Plastic and the Oceans

[Chloe]

Plastic pollution is probably my biggest environmental passion/interest out there and here are just a few simple pictures that help tell the story. There are so many more pictures and points to be made but I just wanted to get this started first.

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[Chloe]

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[Chloe]

This picture pretty much sums it up sometimes

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[PolWatch]

the trash in the ocean could have started here...a local river after a rain storm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDubho3279U

[Chloe]

These are plastic microbeads. You can often find these in skin creams, face wash, and so on. These beads get washed down the drain and are incredibly difficult to filter out. They often times make their way to water systems and ultimately the rivers/ocean where many marine animals mistake them for food or ingest them without knowledge. FYI for you fish eaters out there whatever the fish in the ocean are eating, you are eating.

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[PolWatch]

The above video was 2 years ago...about the time the EPA came in and started fining the city of Mobile. They are now installing trash traps along the rivers...so some of the trash washed into the storm drains and into the rivers can be caught.

[GrassrootsConservative]

This eases my concern a bit. I wasn't aware fish just ate that stuff. Thank you, Chloe.

[Chloe]

This eases my concern a bit. I wasn't aware fish just ate that stuff. Thank you, Chloe.

I don't know if you are being serious or if you are mocking me.

[Polecat]

You realize I hope that the issue here isn't the plastic. It is people that dispose of it carelessly. It is all 100% recyclable and should be handled in this manner. Would we go back to paper and cut down all the trees? Plastic is actually a good thing for the environment IF it is not mishandled. Banning its use is the wrong tactic.

[GrassrootsConservative]

I don't know if you are being serious or if you are mocking me.

I simply don't care any more. And you shouldn't either. You don't eat fish anyway, you vegetarian you.

[Polecat]

These are plastic microbeads. You can often find these in skin creams, face wash, and so on. These beads get washed down the drain and are incredibly difficult to filter out. They often times make their way to water systems and ultimately the rivers/ocean where many marine animals mistake them for food or ingest them without knowledge. FYI for you fish eaters out there whatever the fish in the ocean are eating, you are eating.

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Ah, woman, vanity is thy name. These could be filtered out of waste water too but their use in the first place is just a marketing ploy and once this realized the practice will dissapear by itself.

[Chloe]

You realize I hope that the issue here isn't the plastic. It is people that dispose of it carelessly. It is all 100% recyclable and should be handled in this manner. Would we go back to paper and cut down all the trees? Plastic is actually a good thing for the environment IF it is not mishandled. Banning its use is the wrong tactic.

I've seen people leave the grocery store with two dozen or more plastic bags with a limited amount of things in them since the bags would rip. I worked at a grocery store in high school and was disgusted by the amount of plastic bags people would need to put their groceries in. They could have left the store with a half dozen reusable bags and that would have eliminated the need for any plastic bags at all. When you factor in that close to 90% of plastic bags are never recycled then action has to be taken in my opinion.

[Chloe]

I simply don't care any more. And you shouldn't either. You don't eat fish anyway, you vegetarian you.

The ability to eat them is not why I want to protect them from our trash

[PolWatch]

In my area the issue are the people who think recycling is a waste of time...and the slobs. The same people here who are complaining about the EPA are also complaining about the trash in the local rivers...go figure

[GrassrootsConservative]

The ability to eat them is not why I want to protect them from our trash

I know. :laugh: Just having a bit of fun.

[Ravens Fan]

You realize I hope that the issue here isn't the plastic. It is people that dispose of it carelessly. It is all 100% recyclable and should be handled in this manner. Would we go back to paper and cut down all the trees? Plastic is actually a good thing for the environment IF it is not mishandled. Banning its use is the wrong tactic.

That's my problem with the issue. I personally recycle, I throw my trash away, and when I am done a cigarette I field dress it... have for years. But then you drive on any roadway and you see litter everywhere. Around here, all of our storm drains dump directly into the Chesapeake Bay. It disgusts me that no one seems to know how to take 2 seconds and throw something away, even if they don't recycle per say, at least put it somewhere besides out your car window at 50mph.

[Alyosha]

Trees are renewable if you purposefully grow fast growing trees for paper, bags, etc. Pawlonia reach maturity within 5-7 years.

Plastics are petroleum based products and are just not good for you. I don't drink out of plastic. I pay more for non-petro products. I don't endorse the use of plastic, especially for women because the breakdown of plastic creates chemicals that your body mistakes for estrogen, promoting weight gain and breast cancer.

I'd rather us create tree farms for paper sacs, and use glass again for bottles.

[Polecat]

I've seen people leave the grocery store with two dozen or more plastic bags with a limited amount of things in them since the bags would rip. I worked at a grocery store in high school and was disgusted by the amount of plastic bags people would need to put their groceries in. They could have left the store with a half dozen reusable bags and that would have eliminated the need for any plastic bags at all. When you factor in that close to 90% of plastic bags are never recycled then action has to be taken in my opinion.
I hope you can temper this to mean effective action and not some knee jerk reaction that compounds the problem. Remember, it is not the plastic bag. It is the people. What measures do you propose?

[Chloe]

Trees are renewable if you purposefully grow fast growing trees for paper, bags, etc. Pawlonia reach maturity within 5-7 years.

Plastics are petroleum based products and are just not good for you. I don't drink out of plastic. I pay more for non-petro products. I don't endorse the use of plastic, especially for women because the breakdown of plastic creates chemicals that your body mistakes for estrogen, promoting weight gain and breast cancer.

I'd rather us create tree farms for paper sacs, and use glass again for bottles.

I have reusable bags in the back of my car that are made of recycled material. I've had them since I got them when I worked at that grocery store. You can use two reusable bags in place of 5-10 plastic ones. Paper is better than plastic but having bags that you almost never have to replace is ideal.

[Chloe]

I hope you can temper this to mean effective action and not some knee jerk reaction that compounds the problem. Remember, it is not the plastic bag. It is the people. What measures do you propose?

In my opinion reusable bags, or reusing bags, should be pushed more. I am perfectly fine banning plastic bags being used at places like grocery stores, restaurants, retail shops, and places like that, and I also think that there should be a charge if you need to use paper bags from the store if you don't bring your own bags when you go buy your groceries. Some people may find that to be totalitarian or something but I think it's logical and necessary.

[Polecat]

Trees are renewable if you purposefully grow fast growing trees for paper, bags, etc. Pawlonia reach maturity within 5-7 years.

Plastics are petroleum based products and are just not good for you. I don't drink out of plastic. I pay more for non-petro products. I don't endorse the use of plastic, especially for women because the breakdown of plastic creates chemicals that your body mistakes for estrogen, promoting weight gain and breast cancer.

I'd rather us create tree farms for paper sacs, and use glass again for bottles.

We use an awful lot of petroleum and plastic would be a 100% waste byproduct if we did not use it. This would be very wasteful. What would we do with it?

Fast growing wood is not a sound practice in my opinion due to the wildlife impact. A stand of trees will provide for population expansion then when it gets harvested the animals will suffer.

[PolWatch]

Southern white pine are grown for the production of pulpwood in my area. It takes appx 15 years for a tree to be large enough to be harvested. They are grown on managed timber farms that provide habitat for wildlife and are immediately replanted after harvest. The number of timber farms has been greatly reduced with the increased use of plastic bags.

[Polecat]

In my opinion reusable bags, or reusing bags, should be pushed more. I am perfectly fine banning plastic bags being used at places like grocery stores, restaurants, retail shops, and places like that, and I also think that there should be a charge if you need to use paper bags from the store if you don't bring your own bags when you go buy your groceries. Some people may find that to be totalitarian or something but I think it's logical and necessary.

It could be done in a non totalitarian way. The key here is we don't up and "pass a law" banning the plastic bag. This will piss off enough people that it won't last if passes in the first place. A more effective measure would be to talk stores into selling reusable bags along side the disposable ones, for the same price. It would catch on and far fewer people would be outraged. There is always a way to coax better behavior.

[Alyosha]

We use an awful lot of petroleum and plastic would be a 100% waste byproduct if we did not use it. This would be very wasteful. What would we do with it?

That is how plastic began as a byproduct, but now we distill petroleum for the purpose of plastic. It is plastic that is the backbone of the petro-industry since we've become addicted to its use.




Fast growing wood is not a sound practice in my opinion due to the wildlife impact. A stand of trees will provide for population expansion then when it gets harvested the animals will suffer.

Except that's not really how it's done. You have layers of trees at a tree farm and typically they keep wildlife out. Wildlife harms the trees. I know in the south of the US they do loblolly pines for growth but that's not the type of sustainable tree farming I'm talking about since that's still 15-20 years to get a harvest.

[Polecat]

Southern white pine are grown for the production of pulpwood in my area. It takes appx 15 years for a tree to be large enough to be harvested. They are grown on managed timber farms that provide habitat for wildlife and are immediately replanted after harvest. The number of timber farms has been greatly reduced with the increased use of plastic bags.

That is the main problem with plastic. It is CHEAP.

[PolWatch]

one advantage to the southern pine is that 15 years gives both useable lumber & pulpwood...none of the tree is wasted. It is not unusual to have timber farms here open for deer hunting as private clubs. Its a renewable resource that provides income to land owner, timber harvesters, sawmills & paper mills.

[Alyosha]

That is the main problem with plastic. It is CHEAP.

Sand is cheap. Trees are cheap. Petroleum is only cheap when we have a regulatory system and cartel supporting it.

[Polecat]

That is how plastic began as a byproduct, but now we distill petroleum for the purpose of plastic. It is plastic that is the backbone of the petro-industry since we've become addicted to its use.

Depending on the crude there is going to be a certain percentage of all the materials present that will be separated and used. There is not much margin on what we can force out of a barrel. Making good use of all of it is sound practice. The trend of fuel usage has been going down over the last 20 years and this has actually driven the price of the other byproducts up as they become more in demand. It is a complicated balancing act for us to burn enough gasoline and diesel to generate enough of the asphalt, plastic, butane etc. that the market is hungry for.


Except that's not really how it's done. You have layers of trees at a tree farm and typically they keep wildlife out. Wildlife harms the trees. I know in the south of the US they do loblolly pines for growth but that's not the type of sustainable tree farming I'm talking about since that's still 15-20 years to get a harvest.

I prefer the idea of getting people used to reusable bags over the wholesale return to paper. Even though it is biodegradable it is still not recycled enough. It takes up space in the landfill that needs to be reserved for actual garbage.

[PolWatch]

but pole, the cats love paper sacks! The world's cheapest, best cat toy!

[Alyosha]

Depending on the crude there is going to be a certain percentage of all the materials present that will be separated and used. There is not much margin on what we can force out of a barrel. Making good use of all of it is sound practice. The trend of fuel usage has been going down over the last 20 years and this has actually driven the price of the other byproducts up as they become more in demand. It is a complicated balancing act for us to burn enough gasoline and diesel to generate enough of the asphalt, plastic, butane etc. that the market is hungry for.


Good use is superfluous when medical plastics, bottling plastics, makeup, etc is more required than gasoline.




I prefer the idea of getting people used to reusable bags over the wholesale return to paper. Even though it is biodegradable it is still not recycled enough. It takes up space in the landfill that needs to be reserved for actual garbage.

The whole petrochemical industry causes harm, both in the drilling and the production. I'm not keen on it as someone who over time developed allergies to these products. I actually went into the hospital from makeup. I was shocked that I had developed the allergy at 30. Wasn't very fun.

[Polecat]

Good use is superfluous when medical plastics, bottling plastics, makeup, etc is more required than gasoline.



The whole petrochemical industry causes harm, both in the drilling and the production. I'm not keen on it as someone who over time developed allergies to these products. I actually went into the hospital from makeup. I was shocked that I had developed the allergy at 30. Wasn't very fun.

But, as you have said yourself, we are addicted to the many products that come from below. A withdrawal period of at least 2 generations would still be difficult to achieve.

[Mister D]

I typically use the canvas bags now. Sometimes I forget but I leave them in my trunk so it's rare that I don't use them. Shoprite gives me a small discount per bag. I'll use the plastic only for meats.

[Polecat]

I typically use the canvas bags now. Sometimes I forget but I leave them in my trunk so it's rare that I don't use them. Shoprite gives me a small discount per bag. I'll use the plastic only for meats.

Not an issue for Chloe.

[Peter1469]

Trees are renewable if you purposefully grow fast growing trees for paper, bags, etc. Pawlonia reach maturity within 5-7 years.

Plastics are petroleum based products and are just not good for you. I don't drink out of plastic. I pay more for non-petro products. I don't endorse the use of plastic, especially for women because the breakdown of plastic creates chemicals that your body mistakes for estrogen, promoting weight gain and breast cancer.

I'd rather us create tree farms for paper sacs, and use glass again for bottles.

Those chemicals are also not good for males, and probably harm unborn males and boys the most.

[donttread]

Plastics are another example of progress without forethought. Sure they're great, but we got along just fine before they existed .
We literally invented a product ( a fossil fuel dependent product no less) and injected it into every area of our lives DESPITE the fact that there is NO safe way to dispose of it?
Does that sound like "intelligent life?"

[Peter1469]

We could make replacements for plastic products with alcohol using 18th century chemical engineering....

[Alyosha]

Bioplastics

[donttread]

We could make replacements for plastic products with alcohol using 18th century chemical engineering....

Or wood, paper and steel

[Polecat]

Plastics are another example of progress without forethought. Sure they're great, but we got along just fine before they existed .
We literally invented a product ( a fossil fuel dependent product no less) and injected it into every area of our lives DESPITE the fact that there is NO safe way to dispose of it?
Does that sound like "intelligent life?"
Plastic comes up out of the ground with the crude oil. It is as you put it "intelligent life" that takes this formerly toxic waste and makes something useful with it. We must stop pumping crude oil entirely if we are to eliminate plastic from the surface. You realize I hope that this is not even remotely feasible in our current situation. The only rational solution is to recycle and reuse.

[Guerilla]

Sweden has to import garbage (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/12/sweden-imports-trash_n_1876746.html)for their waste-to-energy programs. They don't have enough garbage because they recycle so well. Because of this, I don't really see landfills as a problem. The toxins released from the process are bad, but couldn't we just put a filter on it?

About the trees, hemp would be way more efficient alternative because they mature faster and you can plant more per acre. Then you could replace a whole host of status quo and/or harmful products with more efficient ones. Like building houses out of hempcrete (http://www.sustainabilityninja.com/agriculture-sustainability/hemp-houses-have-negative-carbon-footprint-32437/), which has a negative carbon footprint, is lightweight, insulating, fire resistant, and all around fantastic. You could make steel out of hemp too, and it's stronger. The most eco-friendly car in the world is made of hemp (http://www.collective-evolution.com/2013/11/01/the-worlds-most-eco-friendly-car-its-made-entirely-from-hemp/). Industrialize the hemp.

As for the plastic, I don't really think we should be messing with materials that aren't biodegradable. Sure, it wouldn't be a problem if people were more responsible with their garbage and recycled/reused, but people aren't always responsible, and I'd rather not have to worry about it at all. Is there a reason we can't switch to all biodegradable materials?

[Polecat]

Sweden has to import garbage (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/12/sweden-imports-trash_n_1876746.html)for their waste-to-energy programs. They don't have enough garbage because they recycle so well. Because of this, I don't really see landfills as a problem. The toxins released from the process are bad, but couldn't we just put a filter on it?

About the trees, hemp would be way more efficient alternative because they mature faster and you can plant more per acre. Then you could replace a whole host of status quo and/or harmful products with more efficient ones. Like building houses out of hempcrete (http://www.sustainabilityninja.com/agriculture-sustainability/hemp-houses-have-negative-carbon-footprint-32437/), which has a negative carbon footprint, is lightweight, insulating, fire resistant, and all around fantastic. You could make steel out of hemp too, and it's stronger. The most eco-friendly car in the world is made of hemp (http://www.collective-evolution.com/2013/11/01/the-worlds-most-eco-friendly-car-its-made-entirely-from-hemp/). Industrialize the hemp.

As for the plastic, I don't really think we should be messing with materials that aren't biodegradable. Sure, it wouldn't be a problem if people were more responsible with their garbage and recycled/reused, but people aren't always responsible, and I'd rather not have to worry about it at all. Is there a reason we can't switch to all biodegradable materials?

Like I have been saying. The raw material for plastic comes up with the crude oil. What exactly are we going to do with it?

[Guerilla]

Like I have been saying. The raw material for plastic comes up with the crude oil. What exactly are we going to do with it?

If we are going to use oil, then it would make sense to also use the plastic that comes with it, but then, we shouldn't even be using the oil. It's not biodegradable. We should switch to all biodegradable.

For now, I guess we could turn the plastic into energy like Sweden. Or we could turn the raw material that plastic comes from into something else.

[Polecat]

If we are going to use oil, then it would make sense to also use the plastic that comes with it, but then, we shouldn't even be using the oil. It's not biodegradable. We should switch to all biodegradable.

For now, I guess we could turn the plastic into energy like Sweden. Or we could turn the raw material that plastic comes from into something else.

Actually oil is the result of biodegraded plant and animal remains. It is an organic substance. The monomers and polymers that are present can not be fashioned into unicorns and butterfly farts. They are what they are. Short of not pumping them to the surface in the first place there is a limited number of materials that can be produced with them. This is the only realistic thing to do otherwise we have a mountain of toxic goo that has to go somewhere.

[Guerilla]

Actually oil is the result of biodegraded plant and animal remains. It is an organic substance. The monomers and polymers that are present can not be fashioned into unicorns and butterfly farts. They are what they are. Short of not pumping them to the surface in the first place there is a limited number of materials that can be produced with them. This is the only realistic thing to do otherwise we have a mountain of toxic goo that has to go somewhere.

Good points, I'm not big on chemistry.

I think we should keep the goo safely in the ground. If we find a substance or create a product that is harmful, we shouldn't continue in that direction like we have done. But that is largely the fault of competing special interests. Those special interests aren't able to keep there place though with all the new tech coming out lately.

[Polecat]

Good points, I'm not big on chemistry.

I think we should keep the goo safely in the ground. If we find a substance or create a product that is harmful, we shouldn't continue in that direction like we have done. But that is largely the fault of competing special interests. Those special interests aren't able to keep there place though with all the new tech coming out lately.

A major change in our lifestyle would be the only way to approach this issue. It would be drastic enough to require a couple of generations to ease into it. All our roads and roofs that require asphalt could be phased out given enough time. Things like rubber, fertilizer, medications, and fuel can all be replaced by other means over time.

[donttread]

Plastic comes up out of the ground with the crude oil. It is as you put it "intelligent life" that takes this formerly toxic waste and makes something useful with it. We must stop pumping crude oil entirely if we are to eliminate plastic from the surface. You realize I hope that this is not even remotely feasible in our current situation. The only rational solution is to recycle and reuse.

Yeah, Walmart shopping bags just ooze up out of the oil with no further refinement or manufacturing.

[donttread]

Sweden has to import garbage (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/12/sweden-imports-trash_n_1876746.html)for their waste-to-energy programs. They don't have enough garbage because they recycle so well. Because of this, I don't really see landfills as a problem. The toxins released from the process are bad, but couldn't we just put a filter on it?

About the trees, hemp would be way more efficient alternative because they mature faster and you can plant more per acre. Then you could replace a whole host of status quo and/or harmful products with more efficient ones. Like building houses out of hempcrete (http://www.sustainabilityninja.com/agriculture-sustainability/hemp-houses-have-negative-carbon-footprint-32437/), which has a negative carbon footprint, is lightweight, insulating, fire resistant, and all around fantastic. You could make steel out of hemp too, and it's stronger. The most eco-friendly car in the world is made of hemp (http://www.collective-evolution.com/2013/11/01/the-worlds-most-eco-friendly-car-its-made-entirely-from-hemp/). Industrialize the hemp.

As for the plastic, I don't really think we should be messing with materials that aren't biodegradable. Sure, it wouldn't be a problem if people were more responsible with their garbage and recycled/reused, but people aren't always responsible, and I'd rather not have to worry about it at all. Is there a reason we can't switch to all biodegradable materials?

Why do you think an advanced nation banned hemp, even with unuseably low THC content?

[Peter1469]

Why do you think an advanced nation banned hemp, even with unuseably low THC content?

To placate Big Oil....

[Guerilla]

Why do you think an advanced nation banned hemp, even with unuseably low THC content?

For the oil industry, the staus quo, the elite. Hemp could replace so many products and make things incredibly efficient, which is bad for alternative industries.

Consider Nikola Tesla, he discovered forms of energy and mechanical configurations that would have increased efficiency, decreased dependency of the individual, and replaced many products with fewer, same as the weed industry can do. In both cases, they were shut down because it is counter to the culture of consumerism and dependency that elite have inculcated.

[waltky]

Report projects 3 times the amount of plastic in the ocean in 10 years...
:shocked:
Ocean plastic could treble in decade
21 March 2018 - The amount of plastic in the ocean is set to treble in a decade unless litter is curbed, a major report has warned.


Plastics is just one issue facing the world's seas, along with rising sea levels, warming oceans, and pollution, it says. But the Foresight Future of the Sea Report for the UK government said there are also opportunities to cash in on the "ocean economy". They say this is predicted to double to $3 trillion (£2 trillion) by 2030. The report says much more knowledge is needed about the ocean. The authors say the world needs a Mission to "Planet Ocean" to mirror the excitement of voyaging to the moon and Mars. The Foresight reports are written by experts to brief ministers on medium and long-term issues of significance. This one has been signed off by ministers from four different departments as the authors emphasise the need for a joined-up oceans policy.


https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/660/cpsprodpb/107A1/production/_100498476_mediaitem100498475.jpg

One of the authors, Prof Edward Hill from the UK National Oceanography Centre told BBC News: "The ocean is critical to our economic future. Nine billion people will be looking to the ocean for more food. Yet we know so little of what's down there. "We invest a lot of money and enthusiasm for missions to space - but there's nothing living out there. The sea bed is teeming with life. We really need a mission to planet ocean - it's the last frontier." Another of the authors, the chief scientist for the UK government's environment department Ian Boyd, agreed: "The ocean is out of sight, out of mind," he said.

He told BBC News: "There's a continuous process of exploring for new things to exploit in the oceans, and that's happening faster than we scientists can keep up with. My suspicion is legislation is also struggling to keep up - and obviously there are risks in that." He said offshore wind farms, oil industries and mining firms were spreading into unexplored areas. "Scientists need to get in there faster than the commercial people or at least at the same time - to put proper regulation in place to govern those industries." The report highlights many concerns, including the current worry about ocean plastic litter, which it forecasts will treble between 2015 and 2025. But it stresses that the ocean is being assailed from many different types of pollution - including run-off pesticides and fertilisers from farms, industrial toxins like PCBs, and pharmaceuticals.


https://ichef-1.bbci.co.uk/news/624/cpsprodpb/B981/production/_100498474_gettyimages-79162639.jpg
The report projects an increase in the industrial capture of fish

The authors say if governments can identify ways of protecting biodiversity in the seas, there are riches to be harvested - including nodules of metals and possibly even cures for cancer. They predict that the biggest industrial growth in the seas will come from offshore wind, followed by marine aquaculture and fish processing. The report also projects an increase in industrial capture of wild fish. This latter suggestion alarmed Rachel Jones, a marine expert from London Zoo, ZSL. She told BBC News: "Given that 90% of global fisheries are either at or in excess of sustainable catch levels, I can't really see how they are going to expand capture fisheries."

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-43477233

[waltky]

Daylight Turns Plastic Sheet into Germ-Killing Material...
:cool2:
Daylight Turns Plastic Sheet into Germ-Killing Material
March 22, 2018 - Daylight-powered microbe-killing masks and suits may someday help protect health workers from deadly germs like Ebola, according to new research.


Scientists have developed membranes that produce a tiny bit of disinfecting hydrogen peroxide when exposed to light. They could find their way into food packaging as well, the researchers say, helping cut down on foodborne diseases. The research is published in the journal Science Advances.


Nearly 500 health workers died during the 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa. Front-line caregivers wear full-body protective suits when they come into contact with patients with virulent diseases, but the process of removing the gear is a prime opportunity for infection if the surface is contaminated. "If there's any live bacteria or virus on the surface, it's still transmissible and could cause infection," said University of California, Davis, researcher Gang Sun.



https://gdb.voanews.com/8C42EE89-A37B-4E1B-BA15-006241EEC168_cx0_cy5_cw0_w1023_r1_s.jpg
A health worker sprays a colleague with disinfectant during a training session for Congolese health workers to deal with Ebola virus in Kinshasa, Oct. 21, 2014. The process of removing the full-body protective suit is a prime opportunity for infection if the surface of the gear is contaminated.



Sun and colleagues developed membranes that could line the outside of that protective gear. When exposed to daylight, molecules on the surface of these membranes react with oxygen in the air to produce small amounts of hydrogen peroxide — less than what you'd use to remove laundry stains, but enough to kill germs, according to Sun. "The approach is quite novel," said University of Maryland food scientist Rohan Tikekar, who was not involved with this research. He says others have developed materials that produce disinfecting chemicals, but most only work under high-energy ultraviolet light.


The new membrane also works in the dark, for at least an hour or two, thanks to chemical properties that recharge its germ-killing powers. "That is a really significant improvement," Tikekar added. In addition to coating protective gear for health workers, Sun says adding a layer of this material to fresh-produce packaging could reduce contamination and prolong storage life. Some versions of the material use natural compounds. Sun says one of the next steps is to make it edible.


https://www.voanews.com/a/daylight-plastic-sheet-germ-killing-material-research/4311817.html

[waltky]

'A single piece of plastic' can kill sea turtles...
:shocked:
'A single piece of plastic' can kill sea turtles, says study
13 Sept.`18 - A new study suggests that ingesting even a single piece of plastic can be deadly for sea turtles.



Researchers found there was a one in five chance of death for a turtle who consumed just one item - rising to 50% for 14 pieces. The team found that younger turtles are at a higher risk of dying from exposure to plastic than adults. The authors say their research raises concerns over the long term survival of some turtle species. The never ending surge of plastic into the world's oceans is taking an increasing toll on iconic marine species. While it has been relatively straightforward for researchers to document the threat to animals who become entangled in plastic and drown, determining the impact of consumed plastic is much harder.



https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/660/]/DFE9/production/_103412375_gettyimages-834977064.jpg



The authors of this study estimate that ]half of all the sea turtles on the planet have ingested plastic - this rises to 90% among juvenile green sea turtles off the coast of Brazil. To determine how this exposure was impacting the species, the researchers looked at post mortem reports and animal stranding records relating to sea turtles in Queensland. From that information they were able to deduce the role of plastic in causing death - if an animal had ingested more than 200 pieces of plastic, death was inevitable.




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Fourteen pieces meant a 50% chance of dying - while one piece gave a 22% chance of mortality. "Because of their digestive tract, they don't regurgitate anything," lead author Dr Britta Denise Hardesty from Australia's Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), told BBC News. "If it ends up in the wrong place, even one little thin, filmy piece of plastic can block that canal and mean that nothing can pass and ultimately the blockage can result in death." As well as causing blockages, harder pieces caused internal injuries which often lead to death as well.




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The research team also found that younger turtles were taking in far more plastic than adults. Around 23% of juveniles and 54% of post-hatchling turtles had ingested plastic compared to 16% of adults. The scientists say that this greater susceptibility is down to where they live and how they feed. "Young small turtles actually drift and float with the ocean currents as does much of the buoyant, small lightweight plastic," said Dr Hardesty. "We think that small turtles are less selective in what they eat than large adults who eat sea grass and crustaceans, the young turtles are out in the oceanic area offshore and the older animals are feeding in closer to shore."


MORE (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-45509822)

[donttread]

Plastic pollution is probably my biggest environmental passion/interest out there and here are just a few simple pictures that help tell the story. There are so many more pictures and points to be made but I just wanted to get this started first.

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Another case of us creating a product, then becoming dependent upon it with no way to deal with the aftermath. Some call that progress, I call it a serious lack of long term planning