PLASTIC IS FANTASTIC?

Used at the right place… nothing is like a good old plastic material! How it can be used for tubing, light-weight airplanes and cars, cups and containers for food, rain protective gear, plastic bags, condoms for protection, and many other fantastic applications over a wide range of usage areas and business. However, put on the wrong place it causes severe destruction on our planet and for our environment. Based on the wrong resources (fossil) it causes also increasing emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases to contribute to increased global warming since the oil it came from took 1000 000 years to form and not 100 years like a tree. Very, very little amount of plastic materials comes from trees and other renewable plant materials. This needs to change, starting with the “renewable revolution”.

Let us however focus first on a very urgent matter, the plastic garbage that is ending up on places we do not even want to know. Step 1: blame someone? But who to blame? Aaah.. damn it! Its ourselves! We place plastic on places it never should have been placed. Why don’t we all start there whilst throwing massive criticism on big industries and cleaning of water streams. Focus on, what can you do to change your plastic behavior?

Step list:

1. Never throw garbage of any type outside the existing garbage and waste containers

2. Never throw garbage… wait! That is it? Yes it actually is a great start. I bet you all can walk outside your door where you live and find 5 pieces of garbage, probably plastics, within 10 meters from your entrance door with the connecting street, laying around where it should not be? If not, then use 20 meters. Should be the goal to not be found within our planetary boarders…

Part of why plastic is and will be fantastic is that it does not easily degrade in nature. The applications and products we use today withstand many times really tough conditions, which is fantastic but also make them a foreigner in nature environments. Rarely can microorganisms such as bacteria or funghi degrade them and therefore we create microparticles of plastics in oceans and even macroplastic garbage that can kill animals, no need to show the pictures since most of you have seen a seal or turtle trapped in beer can holders or plastic bags… not at all fantastic in the wrong place!