plastic research paper note cards

"Only 9.1% of plastics are recycled in the US" (EPA n.p.).

"Advancing Sustainable Materials Management: 2015 Fact Sheet." Environmental Protection Agency, United States Environmental Protection Agency, July 2018, https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2018-07/documents/2015_smm_msw_factsheet_07242018_fnl_508_002.pdf.

"Though they only account for 16 percent of the world's population, high-income countries generate about 34 percent, or 683 million tonnes, of the world's waste (Kaza)".

"Kaza, Silpa; Yao, Lisa C.; Bhada-Tata, Perinaz; Van Woerden, Frank. 2018. What a Waste 2.0 : A Global Snapshot of Solid Waste Management to 2050. Urban Development;. Washington, DC: World Bank. © World Bank. https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/30317 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO."

" Plastics are made from substances extracted from crude oil: the small units that make up a plastic are called monomers; they join together to form polymers (Plastics)".

"Plastics possess many special properties. Describe how plastics are made, their characteristics, and the different types of plastics available." The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia with Atlas and Weather Guide, edited by Helicon, 2018. Credo Reference, https://go.openathens.net/redirector/leeuniversity.edu?url=https%3A%2F%2Fsearch.credoreference.com%2Fcontent%2Fentry%2Fheliconhe%2Fplastics_possess_many_special_properties_describe_how_plastics_are_made_their_characteristics_and_the_different_types_of_plastics_available%2F0%3FinstitutionId%3D5914. Accessed 10 Nov. 2019.

"General characteristics of plastics Plastics have the following characteristics: non-biodegradable - used where a non-rotting material is required combustible, giving off toxic gases when burning (Plastics)".

"Plastics possess many special properties. Describe how plastics are made, their characteristics, and the different types of plastics available." The Hutchinson Unabridged Encyclopedia with Atlas and Weather Guide, edited by Helicon, 2018. Credo Reference, https://go.openathens.net/redirector/leeuniversity.edu?url=https%3A%2F%2Fsearch.credoreference.com%2Fcontent%2Fentry%2Fheliconhe%2Fplastics_possess_many_special_properties_describe_how_plastics_are_made_their_characteristics_and_the_different_types_of_plastics_available%2F0%3FinstitutionId%3D5914. Accessed 10 Nov. 2019.

"Only 9.1% of plastic waste is recycled of the 34,500 tons of waste (EPA n.p.)".

Advancing Sustainable Materials Management: 2015 Fact Sheet. United States Environmental Protection Agency, July 2018, https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2018-07/documents/2015_smm_msw_factsheet_07242018_fnl_508_002.pdf.

"At the World Economic Forum in January, the New Plastics Economy initiative, spearheaded by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, announced a list of companies that have sworn to make all their packaging recyclable, compostable or reusable by 2025 (Irwin 26)".

Irwin, Aisling. "How to Solve a Problem Like Plastics." New Scientist, vol. 238, no. 3178, May 2018, pp. 25-31. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1016/S0262-4079(18)30884-4.

"But it is what happens to the rest that is more telling. Transparent plastic drinks bottles are principally made of polyethylene terephthalate, or PET. Globally, some 50 per cent of PET is collected for recycling, but only about 7 per cent is turned into new bottles, according to a report co-authored by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation. And PET is the poster child of plastics: it melts at a low temperature and can be reformed without much damage to its polymer chains (Irwin 25)".

Irwin, Aisling. "How to Solve a Problem Like Plastics." New Scientist, vol. 238, no. 3178, May 2018, pp. 25-31. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1016/S0262-4079(18)30884-4.

"Even the most well-known ocean clean-up projects are between them removing just 0.5 per cent of marine plastic trash. The robotic filter feeder's mouth gapes, like that of the whale shark that inspired its design. Helpless, a bobbing Coca-Cola bottle drifts into its mouth -- and WasteShark glides off down the Dutch canal, leaving a patch of pristine water behind (Irwin)".

Irwin, Aisling. "How to Solve a Problem Like Plastics." New Scientist, vol. 238, no. 3178, May 2018, pp. 25-31. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1016/S0262-4079(18)30884-4.

"Existing biodegradables generally need industrial conditions to break down, for example up to 12 weeks at 57°C for compostable plastics that decompose with food waste. Recycling firms don't like them, complaining that they further contaminate waste streams, while industrial food composters fear that people will get confused and put conventional plastic in food waste collection bins as well, rendering the resulting fertiliser worthless (Irwin 28)".

Irwin, Aisling. "How to Solve a Problem Like Plastics." New Scientist, vol. 238, no. 3178, May 2018, pp. 25-31. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1016/S0262-4079(18)30884-4.

"Generally made of oil-derived polymers, they can be hung with different chemical groups and spiced up with additives to give them wildly differing properties such as hardness, strength, density and heat-resistance. This makes them just the thing for everything from colourful, durable kids' toys to throwaway wrappings and foils" (Irwin 25).

Irwin, Aisling. "How to Solve a Problem Like Plastics." New Scientist, vol. 238, no. 3178, May 2018, pp. 25-31. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1016/S0262-4079(18)30884-4.

"In the end, says Kevin O'Connor of University College Dublin, Ireland, there is no one solution. And while we should keep the pressure up on industry and government to implement sensible, joined-up solutions, the onus must be on us to mend our own ways, too. "The big challenge is human behaviour, it's not actually technology," says O'Connor. "I think the technology will eventually come to maturity. But the big challenge is us (Irwin 28)".

Irwin, Aisling. "How to Solve a Problem Like Plastics." New Scientist, vol. 238, no. 3178, May 2018, pp. 25-31. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1016/S0262-4079(18)30884-4.

"Not all bioplastics -- those derived from today's biomass, rather than yesterday's fossil fuels -- are biodegradable. Coca-Cola's PlantBottle, for example, is around 30 per cent ethylene glycol that comes from plants, helping wean us off oil. But as it is chemically identical to conventional PET, it will stick around in the ocean for just as long if not disposed of properly (Irwin)".

Irwin, Aisling. "How to Solve a Problem Like Plastics." New Scientist, vol. 238, no. 3178, May 2018, pp. 25-31. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1016/S0262-4079(18)30884-4.

"Of all plastics, just 14 per cent is collected for recycling around the world, with still less actually reprocessed. The rest is destined for incineration or landfill, where it will persist for centuries. Why? Because once discarded, plastic is essentially worthless. It is cheaper to start afresh (Irwin 25)".

Irwin, Aisling. "How to Solve a Problem Like Plastics." New Scientist, vol. 238, no. 3178, May 2018, pp. 25-31. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1016/S0262-4079(18)30884-4.

"Roland Geyer, an industrial ecologist at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and leading cruncher of plastic statistics, adds another objection. In a paper about to be published, he and his colleague Trevor Zink of Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles argue that an obsession with recycling encourages single-use products rather than the best option: reducing consumption. If you know your bottle is going to be recycled via a bottle-deposit scheme, why bother taking your reusable one with you? (Irwin 26)".

Irwin, Aisling. "How to Solve a Problem Like Plastics." New Scientist, vol. 238, no. 3178, May 2018, pp. 25-31. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1016/S0262-4079(18)30884-4.

"Sometimes simply burning plastic is the best option Incineration is often derided as the dinosaur's approach to the plastics problem, belching pollutants into the air. But it has many attractions, particularly as a way of ridding ourselves of plastic that can never be recycled because of its chemistry or small size. In developing countries, it is perhaps the only option. About 14 per cent of plastic packaging is currently incinerated across the world, with China in particular investing heavily in the technology. The plastics are burned in air, producing carbon dioxide and other gases, heat and ash. Incineration with energy recovery harnesses the heat to convert water to steam and drive a turbine, generating electricity. Combined heat and power plants push this one step further, using the remaining heat to warm local homes, schools and offices.

Irwin, Aisling. "How to Solve a Problem Like Plastics." New Scientist, vol. 238, no. 3178, May 2018, pp. 25-31. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1016/S0262-4079(18)30884-4.

"The bigger vision is to create a "circular economy" for plastics. Out goes "take-makedispose", a one-way journey from oil to landfill or incineration. In comes a system where producers are incentivized to make reusable, recyclable or compostable products, while the recycling industry learns to scoop up all the detritus so no piece of litter is left behind (Irwin 25)".

Irwin, Aisling. "How to Solve a Problem Like Plastics." New Scientist, vol. 238, no. 3178, May 2018, pp. 25-31. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1016/S0262-4079(18)30884-4.

"The ultimate solution to the plastic waste crisis will have many strands. It will require coordination between government, retailers, manufacturers and recycling firms for better packaging design, advanced recycling technologies and new plastics -- as well as aid for developing countries to improve their waste systems and water supplies. It must also take care to avoid excluding new ideas that might be just around the corner (Irwin 30)".

Irwin, Aisling. "How to Solve a Problem Like Plastics." New Scientist, vol. 238, no. 3178, May 2018, pp. 25-31. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1016/S0262-4079(18)30884-4.

"Tony Breton of bioplastics firm Novamont agrees that recycling alone won't stem the tide of plastic waste. "One of the big things that's lost within a lot of the circular economy discussions is the role minimisation and reuse can play," he says. "There's not a lot of money to be made in reducing consumption, and measures to reduce consumption are generally not politically well-received (Irwin 28)".

Irwin, Aisling. "How to Solve a Problem Like Plastics." New Scientist, vol. 238, no. 3178, May 2018, pp. 25-31. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1016/S0262-4079(18)30884-4.

CUTTING OUT SINGLE-USE PLASTIC -- water bottles, straws, disposable plates and so forth -- is a good place to start reducing waste. But make sure you aren't inadvertently increasing your carbon footprint. A cotton tote bag must be used 131 times before its environmental cost falls below that of a disposable plastic bag, mostly because of the impact of growing cotton. Similarly, you must use a steel water bottle 500 times for its carbon footprint to shrink to less than that of a disposable PET bottle. One undergraduate study found a permanent plastic bottle to result in less carbon emissions than a stainless steel one. REDUCING THE PACKAGING YOU USE by buying large containers and, for example, avoiding single-serve yogurt pots, also helps. And switch to bar soap. It is a complicated life-cycle analysis, but it tends to have a much lighter footprint than liquid soap from a dispenser. BUYING CONCENTRATED FORMS OF PRODUCTS such as detergents is also a case of more bang for less packaging. Life-cycle comparisons show they reduce other environmental impacts, too. BOYCOTTING MIXED PACKAGING, which often can't be recycled, may also help: for instance, crisp bags and stand-alone pouches that are all the rage for baby food. Avoid black plastic food trays, whose colouring confuses the infrared detectors used to distinguish plastics in most recycling plants. Go for brands that have made meaningful packaging changes, such as the few drinks companies using 100 per cent recycled PET.

Irwin, Aisling. "How to Solve a Problem Like Plastics." New Scientist, vol. 238, no. 3178, May 2018, pp. 25-31. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1016/S0262-4079(18)30884-4.

"I used to think that top environmental problems were biodiversity loss, ecosystem collapse and climate change. I thought that thirty years of good science could address these problems. I was wrong. The top environmental problems are selfishness, greed and apathy, and to deal with these we need a cultural and spiritual transformation. And we scientists don't know how to do that." —James Gustave Speth, US advisor on climate change (Logan)".

Logan, Robert K. "A Media Ecologist/Physicist's Take on Pope Francis' Encyclical Laudato Si: An Ecumenical Approach to a Dialogue of Science and Religion." MDPI, Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute, 23 Aug. 2018, https://www.mdpi.com/2409-9287/3/3/22/htm.

"Production increased exponentially, from 2.3 million tons in 1950 to 448 million tons by 2015. Production is expected to double by 2050. Every year, about 8 million tons of plastic waste escapes into the oceans from coastal nations. That's the equivalent of setting five garbage bags full of trash on every foot of coastline around the world (Parker n.p.)".

Parker, Laura. "The World's Plastic Pollution Crisis Explained." Plastic Pollution Facts and Information, 7 June 2019, www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/habitats/plastic-pollution/#close.

"Single-use plastics account for 40 percent of the plastic produced every year. Many of these products, such as plastic bags and food wrappers, have a lifespan of mere minutes to hours, yet they may persist in the environment for hundreds of years (Parker n.p.)".

Parker, Laura. "The World's Plastic Pollution Crisis Explained." Plastic Pollution Facts and Information, 7 June 2019, www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/habitats/plastic-pollution/#close.

"It creates a breeding ground for disease‐carrying flies, mosquitos and vermin. Mosquitoes spread malaria and dengue. Flies carry and transmit a number of diseases such as typhoid fever and tuberculosis, while rats spread rabies and plague. Itdoublestheincidenceofdiarrhoealdiseasefterm-13orpeoplelivingamongmismanagedwaste.Diarrhoeal disease is the second leading cause of death in children under five years old (Williams 5)".

Williams, Mari, VerfasserIn, (DE-588)1191414779, (DE-627)1670063232, aut. No Time to Waste Tackling the Plastic Pollution Crisis before It's Too Late by Mari Williams, Rich Gower and Joanne Green (Tearfund). 2019. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=sso&db=edswao&AN=edswao.1670060632&site=eds-live.

"It is high time we turn our attention fully to one of the most pressing problems of today - averting the plastic pollution crisis - not only for the health of our planet, but for the wellbeing of people around the world.' SIR DAVID ATTENBOROUGH (Williams 72)'".

Williams, Mari, VerfasserIn, (DE-588)1191414779, (DE-627)1670063232, aut. No Time to Waste Tackling the Plastic Pollution Crisis before It's Too Late by Mari Williams, Rich Gower and Joanne Green (Tearfund). 2019. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=sso&db=edswao&AN=edswao.1670060632&site=eds-live.

"It is openly burnt, releasing pollutants that increase the r sk of diseases such as heart disease and cancer, respiratory ailments, skin and eye diseases, nausea and headaches, and damage to the reproductive and nervous systems. Outdoor air pollution is responsible for 3.7 million deaths a year, and recent estimates suggest that open burning could be responsible for as much as a fifth of this death toll. (Williams 5)".

Williams, Mari, VerfasserIn, (DE-588)1191414779, (DE-627)1670063232, aut. No Time to Waste Tackling the Plastic Pollution Crisis before It's Too Late by Mari Williams, Rich Gower and Joanne Green (Tearfund). 2019. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=sso&db=edswao&AN=edswao.1670060632&site=eds-live.

"Mismanaged waste, including plastics, harms people's health in developing countries in the following ways: It blocks waterways and drains, which causes flooding, resulting in waterborne diseases and death by drowning (Williams 5)".

Williams, Mari, VerfasserIn, (DE-588)1191414779, (DE-627)1670063232, aut. No Time to Waste Tackling the Plastic Pollution Crisis before It's Too Late by Mari Williams, Rich Gower and Joanne Green (Tearfund). 2019. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=sso&db=edswao&AN=edswao.1670060632&site=eds-live.

"New research by Tearfund suggests that between 400,000 and 1 million people die each year in developing countries because of diseases related to mismanaged waste.2 At the upper end that is one person every30 seconds (Williams 5)".

Williams, Mari, VerfasserIn, (DE-588)1191414779, (DE-627)1670063232, aut. No Time to Waste Tackling the Plastic Pollution Crisis before It's Too Late by Mari Williams, Rich Gower and Joanne Green (Tearfund). 2019. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=sso&db=edswao&AN=edswao.1670060632&site=eds-live.

"On land, plastic litters fields, waterways, hedgerows and trees across the globe. Piles of plastic pollution and waste release a toxic liquid runoff called leachate, which can contaminate soil and groundwater, and plastic also poses significant ingestion, choking and entanglement hazards to wildlife. There is evidence to suggest that the impacts of microplastics on freshwater animals can be as diverse and harmful as those for marine species (Williams 4)".

Williams, Mari, VerfasserIn, (DE-588)1191414779, (DE-627)1670063232, aut. No Time to Waste Tackling the Plastic Pollution Crisis before It's Too Late by Mari Williams, Rich Gower and Joanne Green (Tearfund). 2019. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=sso&db=edswao&AN=edswao.1670060632&site=eds-live.

"Plastic pollution is threatening the health and future of our oceans and marine life. Some 8-12.7 million tonnes of mismanaged post‐consumer plastic waste ends up in the oceans every year. Once in the ocean, plastic does not biodegrade, it simply breaks up into smaller and smaller pieces that are easily mistaken for food. Animals that ingest plastic suffer from choking, perforation of the gut, starvation (as a result of a false feeling of fullness) and reduced feeding, growth and reproduction. The ingestion of plastic by marine animals also introduces hazardous substances into marine food chains, potentially concentrating and passing toxins up the food chain from prey to predator. A range of marine species face the added risk of becoming entangled in larger plastic debris items (Williams 4)".

Williams, Mari, VerfasserIn, (DE-588)1191414779, (DE-627)1670063232, aut. No Time to Waste Tackling the Plastic Pollution Crisis before It's Too Late by Mari Williams, Rich Gower and Joanne Green (Tearfund). 2019. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=sso&db=edswao&AN=edswao.1670060632&site=eds-live.