Politics1 min ago
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My first job way back in 1968 was as a trainee lab assistant at ICI Plastics Division Research Department. We were trying to find ways to make plastic last longer and resist degrading. Now the situation is totally reversed and research is all about finding ways to make plastic degrade faster. As to how to get rid of the 1500 tonnes of waste plastic we were sending...
19:36 Tue 02nd Jan 2018
We will have to start dealing with our waste ourselves pretty quickly.
By palming off our waste to places like China and India we have gotten lazy and now suddenly the truth of our excess is going to be rammed home.
But, because the 'startup' costs from virtually scratch will be astronomical we will be paying a big price for some time to come.
We have suckered ourselves into being ripped off by (I suspect) large and/or foreign companies that we will just be jumping from one dirty ship (China/India) to the next.
By palming off our waste to places like China and India we have gotten lazy and now suddenly the truth of our excess is going to be rammed home.
But, because the 'startup' costs from virtually scratch will be astronomical we will be paying a big price for some time to come.
We have suckered ourselves into being ripped off by (I suspect) large and/or foreign companies that we will just be jumping from one dirty ship (China/India) to the next.
Tend to agree with cassa. I had thought that this, being a modern industry, was under control - silly me. :( Go back to paper bags for a start, they are regrowable and recyclable. This can be done almost instantly. Impose taxes (starting 6 months hence) on plastic packaging. That should stir a few souls. :)
My first job way back in 1968 was as a trainee lab assistant at ICI Plastics Division Research Department. We were trying to find ways to make plastic last longer and resist degrading. Now the situation is totally reversed and research is all about finding ways to make plastic degrade faster. As to how to get rid of the 1500 tonnes of waste plastic we were sending to China every week. ? I can only suggest burning it as fuel in a multi fuel power generation system. Most but not all plastic is flammable and can be used as fuel. Current power generation systems can burn wood chips so plastic chips would burn as well. What can't be burnt will have to go as landfill. It is going to be a real problem and not one that is going to be easy to fix.
We should go back to natural materials wherever possible. But plastics are too ubiquitous to drop immediately. We need to depend on fewer, easier to recycle varieties. Of course, fewer humans on the globe would reduce demand to tolerable levels. We've gone down an unfortunate path in many ways; we need to get back on the straight & narrow, as they say.
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