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Plastics are poisoning us

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Re: Plastics are poisoning us

#41

Post by Brotkrumen »

rkagerer wrote: post #37

The study found that, to have a lower environmental impact than a plastic bag, a paper bag would have to be used forty-three times and a cotton tote would have to be used an astonishing seventy-one hundred times. “How many of those bags will last that long?” Franklin-Wallis asks. Walker-Franklin and Jambeck also note that exchanging plastic for other materials may involve “tradeoffs,” including “energy and water use…

We can electrify the processes, make the power grid mostly green and require industrial processes to recycle most of its water. In fact the tech exists and the legislation exists and works.

Re: Plastics are poisoning us

#42

Post by NovaDudely »

darkwizard42 wrote: post #20
vladvasiliu wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> 8. Carry a water bottle (copper ideal). Why is copper better than stainless steel?

Copper is known to help kill more bacteria and thus helps additionally purify the water (1) 1: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3067274/

That actually makes a lot of sense, I did not know that. Thank you!

Re: Plastics are poisoning us

#43

Post by NovaDudely »

mjamesaustin wrote: post #6

People consider it a shocking or impossible policy to ban single use plastics, but future generations will look back on plastics the same way we do at lead paint or asbestos. We're poisoning ourselves and our planet.

Absolutely! Many think we are smarter than previous generations but just looking around and all the weird stuff we produce, I think we are just as stupid it will just take a few generations to realize it.

Re: Plastics are poisoning us

#44

Post by saiya-jin »

vladvasiliu wrote: post #14
realshadow wrote: post #11

I became a minimist to save the planet as much as i could. Its easier than any one could think you know. Here is what i have been doing for a decade and would receommend 1. Reusing plastic bags (i love cotton bags but not ideal). Fold and keep one or two in your pocket before you leave home 2. Support and use light software so you dont need to upgrade your gadgets (12y laptop i use) 3. Prepare and eat home cooked mea…

> 8. Carry a water bottle (copper ideal). Why is copper better than stainless steel?

> Is it safe to drink water from copper bottle everyday?

> If you have been drinking water that has been constantly stored in copper bottle or vessel, chances are high that you might be at the risk of copper toxicity. It can cause severe nausea, dizziness, abdominal pain and can result in liver and kidney failure.

No thank you. I get the struggle to not use plastics, I try to avoid it myself too (especially buying water in plastic bottles in shops is something I never do), but alternatives are subpar, either very heavy, fragile and overall impractical for outdoor sports (ie glass), or some other issues. What happened to stainless steel? Heavy but at least should be inert and nearly indestructible, no? I mean those without some crap BPA lining inside, like thermos but single walled.

Re: Plastics are poisoning us

#45

Post by friend_and_foe »

sacnoradhq wrote: post #10

Much of the 80's recycling movement was funded as greenwashing by the plastics industry. The lie was that plastic was a "closed cycle" and "infinitely reusable." In the late 90's/early 00's, "biodegradable plastic" was another lie. We need to ban all materials that persist with poisonous degradation products. Most bottles should then transition back to glass or to enamel-lined (not BPA) cans. Glass persists for thous…

Its all still greenwashing. "You can save the world without even getting up from your chouch!" is the sales pitch of the day. I'm far from what you'd consider an environmentalist in the sense of the current vernacular and I have a ridiculously low carbon footprint (my electric bill 9 months out of the year is $2 a month to give you an idea) and very low rate of disposal of plastics. All it takes is a handful of lifestyle changes. It's not even hard.

Re: Plastics are poisoning us

#46

Post by com2kid »

rkagerer wrote: post #37

The study found that, to have a lower environmental impact than a plastic bag, a paper bag would have to be used forty-three times and a cotton tote would have to be used an astonishing seventy-one hundred times. “How many of those bags will last that long?” Franklin-Wallis asks. Walker-Franklin and Jambeck also note that exchanging plastic for other materials may involve “tradeoffs,” including “energy and water use…

I inherited my fabric shopping bags from my grandmother, she made some of them 30 years ago.

They are also many times thicker than the cotton bags you can buy in stores, so they might very well need another couple generations before they are carbon neutral!

Re: Plastics are poisoning us

#47

Post by civilitty »

dustypotato wrote: post #22
civilitty wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Copper has anti-microbial properties and acts as a spermicide in a pinch.

Wait, what use do you see for it as a spermicide? How would you use it?

Figuring it out is half the fun! ;-)

(For some hints, see the sketches of the Dwarven Kama Sutra found in JRR Token’s estate)

Re: Plastics are poisoning us

#48

Post by aziaziazi »

fodkodrasz wrote: post #28
ateng wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> 5. Collect rain water and/or use less water Not sure about that -- With modern pollution rain water is not likely to be safe to drink (depends on your location) > 9. fuck sugary drinks Massive yes! Amazing for your own health too.

I guess not for drinking. OP is planting trees, so assumably has land where some kind of forestry/agriculture is in being carried out. That needs quite some water. (eg. freshly planted trees need irrigation to have a fair chance of survival) Also washing, showering can be done with rainwater if you are really a minimalist.

Or at least car/patio washing if you’re almost really a minimalist.

Re: Plastics are poisoning us

#49

Post by __MatrixMan__ »

iforgotpassword wrote: post #7
tfourb wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not sure how the "it's to late to do anything about it" is supposed to contribute to this debate. It's also factually wrong. The production of new plastics could be drastically reduced through regulation of both the production itself and its use cases. Most food and drink containers could be made from non-plastic materials. I've built a house that uses maybe 5% of the plastic that is common in construction where I li…

> The government could mandate that producers of plastics must offer a convenient and financially attractive way to hand in old plastics. We already have this. It's called trash can. How would letting the producers handle this instead would change anything? The plastic was still produced and will end up in a landfill or the ocean.

I couldn't speak for other brands, but Brother will give you a free shipping label so you can send your empty toner cartridge back to them. It's not charity, they want it back because they can reuse most of it in ways that a melt-and-remold style recycling scheme can't.

I see no reason the same couldn't be true of most packaging, in addition to things like TV's. If you built it, you ought to be uniquely positioned to recycle it.

In addition to trying to get consumers to change their habits we should also be fining/billing manufacturers when their stuff end up as litter or in a landfill. If they don't like it, they can redesign their processes to avoid it.

Re: Plastics are poisoning us

#50

Post by okeuro49 »

friend_and_foe wrote: post #45
sacnoradhq wrote: post #10

Much of the 80's recycling movement was funded as greenwashing by the plastics industry. The lie was that plastic was a "closed cycle" and "infinitely reusable." In the late 90's/early 00's, "biodegradable plastic" was another lie. We need to ban all materials that persist with poisonous degradation products. Most bottles should then transition back to glass or to enamel-lined (not BPA) cans. Glass persists for thous…

Its all still greenwashing. "You can save the world without even getting up from your chouch!" is the sales pitch of the day. I'm far from what you'd consider an environmentalist in the sense of the current vernacular and I have a ridiculously low carbon footprint (my electric bill 9 months out of the year is $2 a month to give you an idea) and very low rate of disposal of plastics. All it takes is a handful of lifes…

> All it takes is a handful of lifestyle changes

I don't think this for a second.

I think the only way it will stop if equivalent biodegradable materials can be made to replace single use plastic.

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