Problems+With+Plastics

=1. Health Concerns=

The Chippewa First Nation of Aamjiwnaang is a little blue-collar community in Sarnia, Ontario surrounded by dozens of chemical plants and is the densest collection of petro-chemical industries in Canada. 40% of the countries’ total plants (62) are within a 25-kilometer radius and all operate within 5-kilometers of the reserve, usually 24/7.

__Gender Bending__ The factories release more than 131, 000 tons of pollutants into the air and there is more and more evidence supporting that the locals are suffering from a range of serious health problems as a result of the toxic chemicals. People within the community were found to have widespread cancers, thyroid and kidney problems, along with 40% needing an inhaler, and 23% of children had learning and behavioural problems. Two of the more startling surveys conveyed one: an extremely high miscarriage rate (39%), and two: a significant shift in the sex ratio of live births; fewer than 35% of live births were male. These finding are lead to believe that the pollutants from the chemical plants are the root of the problem, spewing out millions of tons of reproductive toxins year after year. These toxic chemical released out into the environment are altering the basic foundations of life, effecting both living organisms and the environment.

__Testing__ The new age had brought many toxic chemicals, few of which have been tested for their effects not only on human health but the environment as well. There was extremely little knowledge about how chemicals interact with each other affecting our health and environment until the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) was passed in 1976. Hundreds of dangerous chemicals were found in the blood and urine of ordinary citizens across Canada, Europe, and the US. The majority of which could cause cancer, harm reproductive and child development, disrupt hormone systems, respiratory illnessm abd harm to the nervous system. __Household Items__ Many of the toxic chemicals that are infused with our daily lives we assume to be safe. A major focus on plastic has covered the world with potentially harmful chemicals. The most powerful being biphenyl A (BPA) which is used in everything to make polycarbonate plastic. BPA chemicals seep out of the plastic and into our bodies, with a recent study showing 95% of Americans contained BPA in their urine. Low doses of BPA could cause reproductive tract abnormalities, breast and prostate cancer, spontaneous miscarriage, type 2 diabetes and obesity.

__What the future holds__ Even with the plastics industry denying the risks of BPA, the views are shifting. Canada was the first country to label the chemical BPA as ‘a dangerous substance.’ Other plastic additives are phthalates and brominated flame-retardants (BPDE’s) which are associated with major health issues as well. A common sense notion that should be adopted by all countries is the ‘precautionary principle,’ and there is growing public concern about the toxic chemicals that surround us. Slowly laws are being made to unsure producer responsibility and groups are advocating ‘right to know’ legislations so that polluters can no longer hide their actions and are forced into the public light.

= = =2. Water Bottles =

Sales of water bottles have immensely risen over the past 30 years, estimating the consumption of bottled water to have jumped 25 times from 354 million gallons to over 9 billion gallons. About 20% of North Americans exclusively rely on bottled water as well as global sales increasing 8% annually. Sales in developing countries are even higher such as 18%/year in China. As common as it is there is no sense in buying bottled water economically or environmentally. Enormous amounts of fossil fuels are used to manufacture the plastic bottles and shipping them produces even more greenhouse gases. It is hoped that, in terms of environmental concerns, that the water bottle trend follows in much the same path as the plastic bags - people will not want to be seen with one but instead use a more environmentally friendly alternative.

__Ecological Footprint__ Each year Americans buy 29 billion bottles of water which use up about 17 million barrels of oil. 2.5 million tons of CO2 are released each year in manufacturing one ton of PET, the plastic used for making water bottles. Once the water is bottled it is shipped thousands of kilometers away and is estimated that ¼ of bottled water crosses international borders. Many seem to think that the majority of water bottles are recycled but in reality only 15% of water bottles are recycled in the US, 17% in Britain, and Canada with 36%. The majority end up in landfills or incinerators releasing carcinogens into the atmosphere and taking thousands of years to decompose into the ground.

The bottled water industry has created the image that tap water is unsafe and un healthy whereas their product of bottled water is seen as pure, pristine, and safe. “It has a perceived social value, rather than a true market value.” The best part is: 40% of bottled water comes from regular tap water. Bottled water also costs around 500 times what tap water does; gallon for gallon it costs more than gasoline.

__Potential Carcinogens__ In 1999 a survey by the Natural Resources Defence Council found that one out of three water brands violated industry standards containing contaminants such as faecal coli form bacteria, E coli and arsenic. There is no evidence to suggest that bottled water is safer. By selling bottled water it undermines the public trust in tap water of which our governments supply and could ultimately create that lack of incentive to continue investing in maintaining public water supplies. Another concern is bottled water opening a door for water privatization, paying a high price for water and using it to make large profits. The public is slowly starting to change paradigms in respect to tap water and the best bet is to publicise bottled water as unfashionable.

=3. Gyres=

A Marine Research Foundation spent a month tracking a gigantic gyre of plastic trash in the midst of the Pacific. Their first stop was at Kamilo beach, being the most polluted beach in the US, they observed it to be completely covered in plastic debris.

After entering the central cell of the gyre, which is an enormous diffuse region, they began sampling and described it as a ‘plastic soup.’ Continuing on their journey the researchers came across more debris which was a home to an ecosystem of fish. A pondering question was if it is safe for people to eat the fish swimming amongst the ‘plastic soup.’ Not being completely positive on the answer, researchers believed that the larger fish would most likely have more toxins in the them because they feed on the smaller contaminated fish, absorbing the sum of their toxins. The North Pacific ‘gyre’ is a vast whirlpool, the size of Texas, of circulating plastic garbage that resides there for decades. Much of the debris in this vast gyre is comprised of small fragmented pieces of plastic making it hard to clean up. It would require a fine mesh to remove it which would also remove tons of plankton, disturbing the basis of the entire marine food chain. There are many obstacles over which to clean up the gyre making it seen extremely difficult and almost impossible, so the focus must be on prevention. Researchers believe that the mass of plastic particles per surface area is increasing dramatically, parallel to the consumption of disposable plastics world-wide. The solutions to these problems are on going within a world of massive production and consumption of plastic trash but has become a serious issue that needs attention from the world.

=Plastic Timeline=

1862 - Parkensine The first man-made plastic. Organic material derived from cellulose that could be moulded when heated and made into a variety of products

1869 - Celluloid Invented as a substitute for the ivory in billard balls and was considered the first ‘thermoplastic:’ a substance that retains its shape after being moulded by heat

1909 - Bakelite The first completely synthetic plastic derived from fossil fuels. Being virtually indestructible it was very useful in manufacturing varied products and was known as the miracle plastic of the Art Deco age. It was also highly prevalent in most of the WWII weapons.

1920 - Rayon & Cellophane Rayon was a form of modified cellulose originally discovered in 1891 but was then perfected in 1913, modified to be able to roll rayon into clear sheets called cellophane. Known as the first flexible, moisture-proof packaging and soon after became the first artificial replacement for silk.

1926 - Vinyl or PCV Initially having no useful purpose PCV was first discovered by looking for a substance to bind metal to rubber. Used as a durable insulator it was used to coat electrical wires and is known to be extremely toxic. It is the second most produced plastic in the world.

1935 - Nylon A tough new plastic was developed by inserting different elements into chemical chains of hydrogen and carbon. This was originally called Fiber 66 but soon became known as nylon which swept the world and is very commonly used in the clothing industry.

1949 - Tupperware During the post-war years the explosion in plastic consumer good was enormous, using plastic wrap as the modern was to store food. The Tupperware industry boomed even more once this miracle kitchenware made its way into the market.

1950-60 Plastic Mania With the auto-industry moving into the centre of the global economy, the use of plastics skyrocketed. GM announced and advertised its first car to use plastic body panels, Velcro was invented, and plastic raincoats were designed.

1970- Toxic Fears Serious concerns were raised to the public concerning the deadly impact of DDT and PCB’s along with the potential toxic industrial chemicals used in the manufacturing of plastics. A few years later PCB’s and DDT’s were banned in most countries after discovering its links to cancer and immune damage.

1980-2008 Polar Fleece and Pollution There was a huge growth and boom with the use of hi-tech plastic gadgets at the end of the 20th century. Super fibres were developed which are most commonly used throughout the large spectrum of clothing and material.

The Present Environmental and health concerns are rising after noticing cancer development near industrial plants, sparking an extremely urgent demand for regulating the chemical industry.