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Microplastics are finding their way into fruit and vegetables as they grow

bbc.com

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Re: Microplastics are finding their way into fruit and vegetables as they grow

#41

Post by Eisenstein »

legulere wrote: post #37
Eisenstein wrote: post #35

Plastics are inert. This is why they don't biodegrade easily. It is the additives in the plastics (to make them softer, or color them, or whatever) that are terrible for you. By the time these things are 'microplastics' I am having a hard time feeling scared that they are harmful. I'm not saying they aren't, but until someone can tie them to an actual problem, I don't see an issue -- especially since there is nothing…

Plastics are relatively brittle however without those additives and will break down into harmful micro and nano plastics: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S00489... There’s a lot we can do about it. Clothes tires and mismanaged waste are leading sources for microplastic that can be reduced.

Without the full article we can only go by the abstract of your link, which doesn't say anything definitive except that the effects on humans are unknown.

Re: Microplastics are finding their way into fruit and vegetables as they grow

#42

Post by brettermeier »

tomp wrote: post #36
Eisenstein wrote: post #35

Plastics are inert. This is why they don't biodegrade easily. It is the additives in the plastics (to make them softer, or color them, or whatever) that are terrible for you. By the time these things are 'microplastics' I am having a hard time feeling scared that they are harmful. I'm not saying they aren't, but until someone can tie them to an actual problem, I don't see an issue -- especially since there is nothing…

There’s nothing wrong with one-time-use plastics, in countries with good waste management systems. Paper straws suck.

There are no countries with good waste management systems. Waste counts as recycled, if it was exported. What happens after that, nobody knows and nobody cares. Even in Europe, just a tiny amount of plastic gets recycled, most is shipped away, so that others should care about.

Edit: Source: "The recycling lie" https://www.daserste.de/information/reportage-dokumentation/... (german)

Re: Microplastics are finding their way into fruit and vegetables as they grow

#43

Post by Eisenstein »

Traubenfuchs wrote: post #38
Eisenstein wrote: post #35

Plastics are inert. This is why they don't biodegrade easily. It is the additives in the plastics (to make them softer, or color them, or whatever) that are terrible for you. By the time these things are 'microplastics' I am having a hard time feeling scared that they are harmful. I'm not saying they aren't, but until someone can tie them to an actual problem, I don't see an issue -- especially since there is nothing…

I always dream about opening a single use plastic shop in the future, for those who just don‘t care and those who are actively opposed to it being removed everywhere. For example, drinking delicious Coca-Cola Zero Sugar at McDonalds from a paper straw is disgusting. The straw usually disintegrates before I am done and sticks to the lips at the start. I love single use plastic.

Why is everyone using straws as an example? First, they are not what I am talking about -- we used to get beverages in re-usable containers and now it is almost impossible to find anything in glass. We don't need plastic to-go containers, we don't need everything in a plastic wrapper or vacuum sealed in a thick plastic container (as evidenced by companies not doing that and having zero problems with their products being damaged). These are just a few things that could be changed with zero inconvenience to the consumer. In fact, the plastic sealed packages that require a chainsaw to open being discontinued would be a convenience for consumers, since I have never met a person who didn't hate them.

Keep your plastic straws.

Re: Microplastics are finding their way into fruit and vegetables as they grow

#44

Post by tomp »

radec wrote: post #39
tomp wrote: post #36

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There’s nothing wrong with one-time-use plastics, in countries with good waste management systems. Paper straws suck.

What's a good waste management system? Honest question.

Burying plastics in the ground; returning carbon to where it came from.

Re: Microplastics are finding their way into fruit and vegetables as they grow

#45

Post by fwsgonzo »

Eisenstein wrote: post #43
Traubenfuchs wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I always dream about opening a single use plastic shop in the future, for those who just don‘t care and those who are actively opposed to it being removed everywhere. For example, drinking delicious Coca-Cola Zero Sugar at McDonalds from a paper straw is disgusting. The straw usually disintegrates before I am done and sticks to the lips at the start. I love single use plastic.

Why is everyone using straws as an example? First, they are not what I am talking about -- we used to get beverages in re-usable containers and now it is almost impossible to find anything in glass. We don't need plastic to-go containers, we don't need everything in a plastic wrapper or vacuum sealed in a thick plastic container (as evidenced by companies not doing that and having zero problems with their products be…

We must not inconvenience anyone at any cost! Even if it creates a layer of plastic on earths surface and we get microplastic in our spines.

It would have been easier to believe in a better future if people could stomach tiny inconveniences.

Re: Microplastics are finding their way into fruit and vegetables as they grow

#46

Post by dashundchen »

tomp wrote: post #36
Eisenstein wrote: post #35

Plastics are inert. This is why they don't biodegrade easily. It is the additives in the plastics (to make them softer, or color them, or whatever) that are terrible for you. By the time these things are 'microplastics' I am having a hard time feeling scared that they are harmful. I'm not saying they aren't, but until someone can tie them to an actual problem, I don't see an issue -- especially since there is nothing…

There’s nothing wrong with one-time-use plastics, in countries with good waste management systems. Paper straws suck.

Honestly go look outside. Go alongside a well trafficed road in the city or the country and take a close look at the soil. The curb or tree lawn is filled with visible bits of degraded plastic, and that's not even seeing abraded tire dust that will just look like soot or dirt.

Go to pretty much any beach and sift through the sand. Again you will find an abnormal number of plastic mixed in. Even in "clean" places with not a lot of litter plastic bits are visibly everywhere.

Own any synthetic clothes? Look at your lint trap after running a dryer or shaking out your clothes. The dust and lint coming off will quickly become microplastics. The wastewater from your washer will also be filled with them

Re: Microplastics are finding their way into fruit and vegetables as they grow

#47

Post by kennywinker »

Eisenstein wrote: post #43
Traubenfuchs wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I always dream about opening a single use plastic shop in the future, for those who just don‘t care and those who are actively opposed to it being removed everywhere. For example, drinking delicious Coca-Cola Zero Sugar at McDonalds from a paper straw is disgusting. The straw usually disintegrates before I am done and sticks to the lips at the start. I love single use plastic.

Why is everyone using straws as an example? First, they are not what I am talking about -- we used to get beverages in re-usable containers and now it is almost impossible to find anything in glass. We don't need plastic to-go containers, we don't need everything in a plastic wrapper or vacuum sealed in a thick plastic container (as evidenced by companies not doing that and having zero problems with their products be…

I would be so far from shocked if we found out soon that plastic grocery bag / straw bans were a psi-op by big oil/plastic manufacturers to make people hate the idea of reducing single-use plastic. I couldn't have picked a more inconvenient and inconsequential place to start legislating if I had tried.

A ban on plastic soda bottles? Great! There's are existing non-plastic solutions, nobody would be negatively impacted, and we'd see that reducing our plastic use can be easy and not require major sacrifices. Instead we come up against it every time we buy a beverage or go to the grocery store.

Re: Microplastics are finding their way into fruit and vegetables as they grow

#48

Post by peytoncasper »

fleddr wrote: post #34
garbanz0 wrote: post #32

Microplastics are so pervasive that they're even found in human breastmilk now. Maybe it's fatalistic, but what is the point of worrying about this on an individual level beyond limiting use of certain plastic products? And it's not just microplastics - we're seeing other news about "forever chemicals," hormones in our food, the global drop of average male sperm production by 50% (!!!), etc. At a certain point, apath…

I do think there's a limit to how much doom and gloom an individual can productively handle and I suppose this also applies to society as a whole. People seem to accept that it's all downhill from here, and sometimes even cynically applaud it. Like with the male sperm story. It's catastrophic and accelerating, yet got near-zero attention. The few responses to it seem to celebrate it. Humanity lacks a story for the fu…

"People seem to accept that it's all downhill from here"

Strange, I know plenty of people that do see an upside, including myself. It's a choice to believe things can and will get better.

Unless you have a crystal ball, we're both choosing to believe in an unknown future. So choosing to believe it will get worse is no different from believing it will get better. Although one is arguably better for mental health.

Re: Microplastics are finding their way into fruit and vegetables as they grow

#49

Post by colechristensen »

tomp wrote: post #44
radec wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What's a good waste management system? Honest question.

Burying plastics in the ground; returning carbon to where it came from.

No, burning them in a waste to energy plant.

While we still use hydrocarbons for a while for power, we might as well let some of them hang out as our stuff for a bit before being burned for energy.

Re: Microplastics are finding their way into fruit and vegetables as they grow

#50

Post by coffeebeqn »

switch007 wrote: post #17
andrewstuart wrote: post #12

(reposted comment) I’ve got a bee in my bonnet about “plastic roads”. Many countries, desperate to make use of the gargantuan flow of waste plastic, and desperate to avoid it going into landfill, are putting the waste plastic into roads. This is called “recycling”. Sounds like a great idea until you realize that cars and trucks drive on the roads and grind them into dust - dust containing microplastics. The microplas…

My carpet fitter tried to sell me on recycled plastic underlay. They only want to sell it because it’s dirt cheap and lightweight. Zero cares about what I’ll be breathing in for 10 years

What do you think the carpet is made out of?
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