Plastic recycling refers to the process of recovering waste or scrap plastic and reprocessing the materials into functional and useful products. This activity is known as the plastic recycling process. The goal of recycling plastic is to reduce high rates of plastic pollution while putting less pressure on virgin materials to produce brand new plastic products. This approach helps to conserve resources and diverts plastics from landfills or unintended destinations such as oceans.

Plastics are durable, lightweight and inexpensive materials. They can readily be molded into various products which find uses in a plethora of applications. Every year, more than 100 million tons of plastics are manufactured across the globe. Around 200 billion pounds of new plastic material is thermoformed, foamed, laminated and extruded into millions of packages and products. Consequently, the reuse, recovery and the recycling of plastics are extremely important.

There are six common types of plastics. Following are some typical products you will find for each of plastic:

PS (Polystyrene) - Example: foam hot drink cups, plastic cutlery, containers, and yogurt.

PP (Polypropylene) - Example: lunch boxes, take-out food containers, ice cream containers.

LDPE (Low-density polyethylene) - Example: garbage bins and bags.

PVC (Plasticised Polyvinyl chloride or polyvinyl chloride) -Example: cordial, juice or squeeze bottles.

HDPE (High-density polyethylene) - Example: shampoo containers or milk bottles.

PET (Polyethylene terephthalate) - Example: fruit juice and soft drink bottles.

Currently, only PET, HDPE, and PVC plastic products are recycled under curbside recycling programs. PS, PP, and LDPE typically are not recycled because these plastic materials get stuck in the sorting equipment in recycling facilities causing it to break or stop. Lids and bottle tops cannot be recycled as well. "To recycle or Not to Recycle" is a big question when it comes to plastic recycling. Some plastic types are not recycled because they are not economically feasible to do so.

Every hour, Americans use 2.5 million plastic bottles, most of which are thrown away.

About 9.1% of plastic production was recycled in the U.S. during 2015, varying by product category. Plastic packaging was recycled at 14.6%, plastic durable goods at 6.6%, and other non-durable goods at 2.2%.

Currently, 25 percent of plastic waste is recycled in Europe.

Americans recycled 3.14 million tons of plastics in 2015, down from 3.17 million in 2014.

Recycling plastic takes 88% less energy than producing plastics from new raw materials.

Currently, around 50% of plastics we use are thrown away just after a single use.

Plastics account for 10% of total global waste generation.

Plastics can take hundreds of years to degrade

The plastics that end up in the oceans break down into small pieces and every year around 100,000 marine mammals and one million seabirds get killed eating those small pieces of plastics.

The energy saved from recycling just a single plastic bottle can power a 100 watt light bulb for nearly an hour.

The simplest of plastic recycling processes involves collecting, sorting, shredding, washing, melting, and pelletizing. The actual particular processes vary based on plastic resin or type of plastic product.

Most plastic recycling facilities use the following two-step process:

Step One: Sorting plastics automatically or with a manual sort to make sure all the contaminants are removed from the plastic waste stream.

Step Two: Melting down plastics directly into a new shape or shredding into flakes then melting down before being finally processed into granulates.

Ongoing innovations in recycling technologies have made the plastic recycling process easier and more cost-effective. Such technologies include reliable detectors and sophisticated decision and recognition software that collectively enhance the productivity and accuracy of automatic sorting of plastics. For an example, FT-NIR detectors can run for up to 8,000 hours between faults in the detectors.

Another notable innovation in plastic recycling has been in finding higher value applications for recycled polymers in closed-loop recycling processes. Since 2005, for example, PET sheets for thermoforming in the UK can contain 50 percent to 70 percent recycled PET through the use of A/B/A layer sheets.

Recently, some EU countries including Germany, Spain, Italy, Norway, and Austria have begun collecting rigid packaging such as pots, tubs, and trays as well as a limited amount of post-consumer flexible packaging. Due to recent improvements in washing and sorting technologies, the recycling of non-bottle plastic packaging has become feasible.

Plastic recycling faces many challenges, ranging from mixed plastics to hard-to-remove residues. The cost-effective and efficient recycling of the mixed plastic stream is perhaps the biggest challenge facing the recycling industry. Experts believe that designing plastic packaging and other plastic products with recycling in mind can play a significant role in facing this challenge.

The recovery and recycling of post-consumer flexible packaging is a recycling problem. Most material recovery facilities and local authorities do not actively collect it due to a lack of equipment that can efficiently and easily separate them.

Oceanic plastic pollution has become a recent flashpoint for public concern. Ocean plastic is expected to triple in the next decade, and public concern has prompted leading organizations around the world to take action towards better plastic resource management and pollution prevention.

Recycling is critical to effective end-of-life plastic management. Increasing recycling rates have resulted from greater public awareness and the increased effectiveness of recycling operations. Operational efficiency will be supported by ongoing investment in research and development.

Recycling of a greater range of post-consumer plastic products and packaging will further boost recycling and divert more end-of-life plastic wastes from landfills. Industry and policymakers can also help stimulate recycling activity by requiring or incentivizing the use of recycled resin versus virgin plastics.

Plastic recycling industry associations are the bodies responsible for promoting plastic recycling, enabling members to build and maintain relationships among plastic recyclers, and lobbying with government and other organizations to help create the best possible environment for the plastic recycling industry.

The Association of Plastic Recyclers (APR): APR represents theinternational plastic recycling industry. It represents its members which include plastic recycling companies of all sizes, consumer plastic product companies, plastic recycling equipment manufacturers, testing laboratories and organizations that are committed to the advancement and success of plastic recycling. APR has multiple education programs to update its members about the latest plastic recycling technologies and developments.

Plastics Recyclers Europe (PRE): Established in 1996, PRE represents plastic recyclers in Europe. Currently, it has more than 115 members from all over Europe. In the first year of establishment, PRE members recycled just 200 000 tons of plastic waste, however now the current total exceeds 2.5 million tons. PRE arranges plastic recycling shows and annual meetings to enable its members to discuss the latest developments and challenges in the industry.

Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI): ISRI represents over 1600 small to large multinational companies include manufacturers, processors, brokers and industrial consumers of many different types of scrap commodities. The associate members of this Washington DC-based association include equipment and key service providers to the scrap recycling industry.

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An Introduction to Plastic Recycling and the Plastic Recycling Process

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Plastic recycling refers to the process of recovering waste or scrap plastic and reprocessing the materials into functional and useful products. This activity is known as the plastic recycling process. The goal of recycling plastic is to reduce high rates of plastic pollution while putting less pressure on virgin materials to produce brand new plastic products.

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Infographic - Pacific Garbage Patch

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More than eight million tonnes of plastic goes into the world’s oceans each year. That’s a lot of plastic which can harm animals and the environment. So what’s being done about it?

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2016 plastic utensil waste output of big businesses in China.

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2016 plastic utensil waste output of big businesses in China.

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READ: ‘Cannot sell ... so they burn’: What’s next in the uncertain future for plastic waste in Singapore?

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READ: ‘Cannot sell ... so they burn’: What’s next in the uncertain future for plastic waste in Singapore?

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Singapore’s ability’s to export waste are narrowing down so they incinerate plastic waste. Cna Asia

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SINGAPORE: About 30 per cent of Singapore's recyclable waste was exported to other countries last year, said Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Masagos Zulkifli on Tuesday (Aug 6).

The bulk of recyclables are processed locally, he said in a written parliamentary reply.

Mr Masagos was responding to Non-constituency Member of Parliament Daniel Goh, who asked how much of Singapore's recyclable waste is exported to overseas processors, and which countries were the largest receivers of such waste from Singapore.

"Singapore recycles, on average, around 60 per cent of our total waste generated," said Mr Masagos.

"In 2018, about 30 per cent of recyclable material, such as paper, plastics, glass and metal, was exported to countries including Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, South Korea and Thailand for processing and recycling."

China's announcement in 2017 that it no longer wanted to import "foreign garbage" has created challenges for the global recycling industry. China used to be the world's top destination for recyclable trash.

Industry players in Singapore had said that running a recycling operation here is not financially viable, and that some recyclables now end up being incinerated instead of being sold to China.

Mr Masagos on Tuesday noted that there is a need for Singapore to continue building its recycling capabilities.

"This will allow us to better extract resources from waste and close the waste loop through adopting a circular economy approach," he said.

"NEA is currently studying e-waste and plastics recycling solutions and technologies available in the market, and assessing their suitability for adoption in Singapore in terms of both environmental and economic sustainability."

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About 30% of Singapore's recyclable waste exported overseas in 2018: Masagos

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(Updated: ) Share this content SINGAPORE: About 30 per cent of Singapore's recyclable waste was exported to other countries last year, said Minister for the Environment and Water Resources Masagos Zulkifli on Tuesday (Aug 6). The bulk of recyclables are processed locally, he said in a written parliamentary reply.

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If anybody is doing plastic in SG then see the articles on a pink background, they are very helpful.

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https://www.worldanimalprotection.org/news/how-plastic-pollution-affecting-seals-and-other-marine-life?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIu9edrfHc5wIVWwwrCh3trgHgEAAYAiAAEgIzPPD_BwE

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(Updated: )
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SINGAPORE: A stroll around most supermarkets reveals how important plastic seems to be in the sale of fresh food.

Fruit and vegetables are often wrapped in plastic while meat and fish usually comes in a tray encased in clingwrap. There are also usually plenty of plastic bags on hand for those loose items that shoppers select before they're weighed and priced.

Such scenes are repeated at supermarkets around the world.

But questions are starting to be raised about whether more should be done to reduce the reliance of supermarkets on plastic packaging, as the debate extends beyond cutting down on plastic shopping bags.

For instance, Sainsbury's in the UK recently announced that they will be trialing plastic packaging-free fruit and vegetable aisles in their grocery stores. Two superstores will give customers the option of bringing their own containers or buying a reusable drawstring bag for loose produce.

But experts and industry players think a similar move in Singapore is unlikely.

Professor of environmental economics at Nanyang Technological University Euston Quah believes eliminating plastic packaging completely in supermarkets is not practical and could cause problems elsewhere. "Paper for wrapping can tear easily and hygiene could be compromised.

"Bringing your own bags can also result in contamination, especially when people do not wash their bags often, which is also at the expense of water resources."

Mr Jonas Kor, director of corporate communications and brand at NTUC FairPrice, told CNA that while the brand remains committed to environmental sustainability, food safety and quality remains a priority.

"To reduce damage and minimise cross-contamination particularly for fresh produce, we use a variety of packaging including cling wrap, foam nets and trays and bags, depending on each type of fruit and vegetable."

He cited white radish, corn and leafy vegetables as some examples of fresh produce that is typically pre-packaged by suppliers to protect them from damage while in transit, noting that this reduces food waste.

"Nonetheless, where possible, we sell produce 'loose', such as hardier fruits like oranges, apples and avocados."

MP for Nee Soon GRC Louis Ng told CNA that he agrees that there is a hygiene concern in eliminating plastic packaging or plastic bags for fresh produce.

"Unlike a lot of other countries where it's more temperate, when you bring meat out here, it defrosts and gets a bit sticky in the bag. Same goes for vegetables. I do think we can draw the line there."

Mr Ng, who called for a surcharge on all single-use bags, except those used for fresh produce, in an adjournment motion in Parliament in October last year, thinks Singapore cannot go completely plastic bag-free, especially for those who stay in HDB estates and use plastic bags to dispose of their waste.

"Unlike other countries where they might not need it, in Singapore, if you don't use it, that creates a real hygiene concern in our public estates.

Singapore uses about 1.76 billion plastic items each year, according to the Singapore Environment Council's position paper published in 2018. This includes 820 million plastic bags from supermarkets, 467 million PET bottles and 473 million plastic disposable items.

According to NEA, packaging waste, including plastics, make up about one-third of domestic waste disposed of in Singapore.
REDUCING EXCESSIVE PACKAGING
Dairy Farm Group, which manages supermarkets Cold Storage and Giant, said it is "constantly looking at ways to reduce single-use plastic waste", and is working with local government agencies and packaging industry groups to find long-term solutions.

Manager of Zero Waste SG Pek Hai Lin said: "We are aware that most foods are imported and packaging can increase the shelf-life of certain food types, but we can reduce excessive packaging of certain items.

"Supermarkets might have more information on how much packaging is needed to increase shelf life of food."

Nonetheless, environmental expert and founder of Plastic-Lite Singapore Aarti Giri thinks local supermarket chains could do more to reduce plastic packaging on fresh produce.

"Better differentiation needs to be made between minimally packaging delicate produce and more robust ones like capsicums and bananas," she said.

By 2020, businesses will have to report the type and amount of packaging they put into the market to the NEA, and outline their plans for reducing it. This applies to brand owners, manufacturers, importers of packaging and packaged goods, as well as supermarkets with an annual turnover of more than $10 million.

Ms Giri urged local supermarkets to adopt packaging-free aisles for fresh produce and pass on the cost savings from the packaging reduction to consumers, to encourage them towards packaging-free produce.

She outlined two other solutions - alternative biodegradable packaging materials such as banana leaves or bio-plastics, and working closely with suppliers to reduce retail-level packaging.

MORE CIVIC MINDEDNESS NEEDED
Mr Kor said FairPrice works closely with its suppliers to maintain the quality of its produce while avoiding excessive packaging when transporting and retailing these products.

In the past year, several smaller, zero-waste grocery shops like Unpackt and Reprovisions have opened across the island, where customers bring their own containers for a wide variety of groceries. But founders say even they foresee problems in selling packaging-free fresh produce.

Founder of Unpackt Ms Florence Tay said while the initiative may be good for the environment, it may create another set of problems such as food waste.

She ran a short trial selling fresh produce at Unpackt, located in Jalan Kurau, but found that shoppers lacked "civic mindedness" and "were more keen to play with the fresh produce".

"Some shoppers are not considerate and may poke and rummage through the produce," adding that large chain supermarkets would have to employ more manpower to man the packaging-free aisles.

Co-founder of Reprovisions Mr Allann Tay agreed that customers are likely to abuse packaging-free fresh produce, because Singaporeans tend to try and pick the nicer looking fruits and vegetables, which may damage others lost in the shuffle.

The store, located in Jurong Point, sells mostly dried foods that are easy to store in bulk. Mr Tay said they have yet to bring in fresh produce due to space constraints, but are looking at a second, bigger location that can provide more product
THE COST OF CONVENIENCE
Mr Tay also pointed out that most of the products sold in supermarkets are packaged by suppliers or manufacturers, making it less practical for supermarkets to enforce packaging-free standards. "There isn't much brand differentiation once there is no packaging. Supermarkets cater to people who want the branding and packaging, whereas shops like us caters to those who can do without it."

Prof Quah believes there would be backlash if such measures are implemented because there are "no clear alternatives" to plastic bags and packaging.

He added that most Singaporeans still value plastic packaging and plastic bags for their convenience and multiple uses, and supermarkets must establish "a clear return" for reducing plastic use.

"Supermarkets must offer clear incentives to entice consumers to behave accordingly. There must be a connection that consumers can see, that their efforts are translated to gains other than environmental gains.

"Worse still, consumers might perceive environmental gains coming at their expense, along with cost-savings and higher profits for the supermarkets."
ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS STILL GROWING
Instead of cutting out packaging entirely, supermarkets can instead look at where packaging can be reduced, he said. For example, discouraging the purchase of individually packed items.

Despite their troubles, zero-waste grocery stores remain positive that Singaporeans are making the shift towards bringing their own bags.

Mr Tay said customer feedback at Reprovisions has been positive.

"We encounter people who are quite open to the concept once they know they are doing something good for the environment and future generations."

Zero-waste grocery stores are not a new concept, said Ms Tay, who opened Unpackt in May last year.

"We have shopping alternatives in traditional provision stores that still sell food in bulk. The local wet markets are also a good place to look for packaging-free fresh produce."

Ms Tay noted that shopping package-free takes a lot of discipline and mindfulness.

"Most people are already conscious of the environmental issues. They just need a few more nudges to action."

However, Ms Giri said while most consumers are aware of the detrimental effects of plastic pollution, not all see the urgency in choosing sustainable options.

"The resistance from shoppers should not be taken as an excuse to prolong a problem. That would be very short-sighted of us and at the expense of the health of our future generations and our biodiversity.

"The urgency to address climate change and enforce mitigating solutions is much akin to that of controlling an on-going infectious epidemic. Efforts need to be relentless and continuous."

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Could more be done to reduce plastic packaging waste in Singapore's supermarkets?

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(Updated: ) Share this content SINGAPORE: A stroll around most supermarkets reveals how important plastic seems to be in the sale of fresh food. Fruit and vegetables are often wrapped in plastic while meat and fish usually comes in a tray encased in clingwrap.

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Emma

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Millions of tons of plastic waste end up in the ocean every year. And the trash stays there: Whether it's grocery bags or water bottles or kids' toys, plastic is practically indestructible.

Now marine scientists have discovered that it's killing coral reefs.

A new study based on four years of diving on 159 reefs in the Pacific shows that reefs in four countries - Australia, Thailand, Indonesia and Myanmar - are heavily contaminated with plastic. It clings to the coral, especially branching coral. And where it clings, it sickens or kills.

"The likelihood of disease increases from 4 percent to 89 percent when corals are in contact with plastic," researchers report in the journal Science.

Senior author Drew Harvell at Cornell University says the plastic could be harming coral in at least two ways. First, bacteria and other harmful microorganisms are abundant in the water and on corals; when the coral is abraded, that might invite pathogens into the coral.

"It's certainly well known that plastics abrade corals, create new openings," she says. "They basically tear open the skin of the coral and that can allow an infection from anywhere to start."

In addition, Harvell says, plastic can block sunlight from reaching coral.

Her group found increased risk of four diseases in coral in contact with plastic.

"This is a huge survey," says Harvell. It was the idea of Joleah Lamb, who was at the time, a graduate student.

"There are really great studies showing how much plastic is going into the oceans and how much is floating on the surface," says Lamb, who's now a fellow at Cornell University. "But we really didn't have an idea about what's underneath the surface of the ocean."

The more they looked, especially in Asian waters, the more they found: bottles, diapers, cotton swabs, food wrappers. They noticed that coral that had plastic didn't look healthy.

Based on how much plastic the researchers found while diving, they estimate that over 11 billion plastic items could be entangled in coral reefs in the Asia-Pacific region, home to over half the world's coral reefs. And their survey did not include China, one of the biggest sources of plastic pollution.

Australian reefs had the least amount of plastic observed on reefs, which the researchers attribute to a more comprehensive system for waste control. Other countries in the Pacific don't have much control over what ends up in the waste stream. "Massive amounts of plastic are being thrown into the oceans from land," Harvell says, in countries that don't have much recycling and with dumps that are often adjacent to the ocean or waterways that run into the ocean.

Coral reefs already are susceptible to bleaching due to unusually warm water, either from seasonal shifts in water temperature or from human-caused global warming. "Bleached coral is more susceptible to disease," Harvell says. "The bleached coral is stressed. Plastic would make things that much worse."

Matthew Savoca, a marine scientist at the the University of California, Davis, who studies the effects of plastic in the ocean, suggests that ocean waters with lots of plastic waste might also carry other pollutants that could also be contributing to higher rates of coral disease.

But Lamb says they found that corals within yards of each other showed a noticeable difference: Those with plastic were much more likely to be diseased. "It seems to be something associated with the plastic itself," says Lamb.

Exactly how the plastic is causing disease is still unclear. What is clear from numerous studies is that the amount of plastic getting into the oceans is on the rise.

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Plastic Pollution Is Killing Coral Reefs, 4-Year Study Finds

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Millions of tons of plastic waste end up in the ocean every year. And the trash stays there: Whether it's grocery bags or water bottles or kids' toys, plastic is practically indestructible. Now marine scientists have discovered that it's killing coral reefs.

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Emma

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Can you imagine a world without Coral Reefs?

Corals may look like big chunks of rock but they are actually living organisms. The coral reefs that you see in the oceans are all composed of living things -and this ecosystem is being threatened like never before. To date, 27% of coral reefs have been destroyed. If the destruction continues, 60% will be gone in the next 30 years(1). Can you imagine a world without them?

The threat to corals are everywhere. Not all of the damage is deliberate, but rather a combination of different factors.

Direct Threats on Coral Reefs

Tourism: The simple act of standing on corals and touching them can cause damage that will take millennia to mend, if ever. Boat propellers, snorkeling, dropping anchors on the reef and more are just some of the examples of how humans are harming the reefs.

Commercial Traps: Lobster traps are light enough to be moved by the current but heavy enough to damage a coral when it comes in contact with one.

Destructive Fishing Methods: Cyanide Fishing kill polyps and algae. It requires the fishermen to break the corals in order to get the fish that they stunned. Muro ami is the act of banging the reef with sticks. These practices have been banned, including blast and dynamite fishing.

Indirect Threats on Coral Reefs

Poisonous Chemicals and Toxins: Fertilizers, pesticides, sewage, oil pollution and other man made toxins are poisoning the reefs. They are either dumped directly or carried by the rain or rivers into our oceans.

Too Much Sediment: This comes from farms or construction sites near the ocean. The sediment kills corals by blocking the sunlight or clogging their mouths. (Yes, they have mouths)

Climate Change: Global warming has caused an increase in coral bleaching, and it can only get worse. 80% of the added heat in our climate is being absorbed by the ocean. Corals cannot survive on waters with too high temperatures.

Pollution: Corals need clean water to live. The garbage that we throw in our oceans affects the quality of the water.

The beauty and importance of Coral Reefs have prompted many groups to rescue them through several conservation efforts. More of the reefs are being tagged as Marine Protection Areas and destructive fishing practices have been banned in many countries.

Do your share. Don't throw your litter in the ocean and support businesses that protect our coral reefs. Can you imagine a world without them?

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Corals may look like big chunks of rock but they are actually living organisms. The coral reefs that you see in the oceans are all composed of living things -and this ecosystem is being threatened like never before. To date, 27% of coral reefs have been destroyed.

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Emma

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Plastic trapped in reefs around the world is having a serious impact on coral health, according to a new study.

More than 11 billion pieces of plastic were lodged in the Asia-Pacific oceans corals, researchers from New York's Cornell University who studied them.

This debris appeared to be leading to a greater prevalence of coral diseases, they wrote in their findings published in the journal

This contact with plastic increases the likelihood of disease striking corals from 4 per cent to 89 per cent.

"Our work shows that plastic pollution is killing corals," said senior author Professor Drew Harvell, an ecologist at Cornell.

It is though that the increasein disease could be due to plastic items blocking light and oxygen from reaching the corals, which require both to survive.

Depriving them of these could also make corals more susceptible to infection by harmful microbes, known as pathogens.

Plastic could also actively transport pathogens into coral reefs.

"Plastic debris acts like a marine motorhome for microbes," said Dr Joleah Lamb, a marine biologist at Cornell University and lead author of the new study.

While the link with disease is unknown, past studies have established that plastics provide perfect havens for microbe colonies.

"Plastic items - commonly made of polypropylene, such as bottle caps and toothbrushes - have been shown to become heavily inhabited by bacteria. This is associated with the globally devastating group of coral diseases known as white syndromes," said Dr Lamb.

White syndrome is spread by bacteria, and causes parts of corals to die leaving a white band of dead tissue.

"What's troubling about coral disease is that once the coral tissue loss occurs, it's not coming back," said Dr Lamb. "It's like getting gangrene on your foot and there is nothing you can do to stop it from affecting your whole body."

The new discovery comes at a time of increased awareness of plastic pollution.

The UK Government has said it will make tackling plastic waste a top priority in its environmental policy.

This year has already seen a UK ban on the manufacture of products containing tiny fragments of plastic called microbeads, as well as debate over the future of disposable coffee cups and plastic bottles.

By increasing coral's susceptibility to disease, plastic may contribute to the devastation of the world's reefs, many of which have already been weakened by a string of climate change-induced bleaching events.

To establish the link between plastic and disease, Dr Lamb and her colleagues examined 159 coral reefs from Indonesia, Australia, Myanmar and Thailand.

As well as documenting the plastic waste they saw, the scientists visually examined nearly 125,000 corals, looking for evidence of disease.

They found that when plastic was in contact with coral, the chance that it also showed signs of disease increased by a factor of more than 20 compared to coral that was plastic-free.

"We know that plastics are widespread in the ocean, and it's no surprise to me that corals are encountering them," said Professor Richard Thompson, a marine biologist at the University of Plymouth who was not involved in the study.

Professor Thompson added that in his own work he has documented over 700 species encountering plastic debris, and evidence of harm coming to them as a result.

"Laboratory studies have shown that plastic encounters can cause really subtle, chronic effects and harm, compromising the ability of organisms to grow in the normal way for example," he said.

"Any compromise like that is going to make creatures more susceptible to the risks of other diseases."

However, he noted that while plastic could present an extra challenge and may be linked with an increase in disease risk, this study does not show that plastics are carrying pathogens into the reefs.

"They do not present clear evidence as to whether the pathogens were transferred by the plastic - but that is certainly a possibility," he said.

Whatever the mechanism by which plastic is impacting coral health, the researchers want their work to inform efforts to protect the world's reefs.

"Our goal is to focus less on measuring things dying and more on finding solutions," said Professor Harvell. "While we can't stop the huge impact of global warming on coral health in the short term, this new work should drive policy towards reducing plastic pollution."

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Plastic is 'killing corals' by increasing risk of disease in reefs, say scientists

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Plastic trapped in reefs around the world is having a serious impact on coral health, according to a new study. More than 11 billion pieces of plastic were lodged in the Asia-Pacific oceans corals, researchers from New York's Cornell University who studied them.

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Alliance to End Plastic

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We are a not-for-profit organization, partnering with the finance community, government and civil society, including environmental and economic development NGOs. We are working to make the dream of a world without plastic waste a reality. We have a strong team bringing together the world-class technical, materials, logistics and engineering expertise, collective resources and global reach of the entire plastic value chain.

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Home - The Alliance to End Plastic Waste

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We are a not-for-profit organization, partnering with the finance community, government and civil society, including environmental and economic development NGOs. We are working to make the dream of a world without plastic waste a reality. We have a strong team bringing together the world-class technical, materials, logistics and engineering expertise, collective resources and global reach of the entire plastic value chain.

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It is reported that Singapore uses at least 1.76 billion plastic items a year – or almost one plastic item per person per day – but less than 20% of that is recycled. Research also found that Singapore uses 467 million PET bottles a year and 473 million plastic disposable items such as takeaway containers.Jun 2, 2019

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Independent source provided by Sophie's Mum

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How to Build a Circular Economy | Ellen MacArthur Foundation

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Help build a circular economy: a better system that can help fight climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution. Explore the solutions for businesses today.

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Micah

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Even if you live hundreds of miles from the coast, the plastic you throw away could make its way into the sea. Once the plastic is in the ocean, it decomposes very slowly, breaking into tiny pieces known as microplastics, which can enter the marine food chain and become incredibly damaging to sea life. The main source of ocean plastic pollution is land-based-80% of plastic in the ocean originates on land. But what does that really mean? Where is it coming from?

There are three main ways plastic ends up in the oceans:

Plastic you put in the bin ends up in landfill. When rubbish is being transported to landfill, plastic is often blown away because it's so lightweight. From there, it can eventually clutter around drains and enter rivers and the sea this way.

Litter dropped on the street doesn't stay there. Rainwater and wind carries plastic waste into streams and rivers, and through drains. Drains lead to the ocean!

Careless and improper waste disposal is also a big contributor - illegal dumping of waste adds greatly to the plastic surge in our seas.

Many of the products we use daily are flushed down toilets, including wet wipes, cotton buds and sanitary products. Microfibres are even released into waterways when we wash our clothes in the washing machine. They are too small to be filtered out by waste water plants and end up being consumed by small marine species, eventually even ending up in our food chain.

A positive move in recent months was a ban on microbeads in rinse-off cosmetic and cleaning products introduced by the UK Government, so that these small plastic beads will no longer get washed down the sink and out into our oceans, but there are many more items that can also contribute to the problem.

The bottom line

How does plastic get into the ocean? The bottom line is us. Whether we mean to litter or not, there's always a chance the plastic we throw away could make it into the sea, and from there who knows? Maybe as far as the Arctic.

Big changes start with small steps and we all have the power to make a difference. What will you do to start cutting the plastic in your life?

We're working with Sky to protect and restore our amazing oceans. Find out more about Sky Ocean Rescue's fight against plastic pollution.

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Ever wondered how the plastic you use every day ends up in the sea? Learn more about this global crisis and what we can do to help.

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Mr Hallo

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Posted February 17, 2020 14:12:51

More than 25 years ago, Louise Hardman made a vow to do everything she could to rid the ocean of plastic.

Now, as the founder and CEO of Plastic Collective, she has been granted $2.49 million to extend the already extensive work she's done in the waste recycling field in remote and island communities.

Plastic Collective and its project partners have received the Australian Government Collaborative Research Centre grant, which will help fund the roll-out of an upgraded version of Ms Hardman's Shruder recycling machine, which can process hard and soft single-use plastics into saleable raw materials or new products.

"The entire plan was to provide these recycling units to every single island in the Asia-Pacific region," Ms Hardman said.

"There's over 4,000 islands out of 55,000 that are inhabited in this region, and if you add up the amount of people on those islands, there's 370 million people.

"Plus there's the remote and regional communities within Australia that need support."

Inspired to help

The death of a green turtle was the inspiration for the first Shruder machine.

Ms Hardman had been volunteering in a marine tagging program on the NSW Coast when she discovered a turtle that had become sick after eating plastics that had settled into seagrass beds.

The turtle died three days later.

"We did an autopsy on it and found that 30 different types of plastic were stuck in its entire digestive system, and that's what it died from - it actually starved to death.

"That was quite shocking for me, because it was in a national park, in a marine park, a place you would think would be the last place where there would be plastic pollution, but all the stuff got caught in the seagrass and I realised that this turtle couldn't escape it, and that's basically why I started the Plastic Collective."

In the years following, Ms Hardman developed her Shruder recycling machine, which takes plastic waste, shreds it into a raw product that can be sold to companies that manufacture recycled plastic products, or extruded into moulded products or filament for such things as weaving.

About 30 per cent of the plastic is made into new products on site, with the other 70 per cent being sold for $1 to $2 a kilogram as raw shredded material for manufacturing. The Shruder can make 20 kilograms of raw product in an hour.

Three Shruders were placed in remote and island communities in Bali, Sabah and on Whitsunday Island as part of a pilot program.

In Bali and Sabah, Ms Hardman saw first-hand the challenges that communities faced to treat their plastic waste.

The villagers either burned, buried or dumped their plastic in the ocean; all of which posed risks to the heath of the environment, and the villagers themselves.

"The village head in Bali said after having the Shruder, the village now had a new fragrance.

"I thought that was so beautiful, because when I first went there the toxic smell from the burning plastic meant you couldn't stay there for very long; your eyes hurt, your throat hurt."

A bigger and better Shruder

The federal grant money will allow Plastic Collective and partners, including Southern Cross University, to research and develop an upscaled Shruder.

The pilot programs provided many insights into the challenges that still needed to be overcome in the remote island communities.

Infrastructure was one of them.

"One of the projects we went to, their workshop looked like a bomb shelter. There was very poor electricity and quite dangerous in many respects," Ms Hardman said.

"So we decided we need to provide the workshop as well, so we want to build a containerised solution with equipment stack that can process hard plastics and soft plastics, but on top of that we want to provide a software solution. "

The ultimate aim is to give the communities a true "circular economy" solution that allows them to make a profit, employ people and also make products for the community.

"We cover the 'triple bottom line', as the business world says; it's economically viable, it produces social outcomes and also environmental outcomes."

Three next-generation Shruders will be produced over the next two years and rolled out to remote Indigenous communities.

Southern Cross University professor Steve Smith will be part of the research and development of the new Shruder recycling stations, which will include developing new products for communities.

"They may not be brand new products, but the way they're manufactured is going to be brand new, so this will be looking at community needs and then delivering those products which are going to be used within the community," he said.

One of the ideas already being looked at is developing plastic roof tiles.

"In some remote communities it's a fairly basic need, particularly in northern Australia, where we get some pretty intense monsoonal rain," Professor Smith said.

"But I think really we're limited only by imagination in what we can actually produce."

In addition to developing the technology and products, the SCU team will also measure the impact recycling the plastic has on the environment.

Topics: recycling-and-waste-management, indigenous-aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander, marine-parks, coffs-harbour-2450, southern-cross-university-coffs-harbour-2450, bali, malaysia, whitsundays-4802

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How a turtle's death led to a $2.5m grant to help rid the ocean of plastic

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More than 25 years ago, Louise Hardman made a vow to do everything she could to rid the ocean of plastic. Now, her Plastic Collective has been granted $2.49 million to extend work she's already done in the waste recycling field.

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National Geographic

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Much of the planet is swimming in discarded plastic, which is harming animal and possibly human health. Can it be cleaned up?

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Plastic pollution facts and information mikkel

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This article is very helpful.

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Since the year 2000, we've used more plastic than in all the years before.

WWF backs a global ban on single-use plastic to curb pollution

Producers need to be responsible for how their products are disposed of or recycled

Businesses and governments encouraged to stop using virgin materials in projects

On average, we each use 53 kilograms of plastic a year and generate a collective total of more than 300 million tonnes of plastic waste.

By 2030, this is predicted to double, with the brunt of the impacts expected to hit our oceans.

These are just some of the figures to come from WWF's global plastic report, Solving Plastic Through Accountability, released today.

The report urges policy makers to draft a global, legally binding agreement to stop plastic entering marine environments, and to establish strong national targets to cut down on plastic use.

About 40 per cent of plastics we consume today are single-use - things like cutlery, plates, food containers, electronics packaging.

Single-use plastics simply have to go, according to Richard Leck, WWF's Head of Oceans and Sustainable Development.

"In terms of the calls to action, absolutely the ban around single-use plastics is very important," he said.

"There needs to be incentives for producers to use products that aren't single use."

And WWF isn't alone.

This week, Hobart City Council voted 8-4 in favour of phasing out single-use plastics by 2020, and a Senate inquiry last year recommended a national ban to be implemented over the next five years.

In what he described at the time as a "rare display of political consensus", Greens Senator and inquiry chairman Peter Whish-Wilson said the Senate had "laid down a clear pathway for Australia to create a circular economy and stop piles of plastic, paper and glass being stockpiled or heading to landfill".

But what would that actually look like?

Producers must be responsible for cleaning up waste

Single-use plastics have become so ubiquitous it's hard to imagine doing things any other way.

Somewhere along the line we've constructed a system in which it makes more sense to mine the oil to make the plastic cutlery to use once and throw away, than it does to put our steel cutlery in a dishwasher.

The way forward is to transition to a circular economy, where everything is made to be reused, according to Candice Quartermain, founder and CEO of Circular Economy Australia.

"The fact that we're seeing stats coming out now saying there's going to be more plastic in the ocean than fish by 2025 is insane," she said.

"Circular economy is changing the economy entirely as we know it. It's really about saying we can't carry on the way that we are, something has to change, and the focus needs to be on quality and finding more effective ways of doing things."

In creating plastic we've effectively designed a material that is too good. It's cheap, versatile and lasts a long time.

To help shift us towards a circular economy, single-use plastic needs to be more expensive to produce, according to Mr Leck.

For that to happen, producers need to be accountable for the entire lifecycle of their products.

For instance, a soft-drink bottle floating in the ocean must be the property of the company that made the bottle, and they must have factored in the cost of retrieving the bottle into their business model.

"The issue around plastic is the classic example of 'who pays?' At the moment, the polluters aren't paying," he said.

"We have to make sure that the cost of plastics to nature is incorporated into the price."

While plastic is cheap for manufactures to produce, the UN Environment Program estimates ocean plastic pollution costs around $US8 billion each year through impacts on things like fisheries, tourism and maritime operators.

Plastic is more expensive to recycle than it's worth

But if manufacturers cleaning up their waste sounds far-fetched, it's already happening in parts of Europe, according to waste management expert Helen Millicer.

She's been touring Europe on a Churchill Fellowship, and said parts of Europe are already making huge strides toward achieving a circular economy.

"Companies that don't design or enable products to be reused or recycled, are penalised," she said.

The European Commission is now phasing out plastic cotton buds, cutlery, plates, straws and drink stirrers in all member states. Single-use plastic bottles with detachable lids are also being banned.

A European Commission statement has outlined a shift in responsibility from consumers and onto producers for the entire lifespan of their products, from their production right through to disposal.

"Producers will help cover the costs of waste management and clean-up, as well as awareness-raising measures for food containers, packets and wrappers, drinks containers and cups, tobacco products with filters, wet wipes, balloons, and lightweight plastic bags," an EU Commission statement said.

"The industry will also be given incentives to develop less-polluting alternatives for these products."

For its part the Australian Senate report included a stipulation that the Federal Government have mandatory targets for the inclusion of recycled materials in its procurement process.

Recycling industry leaders have previously criticised states and the Federal Government for using virgin materials in projects like road and infrastructure building, while recycled stockpiles have been growing higher.

And Senator Whish-Wilson called for more incentives for businesses to use recycled products, after last year's inquiry.

"Without incentivising domestic markets for the end-use of these waste streams it will keep piling up at rubbish tips around the country," he said.

Incentives are needed to balance the market.

According to WWF, the cost to recycle plastic in Europe is almost double what that plastic is then worth.

Can we imagine a waste-free world?

While market-based mechanisms will be the most effective method for driving change, some US based artists have been taking a more conceptual approach to the issue.

Los Angeles-based artists Jana Cruder and Matthew LaPenta have been exhibiting giant plastic cups and bottles in urban and coastal environments in a series of installations called Natural Plasticity.

The size of the installations are equal to the average amount of plastic cups, bottles and straws that each American uses in a year.

Feeling frustrated by the lack of action by her own government, Ms Cruder said she wanted to make something "so freaking big" they couldn't ignore it.

"We're not blaming anyone," Ms Cruder said.

"We're asking people to pay attention to their behaviours and examine them, [but] I think most people don't know where to start."

While reimagining a world without single-use plastics might be hard, doubling the world's plastic pollution by 2030 will be worse, according to Mr Leck.

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch in the North Pacific Ocean contains about 78,000 tonnes of plastic, according to the latest estimates.

It's one of five massive ocean gyres rapidly accumulating plastic waste.

"We use the analogy that, imagine if there was about 8 million tonnes of oil being pumped into the oceans each year, there would be a massive public outcry," Mr Leck said.

"If the global plastics system is left to function as it does currently then the plastic pollution crisis risks spiralling out of control."

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Rate of plastic pollution is predicted to double by 2030. Here are the ways we can stop it

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Since the year 2000, we've used more plastic than in all the years before. WWF backs a global ban on single-use plastic to curb pollution Producers need to be responsible for how their products are disposed of or recycled Businesses and governments encouraged to stop using virgin materials in projects On average, we each use 53 kilograms of plastic a year and generate a collective total of more than 300 million tonnes of plastic waste.

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What is it used for?