Oil Giants Invest $180B in Plastics, Pushing Oceans Toward ‘Near-Permanent’ Pollution

“We could be locking in decades of expanded plastics production at precisely the time the world is realizing we should use far less of it.”

(COMMONDREAMS) — Scientists and environmental protection advocates are warning that a coming plastics boom could lead to a permanent state of pollution on the planet—and denouncing the fossil fuel industry for driving an increase in plastics production amid all that’s known about the material polluting the world’s oceans.

“We could be locking in decades of expanded plastics production at precisely the time the world is realizing we should use far less of it,” Carroll Muffett, president of the Center for International Environmental Law (CEIL), told the Guardian. The CEIL has compiled several reports about the plastics industry since September.

The American Chemistry Council, a trade organization, has acknowledged that fossil fuel companies including Exxon and Shell Chemical have poured more than $180 billion into the creation of plastics facilities that are expected to create a 40 percent rise in production of the material over the next decade.

The rise in shale gas exploration in recent years has caused the price of natural gas liquids, used to make plastic, to drop significantly, causing companies to begin more than 300 plastics production projects since 2010.

“Around 99 percent of the feedstock for plastics is fossil fuels, so we are looking at the same companies…that have helped create the climate crisis,” said Muffett. “There is a deep and pervasive relationship between oil and gas companies and plastics.”

The report follows the CEIL’s recent study, released earlier this month, which showed that the plastics industry has known its products were polluting the world’s oceans since the 1970s and has spent decades fighting regulations that aim to keep the crisis from getting worse.

“We are already producing more disposable plastic than we can deal with, more in the last decade than in the entire twentieth century, and millions of tons of it are ending up in our oceans,” Louise Edge, senior oceans campaigner for Greenpeace UK, told the Guardian.

Another study by researchers at the University of California at Santa Barbara, published earlier this year, warned that excessive plastic production could lead to “near-permanent contamination” of the earth since the material is not biodegradable.

By Julia Conley / Creative Commons / Common Dreams / Report a typo

This article was chosen for republication based on the interest of our readers. Anti-Media republishes stories from a number of other independent news sources. The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not reflect Anti-Media editorial policy.

Mathematician Claims 6th Mass Extinction Is Coming To Earth SOON

According to MIT geophysicist Daniel Rothman, the sixth global mass extinction is right around the corner. Using his skills in mathematics, Rothman has determined that earth will be well into the sixth extinction phase by the year 2100.

Rothman began his math journey to determine our next extinction by investigating fluctuations in the carbon cycle. The carbon cycle is the path carbon traces through Earth’s land, oceans, and atmosphere that has occurred over the last 542 million years. By analyzing 31 established carbon isotopic events recognized by geochemists, Rothman identified the ebb and flow of carbon–12 and carbon–13, which are two isotopes of carbon whose abundance has varied considerably in Earth’s history.

From this information, he constructed a database to assess how much carbon mass was pumped into the world’s oceans in each historical event. In most of these episodes, the carbon volume stayed under a certain threshold. But in some of them (including four of the past five mass extinction events that exterminated multitudes of life-forms on the planet) that threshold was breached. “It became evident that there was a characteristic rate of change that the system basically didn’t like to go past,” Rothman said about his findings.

According to Rothman’s math, there are only two ways carbon levels can exceed the threshold of a catastrophe. One is where CO2 emissions slowly swell over thousands and millions of years, slowly triggering a global calamity. The other case occurs on a much shorter timescale, where an immense shift in carbon volumes moving through the carbon cycle happens in the space of say, decades or years.

Rothman warns that by the year 2100, about 310 gigatons of carbon will have been added to the oceans. This is a potential “tipping point” for an ecological disaster, according to his study. That’s also the minimum amount of carbon expected to enter earth’s oceans by 2100. When CO2 dissolves into the ocean as it did in the case of the End-Permian mass extinction, all life on Earth is at risk.

The formula predicts that by the end of the century oceans will hold enough carbon to launch a mass extermination of species in the very near future. Rothman also stated that it would take about 10,000 years for the disaster to completely play out.

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Author: Mac Slavo
Views: Read by 369 people
Date: September 21st, 2017
Website: www.SHTFplan.com

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Sad: Humans Have Created 9 Billion Tons of Plastic in 67 Years

In 1950, plastic was a rarity. Today, plastic is everywhere – in our homes, cars, streets, landfills, and oceans. Scientists recently calculated how much plastic humans have produced since that year, and the conclusion is mind-boggling: 9 billion tons, or 8.3 billion metric tons. [1]

A study published July 19, 2017 in the journal Science Advances reveals that plastics production has risen at a compound annual growth rate of 8.4% in the last 67 years, more than 2.5 times the rise in the global gross domestic product.

A mere 2 million pounds of plastic was available in 1950, compared with more than 400 million tons in 2015. Shockingly, half of the world’s plastics were produced in the last 13 years.

And, the researchers estimated, the amount of plastic in use now is 30% of all plastics ever produced. [2]

As if your mind isn’t boggled enough, think of it this way: according to the U.S. Navy, 9 million tons of plastic is the equivalent to 85,567 aircraft “supercarriers” like the USS Gerald R. Ford, which weighs 107,000 tons (97,000 metric tons). [3]

As of 2015, about 7 billion tons of plastic waste had been disposed of as waste. Of that amount, just 9% of it gets recycled, 12% is incinerated, and 79% winds up in landfills, according to the report.

If humans don’t act quickly to reverse the upward trend, 13.2 billion tons (6.3 billion metric tons) will be disposed of in landfills by 2050, the researchers wrote. Right now, there is already countless plastic particles polluting the oceans. Something needs to be done.

Source: OneWorldOneOcean.com

Roland Geyer, an associate professor of industrial ecology at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and lead author of the new study, said:

“You could say, ‘What a phenomenal success story,’ but I do think it will come with some heavy environmental collateral damage.”

Geyer went on:

“Humankind is making an incredible amount of plastics, even more than we thought it would be, and it keeps increasing. And we’re not very good at dealing with the waste.” [1]

The same team of researchers worked on an earlier study which found in 2015 that between 5 million and 13 million metric tons of plastic work their way into the ocean each year. In this recent study, the researchers noted that plastics are found in every major ocean basin on the planet. [2]

Read: Fish Eat Plastic from Polluted Oceans, Travels up Food Chain & Harms Humans

They write:

“The growth of plastics production in the past 65 years has substantially outpaced any other manufactured material. The same properties that make plastics so versatile in innumerable applications — durability and resistance to degradation — make these materials difficult or impossible for nature to assimilate.

Thus, without a well-designed and tailor-made management strategy for end-of-life plastics, humans are conducting a singular uncontrolled experiment on a global scale, in which billions of metric tons of material will accumulate across all major terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems on the planet.”

According to Geyer, recycling alone doesn’t cut it. He and his colleagues recommend weighing the advantages and disadvantages of the different strategies for managing plastics. Reusing and recycling are 2 of those strategies, but they’ve done little to solve the problem.

Strategies like substituting other materials or using waste-to-energy or other technologies for converting the materials into other substances should be given greater consideration.

Sources:

[1] Newsweek

[2] CNBC

[3] Live Science

One World One Ocean

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About Mike Barrett:
	Mike is the co-founder, editor, and researcher behind Natural Society. Studying the work of top natural health activists, and writing special reports for top 10 alternative health websites, Mike has written hundreds of articles and pages on how to obtain optimum wellness through natural health.

UN Urges Action as Microplastics in the Ocean Outnumber the Stars

If you’ve ever laid on a blanket and looked up at the night sky, you know how mind-blowing it is to consider the sheer number of stars in our galaxy – between 100 and 400 billion, according to scientists. Now, think about how heartbreaking it is to find out that there are more microscopic pieces of plastic in our oceans than there are stars in the Milky Way. [1]

Source: National Ocean Service

An estimated 300 million tons of plastic are used every year, and about 8 million tons end up in oceans. To put that into perspective, imagine a garbage truck dumping plastic into the ocean every minute. There are as many as 51 trillion microplastic particles in the oceans – 500 times more than stars in the galaxy.

Microplastics cause at least $8 billion in damage to marine ecosystems, and by 2050, it is estimated that oceans will have more plastic than fish if revolutionary changes are not made immediately. [2] [3]

The UN wants to eliminate 2 major sources of plastic pollution by 2025: microbeads in cosmetic products, and single-use plastics like water bottles and plastic bags. [3]

Source: The Science Explorer

Erik Solheim, the head of UN environment, said plastic litter in the world’s oceans “must stop,” adding:

“Plastic pollution is surfing onto Indonesian beaches, settling onto the ocean floor at the North Pole, and rising through the food chain onto our dinner tables. “We’ve stood by too long as the problem has gotten worse.”

Read: This is why we Need to Stop Using Plastic

Microplastics aren’t just microbeads; they are also comprised of large pieces of plastic that have broken down into tiny pieces. Tires, fleece clothing, water bottles, and packing materials all become microplastics, and they never go away.

The Plastic Oceans Foundation states that “when broken down into tiny pieces, plastic attracts toxic chemicals released over decades from industry and agriculture, the concentration of which increases as they move up the food chain.” [4]

The tiny bits of plastic are mistaken for food by marine animals and have a physical and neurological effect on them, often blocking the animals’ digestive tracts and moving into their bloodstreams. Once this occurs, microplastics may eventually cross the blood-brain barrier.

The UN launched their new global Clean Seas campaign at the World Oceans Summit in Bali, asking countries and businesses to take ambitious measures to eliminate microplastics from personal care products, ban or tax single-use plastic bags, and dramatically reduce other disposable plastic items by 2022. [3]

The World Moves Against Plastic Pollution

Ten countries have already agreed to join the UN initiative, including Indonesia, which has pledged to reduce its marine litter by 70% by 2025. Uruguay has agreed to tax single-use plastic bags later this year; and Costa Rica plans to take drastic steps to reduce single-use plastic via better waste management and education.

In the United States, the Senate voted at the end of 2015 to phase out the use of microbeads in soaps, body washes, and other personal care products starting this year. Obama quickly signed the Microbead-Free Waters Act of 2015. Last fall, the United Kingdom also pledged to phase out microbeads in cosmetics by the end of this year.

In order to save the oceans, plastics manufacturers must also get involved. Speaking at the summit, the president of Plastics Europe, Patrick Thomas, said:

“The most important contributions that plastics companies can make is not lose control of their product at any stage during manufacturing or during transportation. If we don’t turn off the tap of plastics going into the oceans we will end up in a situation by 2025 where there’s one tonne of plastic for every three tonnes of fish and that is simply unacceptable.” [2]

Dell Computers has announced that it will use recovered ocean plastic in its product packaging. Said Vice President for Global Operations, Piyush Bhargava:

“DELL is committed to putting technology and expertise to work for a plastic-free ocean. Our new supply chain brings us one step closer to UNEP’s vision of Clean Seas by proving that recycled ocean plastic can be commercially reused.” [3]

Peter Thomson, President of the UN General Assembly, said:

“The ocean is the lifeblood of our planet, yet we are poisoning it with millions of tonnes of plastic every year. Be it a tax on plastic bags or a ban on microbeads in cosmetics, each country [can] do their bit to maintain the integrity of life in the ocean.”

Sources:

[1] Space.com

[2] Sky News

[3] UN News Centre

[4] One Green Planet

National Ocean Service

The Science Explorer

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About Julie Fidler:
	Julie Fidler is a freelance writer, legal blogger, and the author of Adventures in Holy Matrimony: For Better or the Absolute Worst. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband and two ridiculously spoiled cats. She occasionally pontificates on her blog.

Brewery Develops Edible 6-Pack Rings to Save Marine LIfe, Reduce Plastic Waste

Delray Beach, FL – A Florida microbrewery has adopted a novel way to not only reduce plastic waste but also give a little something back to the environment. Saltwater Brewery, located on the Atlantic coast, uses barley and wheat leftover from the brewing process to produce biodegradable six-pack rings that serve as food for wildlife.

Plastic six-pack rings and other forms of plastic waste kill millions of seabirds, marine mammals and sea turtles every year. At the current rate, scientists predict that by 2050 there could be more plastic than fish in the oceans.

Problems like this one, demand creative solutions, and Saltwater Brewery has delivered. Instead of posing a massive threat to marine life, the compostable beer packaging either biodegrades or becomes a safe snack for fish and other sea creatures.

While the process is slightly more costly at this point, wider adoption of the process would bring down costs for the industry. Their produce has the full support of locals who recognize the importance of environmental stewardship.

“The creative solution we bring forward has the potential to influence how we do sustainable packaging with zero waste and no impact on wildlife,” said Marco Vega, co-founder of We Believers, which partnered with Saltwater Brewery to produce the six-pack rings.

The noble founders of Saltwater Brewery, made up of “fisherman, surfers and people that love the sea,” are passionate about preserving marine ecosystems, and also show it by donating to charities – all the while producing great-tasting craft beers. Caution: looking over the “on tap” list at Saltwater’s website may compel you to book a trip to Delray Beach.

“Using only pure and natural ingredients, each style of handcrafted beer and corresponding name is inspired by the ocean to reflect the lifestyle and passion of the Founders. Saltwater’s goal is to maintain the world’s greatest wonder by giving back through ocean based charities (CCA, Surfrider, Ocean Foundation, MOTE) and the Edible Six Pack Rings.”

The peril faced by marine life is hard to fathom for most, as humanity has become disconnected from that which sustains us. Whales dying from bellies full of plastic, turtles and birds choking on debris – it’s all ‘out of sight, out of mind’ for most people.

READ MORE:  WATCH: Brave Cop Refuses to Arrest Teen for Smoking Weed, Lets Him Do Push-ups Instead

Healthy marine ecosystems are essential for the continuation of stable human life. Ecosystem collapse would have real effects on our lives, not to mention the tragedy of extinguishing species that have evolved to wondrous and incredible forms over millions of years.

Dilution is NOT the solution to pollution. The oceans are not inexhaustible and are not endless dumping grounds. Corporations and government obfuscate the real effects of rampant consumerism – such as plastic waste – knowing full well that an informed populace poses a threat to their profits and power.

Saltwater Brewery’s compostable, edible six-pack rings are one of many technologies available to reduce the environmental impact of human activity as the population grows. One day there could be boats that turn plastic waste into diesel fuel. Researchers are exploring how to use wax worm caterpillars to eat plastic waste such as shopping bags.

While scientists work on those things, let’s use our hard-earned money to support companies that work toward a more sustainable future, such as Saltwater Brewery.