Published Sep 3, 2023

890: Bioplastics | Skeptical Sunday

Explore the promise and pitfalls of bioplastics with Jordan Harbinger and Michael Regilio as they dissect the environmental impacts, production intricacies, and global challenges of plastic pollution, while unraveling the truth behind biodegradable and compostable plastics.
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  • Plastic Pollution

    Plastic pollution is a pervasive issue, with over 9 billion tons produced since the 1950s and 165 million tons littering our oceans. highlights that 40% of this plastic is single-use packaging, which is ubiquitous in our daily lives 1. notes that even remote places are not spared from plastic waste, emphasizing the global scale of the problem 1.

    Plastic is literally freaking everywhere.

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    Additionally, humans consume about 5 grams of microplastic weekly, illustrating the extent of plastic's infiltration into our lives 2.

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    Recycling Issues

    Recycling, often touted as a solution to plastic pollution, is fraught with inefficiencies and deceptions. reveals that only 5-6% of all plastic is actually recycled, far less than the commonly cited 9% 3. This discrepancy is due to the plastic industry's long-standing knowledge that recycling is not a viable solution, using it instead as a marketing tool to encourage continued plastic consumption 3.

    The recycling movement is, unfortunately, mostly bullshit.

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    suggests that while recycling isn't a panacea, properly recycling single-use plastics at designated stores can still mitigate some environmental impact 4.

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