Plastic Vs Pollution

There is rising unease about throwing out plastic products as well as the accumulation of plastic products in our oceans and landfills. This poses problems for all species in the environment, such as animals becoming tangled in smaller products, organisms consuming the products, or transferring chemicals directly to humans in the surrounding environment. Plastic products being dumped into landfills is not sustainable for our present and future environment. A small amount of fossil fuels is being used to create plastic products. The fossil fuels are practically wasted because the products are cheaply made and are thrown out shortly after purchase. Depleting the amount of fossil fuels, rapidly filling up landfills, and manufacturing briefly used plastic products is not sustainable for our environment. Increasing the amount of recycling, cutting down on plastic production, and reducing on the amount of littering are all valuable solutions to cut down the amount of plastic in landfills. (Thompson, Moore, vom Saal,

Plastic – an American-made synthetic material, renowned and praised for its almost indestructible quality and versatility, yet on the contrary has had detrimental consequences on our environment and ourselves. It is quite amazing to observe how plastic has completely changed our way of life. In Susan Freinkel’s book “Plastic: a Toxic Love Story” she writes about the effects of plastic on our world. The author points out, a commonly overlooked fact, that plastic is literally everywhere. Plastic is in the clothes we wear, the cars we drive, the cups we drink from, and sometimes even the ground we walk on. Two chemical bonds made in a laboratory have forever changed the way we live, through small commodities like

Opting for paper instead of plastic when one is able can be a great start. All over the world more places are gradually shifting to paper bags and banning plastic ones. California being one of the first states to recognize a plastic bag ban has the potential for lasting impacts given that in the Los Angeles area alone, 10 metric tons of plastic fragments are carried into the Pacific Ocean every day (Harth Richard). As more studies are being conducted and more information is being made public about the detrimental effects humanities over-consumption of plastic is having, some scientists are making attempts to make plastic safer and more sustainable. Some innovators are developing bioplastics, which are made from plant crops instead of fossil fuels. Others are working to make plastic truly biodegradable and some are looking for ways to make recycling more efficient (The History and the Future of

The author proves the falsehood of the long known assumption that plastic is a threat to our planet. By citing the research done by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the author convinces his readers that not only are plastic bags not harmful as people think, but also beneficial. This surprises his audience and shows them how exaggerated the cries of environmentalists, which gets the readers wondering what else have they falsely believed in and what other information are paper-bags advocates hiding from them, and that pulls them into the argument and intrigues them further. Additionally, Summers lists the harmful consequences of using reusable bags by presenting research results and observations. This alarms the audience and raises concern in their

Every year, millions of tons of plastic are tossed into the ocean, harming all types of marine animals as well as the environment. Hundreds of marine mammals like whales and dolphins are found washed ashore filled with bottle caps, plastic bags and basically anything they can swallow. Not only does plastic pollution harm marine life, but it affects the entire ecosystem. If a predator is dependent on a certain species for prey and the predator has a role in the environment, it is important for the prey to not be disturbed by pollution. If that species of prey were to go extinct, then the predator species could be seriously impacted as a result. These problems warrant the need for more research into the magnitude and causes of plastic

Plastic bags have been long esteemed as the miracle bag. They were first introduced in 1957 as plastic sandwich bags, and a year later were followed by the creation of plastic dry-cleaning bags (Humes 216). Their cheap mass production, ease of use, and varied sizes, colors and shapes makes them an appealing commodity to many stores and consumers. However, the environmental footprint of plastic bags is often ignored by those who use them, and even when they choose to recycle the bags, it is still not enough. The pros of plastic bags are invisibly outweighed by their cons, and their very existence is not sustainable due to the materials they are made from. While plastic bags have their practical uses, they are not good for the environment, and to reduce their negative impact, plastic bag fees and bans should be taken more seriously and not cast aside when challenged by plastic manufacturers.

One material dominates the entire world, a material incapable of degrading for centuries and used in all facets of life. While very new to the earth, this synthetic polymer has flourished rapidly since the 1950’s, and, still at full throttle in the 21st century, the Age of Plastic sees no imminent end. Plastic continues to ascend at an exponential rate as its plethora of uses extends to new branches of technology and innovation. Even with their differences, both the working class American and the CEO of an industrialized company utilize plastic for its low cost and versatility. Nevertheless, humanity cannot sustain this nonrenewable resource for long, and eventually the issues of this material will one day outnumber the benefits.

There is a financial gain when we accept that plastic is a small amount used when creating plastic bags; paper is actually being used more than plastic. What we produce and design in society can make a huge impact on the natural environment. Individuals can gain knowledge and find ways to address complex situations in knowing how to make better choices. Getting rid of plastic should not be an option. Paper usage can be good but not if were throwing paper and plastic away in our garbage bins we are not helping our environment. Throwing paper and plastic away in our garbage bins is poor judgement and poor judgement affects

The overuse of plastics in today's society has become major environmental issue for our oceans. Plastic pollution is the dumping, littering, or disposing of any type of man-made plastic that has been produced and has ended up in our ocean and has not been recycled.

This research question aims to think deeper on the circumstances of the overuse of plastic and paper, and what could happen more to the animals/birds, our environment, and our bodies if consumers keep on using plastic and paper products. This research question should be asked to raise awareness to users and most importantly designers, so they consider using other eco friendly material in designing their products.

In “Better Planet Garbage Patch”, Thomas Kostigen tells his experience of traveling to the Eastern Garbage Patch to witness this growing problem first-hand. Kostigen describes this area to be one and a half times the United States with a depth of 100 feet or more (Krostigen). The size of this garbage patch is so massive, encompassing around ten million square miles of the North Pacific Gyre. On the other hand, according to “An Ocean of Plastic”, Doucette claims that nobody knows its exact size or if it has any boundaries at all. (Doucette). Although there have been many estimations on the size

Introduction: Have you ever wanted to help the environment, but you just didn’t know how? When we go shopping we see a lot of people carrying bags made of plastic. I must admit; plastic bags can be very convenient at times, but the use of plastic bags has it disadvantages. If you knew about the dangers of the use of plastic bags, then I'm sure you will think twice about using plastic bags and use tote bags instead.

There are a variety of stakeholders involved in the worldwide issue of plastic pollution including local, national and international governments, non-government organizations (NGO’s) and corporations with all these stakeholders having a different range of perspectives and solutions on the matter it is increasingly difficult to gain consensus on how to jointly address this global problem. (reference).

Where does all the plastic go. Every bit of plastic that has been created is still here. This is because plastic is one-hundred percent non-biodegradable! Even the most degraded plastic down to polymers cannot be digested by bacteria (Laist, 1997). If global issues like starvation and climate change are not enough to stress on, the weight of an issue literally churning in the Pacific Ocean is startling. For decades the majority of the world’s population has not been properly educated on the nature of plastic and the potential harm it can do to our environment and our physical health. Due to factors of man and the natural effects of nature, a major problem has developed that is now harming our food.

Paper or Plastic? When I am asked this question, I will always respond, “plastic”. “Plastic”, because it is more convenient to carry and easier to discard. When I am asked this question and I am thinking about the environment, my immediate response is “none of the above” as I know that reusable bags will be better for the environment. However, this paper will compare and contrast paper and plastic bags throughout their product life cycle using life cycle analysis (LCA). Both paper and plastic go through similar stages in their birth to death lifespans. They are: