Are waste bans an efficient strategy to help people reduce plastic waste?
What is Plastic and why was it created?
Plastic is a synthetic polymer that was created to use as a substitute material for natural polymers. Natural polymers, polymers found in nature include rhino horns, elephant tusks, tortoise shells, and etc. Before plastic was invented natural polymers were used for everyday objects that are now made with plastic. The problem with natural polymers is that because they are found naturally, they vary in size and shape, making it impossible to mass produce objects. But with the invention of plastic goods could be mass produced and it also served as an eco-friendly alternative to killing animals to gain their tusks, horns or shells.
Why Is Plastic Dangerous and Problematic?
Plastic is a transporter of pathogens and toxic additives, and when it ends up in the environment it can have detrimental consequences. Many plastics contain BPA (Bisphenol A) which can leach toxic chemicals that are dangerous to both animals and humans. BPA is found commonly in food containers and beverage bottles. When plastic is littered, or improperly disposed of and ends up in the environment, animals (marine and land) can consume it mistaking it for food. These animals are basically consuming toxic chemicals that can disrupt endocrine glands and can lead to birth defects in their offsprings. There is also an increased chance of developing cancer. Plastic permits for an extremely long time in the environment and as a result hydrophobic organisms can thrive on floating plastic. It is essentially transporting bacteria. Vibrio is just one of many species living on plastic, and can cause cholera.
Motivation on Plastic Bans and how Plastic ends up in the Environment?
Plastic finds its way into the environment through littering, improper disposal and through our sewage. Plastic is a very versatile material, it can be both stretchy and hard. As a result many objects in our society are made of plastic, so of these things we would never have guessed contain plastic. One example of this includes our clothes, if you buy your clothes at the mall there is an extremely high chance the material is synthetic; meaning it contains plastic. When we wash our clothes in the washing machine the tiny, microscopic plastics in our clothes become stripped and are flushed out into the sewage system and ultimately end up in lakes, rivers and oceans. Animals inhabiting these ecosystems are at high
risk. Plastic can also find its way into the environment with improper disposal of single used plastic, cups, forks, bags, straws etc.
Motivation for Plastic Bans and Problems with these bans.
The support for plastic bans began in 2015 after people viewed a video of a sea turtle with a straw stuck in its nose. This caused a widespread movement to ban single use plastics, bags and straws specifically. Many restaurants in Milwaukee only began giving plastic straws if the customer directly asked for them. People were also using reusable tote bags. While these efforts have good goals, the problem with them is that the goal is hard to measure. Marine life that is endangered by plastic exists far away from us. So how are we to measure the success of this goal? Many people began feeling frustrated as Wisconsin’s primary problem with plastic pollution is due to micro plastics found in synthetic clothing and other materials rather than single use plastics. The Great Lakes have approximately 112,00 particles of micro plastics per square mile. The goal didn’t appear to be solving the local problem. Another issue is that many people started advocating the use of bio plastics, plastic made from plant life. Bio plastics, while great in theory, have drawbacks, one of them being that they require a massive amount of land to grow the plants that make the plastic. The other is that our recycling system isn’t able to recycle and dispose of bioplastics properly. Because of this many bioplastics end up in landfills, and when they decompose they release methane, a greenhouse gas that worsens climate change.
Stakeholders
One major stakeholder in the bans on plastic is the Government. The bans on plastic are very problematic in the hands of the Government. While some communities tried, the Government opposed it. In Wisconsin, in 2016, the capital passed a famously known as the "bans of bans," which implements that cities, villages, towns, or counties cannot ban single-use plastics unless the ban is State wise. Wisconsin passed this law because of the significant association with "The Wisconsin Grocers Association," which was the biggest supporter of bans' bans. Why were they so supportive of this law? The association claims that Paper bags are more troublesome than reliable plastic bags, which is troublesome since paper bags are more costly for the store. Also stating that paper bags do not serve as many people as plastic bags (7:1). Although Milwaukee county tried many reforms to ban plastic straws and bags, they were unsuccessful. The failed attempts are not due to their lack of dedication but rather to the statewide bans that prevent the attempts to keep the lakes and communities cleaner and less dependent on single-use plastic.
Sources
Oosthoek, Sharon. “Chemical Impact: Microplastic Pollution More Complex than We Think, Says New Research.” Great Lakes Now, https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/05/chemical-impact-microplastic-pollution/. Accessed 4 Apr. 2022.
“Plastic Pollutants & Chemicals: How Toxic Is It?” Plastic Soup Foundation, https://www.plasticsoupfoundation.org/en/plastic-problem/what-is-plastic/plastic-p ollutants/. Accessed 4 Apr. 2022.
Plastic is a synthetic polymer that was created to use as a substitute material for natural polymers. Natural polymers, polymers found in nature include rhino horns, elephant tusks, tortoise shells, and etc. Before plastic was invented natural polymers were used for everyday objects that are now made with plastic. The problem with natural polymers is that because they are found naturally, they vary in size and shape, making it impossible to mass produce objects. But with the invention of plastic goods could be mass produced and it also served as an eco-friendly alternative to killing animals to gain their tusks, horns or shells.
Why Is Plastic Dangerous and Problematic?
Plastic is a transporter of pathogens and toxic additives, and when it ends up in the environment it can have detrimental consequences. Many plastics contain BPA (Bisphenol A) which can leach toxic chemicals that are dangerous to both animals and humans. BPA is found commonly in food containers and beverage bottles. When plastic is littered, or improperly disposed of and ends up in the environment, animals (marine and land) can consume it mistaking it for food. These animals are basically consuming toxic chemicals that can disrupt endocrine glands and can lead to birth defects in their offsprings. There is also an increased chance of developing cancer. Plastic permits for an extremely long time in the environment and as a result hydrophobic organisms can thrive on floating plastic. It is essentially transporting bacteria. Vibrio is just one of many species living on plastic, and can cause cholera.
Motivation on Plastic Bans and how Plastic ends up in the Environment?
Plastic finds its way into the environment through littering, improper disposal and through our sewage. Plastic is a very versatile material, it can be both stretchy and hard. As a result many objects in our society are made of plastic, so of these things we would never have guessed contain plastic. One example of this includes our clothes, if you buy your clothes at the mall there is an extremely high chance the material is synthetic; meaning it contains plastic. When we wash our clothes in the washing machine the tiny, microscopic plastics in our clothes become stripped and are flushed out into the sewage system and ultimately end up in lakes, rivers and oceans. Animals inhabiting these ecosystems are at high
risk. Plastic can also find its way into the environment with improper disposal of single used plastic, cups, forks, bags, straws etc.
Motivation for Plastic Bans and Problems with these bans.
The support for plastic bans began in 2015 after people viewed a video of a sea turtle with a straw stuck in its nose. This caused a widespread movement to ban single use plastics, bags and straws specifically. Many restaurants in Milwaukee only began giving plastic straws if the customer directly asked for them. People were also using reusable tote bags. While these efforts have good goals, the problem with them is that the goal is hard to measure. Marine life that is endangered by plastic exists far away from us. So how are we to measure the success of this goal? Many people began feeling frustrated as Wisconsin’s primary problem with plastic pollution is due to micro plastics found in synthetic clothing and other materials rather than single use plastics. The Great Lakes have approximately 112,00 particles of micro plastics per square mile. The goal didn’t appear to be solving the local problem. Another issue is that many people started advocating the use of bio plastics, plastic made from plant life. Bio plastics, while great in theory, have drawbacks, one of them being that they require a massive amount of land to grow the plants that make the plastic. The other is that our recycling system isn’t able to recycle and dispose of bioplastics properly. Because of this many bioplastics end up in landfills, and when they decompose they release methane, a greenhouse gas that worsens climate change.
Stakeholders
One major stakeholder in the bans on plastic is the Government. The bans on plastic are very problematic in the hands of the Government. While some communities tried, the Government opposed it. In Wisconsin, in 2016, the capital passed a famously known as the "bans of bans," which implements that cities, villages, towns, or counties cannot ban single-use plastics unless the ban is State wise. Wisconsin passed this law because of the significant association with "The Wisconsin Grocers Association," which was the biggest supporter of bans' bans. Why were they so supportive of this law? The association claims that Paper bags are more troublesome than reliable plastic bags, which is troublesome since paper bags are more costly for the store. Also stating that paper bags do not serve as many people as plastic bags (7:1). Although Milwaukee county tried many reforms to ban plastic straws and bags, they were unsuccessful. The failed attempts are not due to their lack of dedication but rather to the statewide bans that prevent the attempts to keep the lakes and communities cleaner and less dependent on single-use plastic.
Sources
Oosthoek, Sharon. “Chemical Impact: Microplastic Pollution More Complex than We Think, Says New Research.” Great Lakes Now, https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/05/chemical-impact-microplastic-pollution/. Accessed 4 Apr. 2022.
“Plastic Pollutants & Chemicals: How Toxic Is It?” Plastic Soup Foundation, https://www.plasticsoupfoundation.org/en/plastic-problem/what-is-plastic/plastic-p ollutants/. Accessed 4 Apr. 2022.