"No part of the planet is free of plastic waste, and coral reefs are no exception, but scientists have now made the discovery that the deeper the reef, the more plastic debris it is likely to have."
Lake Tahoe has microplastic concentrations “higher than those observed in ocean gyres — systems of ocean currents notorious for accumulating plastic waste” per new research.
“The tiny #plastic particles…have been found all over — in the ocean, in Arctic snow, in the air we breathe, the food we eat and in our blood. There’s seemingly no escape.
Every lake sampled (in the study) — even the most remote #lakes — contained #microplastics.”
Mass #failure of my #Lowes#buckets. These are number 7 and 8 I believe in the last two months. Last time for these. Not sure why they are all failing now, must be some reason (temperature? #Plastics aging?)
We are literally drowning in plastic – a solution must be found. As #WorldEnvironmentDay focuses on the pervasive threat of plastic pollution, it remains the case that plastic pollution is preventable | Brian McHugh
We HAVE to stop using plastics for every day things, especially foods.
"Recycled plastics... often contain higher levels of chemicals such as toxic flame retardants, benzene and other carcinogens, environmental pollutants including brominated and chlorinated dioxins, and numerous endocrine disruptors that can cause changes to the body’s natural hormone levels."
Recycling has been promoted by the #plastics industry as a key solution to the growing problem of plastic waste. But a study has found #recycling itself could be releasing huge quantities of microplastics.
This study, in my opinion, demonstrates the necessity to drastically reduce plastic usage and production.
#Plastics &their additives are found in various concentrations not only in fish, but also in numerous products such as meat, chicken, rice, water, take-out #food, beverages, and even fresh produce.😡
Recycling in the US (and many Western countries, for that matter) is a sham. It always was.
In reality, most of the plastic placed in recycling bins were never turned into new products.
Now China has stopped taking that waste, the myth of near infinite consumption without the guilt of waste has been exposed for the lie that it always was.
That's not to say that we shouldn't aim for a sustainable circular economy. Of course we should.
But we'll need much bigger changes to make it happen.
"For decades, we were sending the bulk of our recycling to China—tons and tons of it, sent over on ships... But last year, the country restricted imports of certain recyclables... Waste-management companies are telling [municipalities] there is no longer a market for their recycling.
"These municipalities have two choices: pay much higher rates to get rid of recycling, or throw it all away.
"Most are choosing the latter.
"When [its kerbside recycling] program launched, Franklin [in New Hampshire] could break even on recycling by selling it for $6 a ton. Now the transfer station is charging the town $125 a ton to recycle, or $68 a ton to incinerate.
"This end of recycling comes at a time when the US is creating more waste than ever. In 2015, the most recent year for which national data are available, America generated 262.4 million tons of waste, up 4.5% from 2010 and 60% from 1985."
@skyfire101@green And there's been people like Liz Kasell from RedCycle who have claimed soft plastics were being recycled, when really they were being stockpiled in warehouses.
"The plastics industry has long hyped recycling, even though it is well awarethat it’s been a failure. Worldwide, only 9 percent of plastic waste actually gets recycled. In the United States, the rate is now 5 percent. Most used plastic is landfilled, incinerated, or winds up drifting around the environment."