Plastics and Climate Change

 Written by Susan Hodges, leader of Strafford Climate Action

 

    You may have noticed the artwork that has been on display in front of the UU Church in South

Strafford. It calls attention to the problem of plastic trash in our oceans, which interferes with

and kills ocean life. That is a serious problem in itself, but the problem with plastics is much

bigger even than our oceans.

New research has demonstrated that the production and use of plastics are critically connected to

Climate Change and pollution in every part of our earth and atmosphere with unknown

consequences for us and for all life. And, plastic waste in the oceans disproportionately affects

the people in 3 rd world countries, far away from sites of production, just as increased use of oil

and gas in the richest countries affects EVERYONE because it heats up the climate of the whole

world. https://www.yesmagazine.org/environment/2018/06/25/why-women-from-asia-are-

confronting-us-fracking-oil-extraction-equals-plastic-

production/?fbclid=IwAR3TywREwD33j3Kzy7cqiZoPfePftChZi0TBJtEYo148l9N4GS7JHWC

mszY

The more you find out about plastic, including the problems and limitations of recycling, the

more you hopefully will want to avoid using it as much as possible!

If you feel overwhelmed, or don’t even want to read the rest of this post, or you are not sure

where to start, here is something pretty simple you can do: collect your plastic waste for a

month and conduct an audit. Then cut back on what you find the most of.

Plastic Facts and Effects on the Climate

The problem: Plastic = Fossil Fuels

https://www.commondreams.org/views/2019/05/31/plastic-just-destructive-climate-oil-and-gas

* 99% of what goes into plastics are oil, and gas especially fracked gas or ethane (and fracking

includes the release of methane, which is much worse than even carbon dioxide in terms

of global warming).

* Using incredibly high temperatures, these facilities (“ethane crackers”), sometimes fueled by

their own dedicated power plants (burning fossil fuels), “crack” the molecular bonds of

the ethane to form the building blocks of plastics, such as polyethylene.

* Every step in the production of plastics results in the release of climate-warming CO2, along with

many other toxins.

Here are some more disturbing facts:

* Plastics’ consumption of oil will outpace that of cars by 2050.

* Plastics are just a way of making things out of fossil fuels.

* The US shale gas boom is fueling massive build-out of plastic manufacturing.

* Producing virgin plastic is cheaper than recycling plastic.

* Pollution from the production of petrochemicals (fracking, drilling, refining, cracking), includes

radioactive water, methane, chemicals with unknown effects on us, carbon emissions, etc.

* Many toxic materials (mostly unregulated) are involved in manufacturing plastics.

* Packaging makes up nearly half of plastic waste, but most packaging is not recyclable.

https://www.supplychaindive.com/news/packaging-largest-segment-half-plastic-waste/551243/

* Less than 10% of plastics are actually recycled, and recycling is energy-intensive.

https://advances.sciencemag.org/content/3/7/e1700782.full

“Production, use, and the fate of all plastics ever made”

* Discarded plastics break into pieces but do not decompose, resulting in different sizes of

particles, large to microscopic, located EVERYWHERE! New research on this indicates

thousands of tons of microplastics travel by wind, all over the world:

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/thousands-of-tons-of-microplastics-are-falling-from-

the-sky/ We breathe them and consume them, and no one knows what are the consequences.

* Incineration of plastics (ie, what often happens to plastic that is not recycled) produces carbon

emissions and spews toxins into the air.

* Discarded plastics in landfills leach chemicals that pollute soil and water.

What can you do?? Here are some ideas!

• Buy and use less plastic! We must be willing to change our habits! (more ideas below)

This means avoiding “disposable” bottles and packaging as much as possible, asking “do

I really need this?” before purchasing, can I purchase the same item elsewhere without

plastic packaging? avoiding synthetic fiber clothing, etc.

• Re-use plastic we already have, as many times as possible.

• Recycle everything we can.

• “Use it up, wear it out, make it do, do without.”

• Increase our awareness and share it with others. (If you feel overwhelmed and you’re not

sure where to start, collect your plastic waste for a month and conduct an audit. Cut back

on what you find the most of.)

• Take political action, support bills that reduce production and use of single-use plastics, and call on the petrochemical corporations to take responsibility for plastic pollution

problems.

• Re-use plastic bags and containers whenever possible.

• Use beeswax wrap instead of plastic wrap (you can make your own!).

• Bring your own reusable container for leftovers when you eat out.

• Bring your own reusable plates, cups, and cutlery to potlucks.

• Don’t buy coffee except when you have your own reusable mug with you!

• When the pandemic is “over” and we can bring our own bags and containers to grocery

stores, use cloth bags for groceries, produce (you can make your own!). In the

meantime, put unbagged groceries in your cart, and bag them when you get to your car.