Stop making new plastic would be a good place to start.
Yeah, that’s not going to happen. It’s too useful. So the next best thing is to figure out what to do with it going forward.
Plant based plastics, easy.
It’s simply petrochemical based plastics pushed by the oil industry that are so bad aren’t biodegradable.
Landfills are the answer for the US. It sits completely contained under ground after use, and if technology comes that can utilize the waste in a profitable way, we know exactly where it is.
What about burning it for heat and electricity. I’ve heard that those plants are really effective now.
Could potentially be a legit use for CCS I guess. If it worked. Needs to get better first.
Although, if this displaces coal on the grid, I guess it’s a step in the right direction?
That would help solve the plastic quantity problem, but we should also probably find a way to filter all of the forever chemicals from reaching the air.
Some of those chemicals can do pretty nasty things in high quantities or when repeatedly consumed over a long period of time.
You can recycle it. Make something useful out of it. Instead, they save pennies by buying new.
You often can’t though unfortunately. Most plastics can only be recycled a handful of times before they degrade too far. Recycling, while better than nothing, is a far more inefficient and flawed process than it is often presented as. That’s why it is far better to reduce usage in the first place and reuse things as is where you can. Of course this is all still easier said than done.
Yeah, the bullshit marketing of companies that presented pollution as a consumer problem instead of a corpo problem is a huge issue. It lead people to believe that plastics were infinitely recyclable, and the only reason there’s any pollution is because consumers just aren’t properly recycling.
In reality, the majority of plastics used aren’t even recyclable, and end up in landfill regardless. But somehow that’s still the fault of the consumer.
Utter bullshit.
I kind of like the approach of the Germans. You build a product, you are responsible for its disposal. Therefore, you have to engineer so that materials are cheaper to get rid of. Sure, recycled plastics degrade and eventually can’t be used for anything. But, it should be up to the last manufacturer to dispose of it in a safe way.
I entirely agree, and that does sound like a good approach. I just caution against presenting recycling as a solution rather than as a reduction of harm.
By recycle it, do you mean throw it in the blue bin? Because if so that’s not really recycling. That’s just choosing to throw it in an overseas landfill instead of a local one.
If it were actually comprehensive, they wouldn’t need to add “most” and “ever.” Those two words indicate that they’re patting themselves on the back for clearing a low bar.
It’s a start, and much better than “recycle ur plastic bags, folks”
Then they should call it a start instead of insulting everyone by expecting them to buy this “most comprehensive evar” garbage.
“By 2032, it would require plastic producers to reduce the amount of plastic they make by 25 percent”
I’m looking at this less as a start and more like observing a house engulfed in flames and hearing that a fire truck is gonna bring a bit of water in the morning
25% less by the time 2032 lmfao. What a joke.
It also fails to address some rather large specifics in regard to plastics and microplastics. Tire dust is a leading source of microplastics for example, and vehicles continue to get heavier, and mileage isn’t going down. It’s cool they’re doing something, but they’ve been making small incremental environmental changes for decades which led us to where we are today.
A low bar is better than nothing. I don’t know if this bill is comprehensive or not, but it still is better than what Republican Party offers.
“Better than Republicans” is only an accomplishment if you think that it takes effort to be better than people who actively work at being bigoted turds all the time.
If it’s anything other than “abolish capitalism” it’s not only not comprehensive, it isn’t even in the fucking neighbourhood.
As long as profit is prioritised over people and the environment, pollution will be a problem.
Bro pollution was a huge issue in the USSR. In China, its worse than it’s ever been. You must know that “abolishing capitalism” won’t fly in the US, not this decade.
Can’t we celebrate the steps we take to reduce the problem, however small?
I got the opportunity to visit China as a kid in the 90s. Amazing country with a lot of history and cultural works that deserve recognition (including those from periods of time that deserve recognition for how terrible they were). That said, I would blow my nose at the end of the day in Shanghai and the tissue would come away black with soot.
Not supporting or detracting from your points, just adding some “flavor” from my experience.
Lmfao, love it when bootlickers just can’t help but willingly broadcast their ignorance like this, it always gives me a good chuckle, thanks!
(hint: those whatabout examples weren’t/aren’t communism, but state-capitalism, and therefore not the “gotcha” you think it is, not that that would ever stop you from repeating the same wilfully ignorant bullshit every time you feel personally attacked by someone pointing out how terrible capitalism is 🤦♀️😂)
Yeah, you’re cancer. Capitalism might be bad, but people like you are even worse for setting normal people against the cause.
The entire world will not change overnight. You can keep being a toxic dickhead, or grow the fuck up and accept that.
The entire world will not change overnight.
That’s why we’re all fucked.
No, your mentality is why we’re all fucked.
Uhh, no, I’m pretty sure it’s the fact that oil companies convinced the world that capitalism is the only way.
Not at all. You capitalists, both pro and con, neglect that it’s government’s responsibility to establish a fair marketplace to benefit its citizens. Capitalism can do its magic within that marketplace. I put the blame squarely on the government for abdicating its role, failing its responsibility, forgetting that it’s supposed to be “of the people, by the people, for the people”.
