Topic: Pollution

[Jáchym]

Yesterday I read another scary study, which was confirmed by various highly prestigious organizations.... and it really scares me...

So, based on the way things are currently developing, by 2050 there will be more plastics in the oceans than fish... the first one increasing almost exponentially every yr, the latter decreasing. That really is scary....

[CW2274]

Yesterday I read another scary study, which was confirmed by various highly prestigious organizations.... and it really scares me...

So, based on the way things are currently developing, by 2050 there will be more plastics in the oceans than fish... the first one increasing almost exponentially every yr, the latter decreasing. That really is scary....

I switched to a re-usable bag to shop with a few years ago. Sick and tired of seeing plastic bags flying all over the countryside, and also dealing with "proper disposal". I believe Cali. has done away with them. Wish the rest of the country would follow.

[DanS]

Wish the rest of the country would follow.

... or world would follow.  There are some places here that only use biodegradable plastic bags. Helps a little.

[ValentineWeather]

Every bigger grocery chain will ask anymore plastic or paper? I've yet to see anyone say paper but I don't stand around and watch either. States need to ban it or go with the biodegradable plastic only.

Last Walmart I was in the only option was plastic and sack your own.

[SLOweather]

Here in San Luis Obispo, CA, a couple of years ago they outlawed plastic bags (with exceptions for produce and such). Paper bags cost a dime, and stores are supposed to charge for them.

Last year they added foam cups and to-go containers.

We were the first in the country to ban indoor public smoking years ago.

Interestingly, the local newspaper that championed the plastic bag ban still delivers the paper in one when it rains.

[CW2274]

Interestingly, the local newspaper that championed the plastic bag ban still delivers the paper in one when it rains.

Well, yeah.
Maybe they should make the newspapers from plastic.

[Jáchym]

2 yrs ago they banned the supermarkets to give out plastic bags for free. Now you can still get them, but they are not free, which significantly reduced their use. However I wonder what percentage of the totla plasitcs produced are actually these every day items such as plastic bags or bottles. Think about the weight of such plastic bag... even if there were millions of these I think it would still not be that much in comparison to other plasitc sources

[ValentineWeather]

I don't think its the weight. 1-plastic bag can kill marine live for years, it gets ingested kills the animal and repeats over and over.

[Jáchym]

Yes you are right, it depends which way you look at it - whether from the perspective of "harmfulness to the environment" - in this case directly killing the fish by trapping it, or when it eats it, or if you look at it from the perspective of "polluting the environment" - even though slowly, but they do degrade in the sea, and release toxic chemicals to the water, in which case you would look at the weight of it

[ValentineWeather]

I see what you are saying. Yes both are bad.