Problems with Plastic

Plastic is not all bad - it's inexpensive, lightweight and durable, and when used as packaging it reduces the amount of waste and energy required to ship products, theoretically reducing carbon footprint. However, it takes anywhere from hundreds to thousands of years to break down in the environment, and the percentage of plastics that actually make it through the recycling process is dismally low - in 2018 the EPA estimated it was less than 9%. The rest ends up in a landfill (and the ocean) or incinerated. Incineration produces its own host of problems with air pollution and health issues like increased exposure to toxic, carcinogenic chemicals that contaminate the soil and ground water, increased cases of childhood asthma, cardiovascular problems, and preterm births. Many countries that used to buy plastic waste from the United States will no longer accept it. Facilities for recycling certain types of plastic waste are often not profitable, so they are not built. It is less expensive to produce new plastic than it is to recycle old. And even when you look at the small portion of plastic items that ARE recyclable, they are only able to go through the recycling process so many times, before they become plastic that is NOT recyclable.

Here are some links to articles about the problems with single use plastic, and the plastic "recycling" process in general. The infograph is from the Consumer Reports article.

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/plastic-produced-recycling-waste-ocean-trash-debris-environment?loggedin=true

https://blog.nationalgeographic.org/2018/04/04/7-things-you-didnt-know-about-plastic-and-recycling/#:~:text=Every%20time%20plastic%20is%20recycled,can%20no%20longer%20be%20used.

https://www.consumerreports.org/environment-sustainability/the-big-problem-with-plastic/#:~:text=Most%20of%20the%20rest%20ended,%2C%20the%20air%2C%20and%20water.