Is Plastic Trashing Our Planet?

    You use a lot of plastic. 

    You don’t think so? Try to go an hour without it. 

    You’ll have to stay home. Most cars are made with some plastic. And don’t text your friends. Your phone has plastic in it. Don’t buy stuff online. It might be packed in plastic. Don’t brush your hair. Don’t use your computer. And don’t get hungry. Many food items come in plastic.

    You get the idea. Plastic is everywhere. It’s lightweight and cheap. It’s also durable. And that’s the problem.

    In the past 70 years, we’ve made a lot of plastic. We’ve made 9.2 billion tons of it! Plastic can take hundreds of years to break down. So most of it is still around. It collects in garbage dumps. It clutters beaches. It drifts in the ocean. 

    Plastic pollution is now a big environmental problem. But we’re trying to solve it.

    You are hooked on plastic. 

    You disagree? Try getting through an hour without it. 

    To begin with, you’ll probably need to stay home. Most cars are at least 10 percent plastic. There’s also plastic in your phone, so stop texting your friends. Don’t buy anything online, because it’ll probably arrive packed in plastic. And don’t brush your hair or use your computer. Are you hungry? Forget about it. Most of the food in your refrigerator is in plastic containers.

    You get the idea. Plastic is everywhere. It’s lightweight, cheap to make, and extremely durable—and that last one is the problem.

    In the past 70 years, humans have produced 9.2 billion tons of plastic. Since plastic can take hundreds of years to decompose, most of it is still around. It collects in garbage dumps, clutters beaches, and drifts in the ocean. 

    Plastic pollution has created an environmental crisis—and we’re just starting to figure out how to solve it.

    Plastic hasn’t always been a problem. The first human-made plastic was invented more than 100 years ago. By the 1950s, people thought it would change the way we live. One magazine article said we were entering the “Plastic Age.” 

    The Plastic Age was supposed to be a new world of “color and bright shining surfaces.” Babies would drink out of unbreakable plastic bottles. Adults would use plastic tennis rackets and fishing rods. Dishes wouldn’t need to be cleaned. Families could eat on plastic plates and then just throw them away!

    In some ways, plastic has done its job well. It’s easier to work with than wood, metal, or glass. And it has made hundreds of products cheaper. It has also made cars and planes lighter, which allows us to burn less fuel. It has even helped save lives. Car airbags, bike helmets, and many medical machines are made out of plastic.

    Plastic hasn’t always been a problem. The first human-made plastic was invented more than 100 years ago. By the 1950s, people thought it would change everything. One magazine said we were in the “Plastic Age.” 

    The Plastic Age would be full of “color and bright shining surfaces.” Baby bottles would not break. Adults would use plastic tennis rackets. People could eat from plastic plates. Then they could throw them away!

    In some ways, plastic has made life better. Making things out of wood, metal, or glass can be hard to do. Making things from plastic is easier. Making things from plastic is cheaper too. Plastic has also made cars and planes lighter. So we burn less fuel. Plastic has even helped save lives. Car airbags and bike helmets are made out of plastic. So are many medical machines.

    Plastic hasn’t always been a problem. The first human-made plastic was invented more than 100 years ago. By the 1950s, people thought it would revolutionize the way we live. One magazine article declared that we were entering the “Plastic Age.” 

    The Plastic Age was supposed to be a wonderful new world of “color and bright shining surfaces.” Babies would drink out of unbreakable plastic bottles, and adults would use plastic tennis rackets and fishing rods. Dishes wouldn’t need to be cleaned—families could eat from plastic plates and then just throw them away!

    In some ways, plastic has been a huge success. It’s easier to manufacture items from plastic than from wood, metal, or glass. And it has made hundreds of products cheaper. In addition, cars and planes are lighter because of plastic, which allows us to burn less fuel. Plastic products like car airbags, bike helmets, and many medical machines have even saved lives.

    Cars and helmets are made to last. But many plastic products are not. Think about cups and straws. These are single-use plastics. So are sandwich bags, grocery bags, soda bottles, and yogurt cups. They are made to be used once and thrown away. 

    Where does disposable plastic go? Only about one-fifth of it is recycled. Most of it goes to garbage dumps. The rest becomes pollution. It litters the ground. It floats in rivers. Or it gets into the sea. At least 5 million tons of plastic ends up in the ocean each year.

    Plastic in the sea kills millions of animals a year. Fish get tangled in bags. Seabirds and sea turtles do too. Plastic rings from six-packs of soda can be deadly. They can strangle creatures. Even plastic straws do harm. A sea turtle was found with a straw stuck in its nose. 

    Many sea creatures eat the plastic. Small pieces fill their stomachs. They get sick. They lose the desire to eat real food. Last year, a whale died near Thailand. That’s a country in Southeast Asia. Researchers found 80 plastic bags in the whale’s stomach.

    Products like cars and helmets are made to last, but many plastic products aren’t. Single-use plastics like cups, straws, sandwich bags, grocery bags, soda bottles, and yogurt cups are made to be used once and then thrown away. 

    Where does all that disposable plastic end up? About 20 percent of it gets recycled, most of it goes to garbage dumps, and the rest litters the ground, floats in rivers, or finds its way to the sea. At least 5 million tons of plastic ends up in the world’s oceans each year. 

    All that floating plastic is killing millions of animals every year. Fish, seabirds, and sea turtles get tangled in bags and strangled by plastic rings from six-packs of soda. One sea turtle was found with a plastic straw stuck in its nose. 

    Many sea creatures eat the plastic until the small pieces fill their stomachs. Then they get sick or lose the desire to eat real food. Last year, researchers found 80 plastic bags in the stomach of a pilot whale that died near Thailand, a country in Southeast Asia.

    How do we keep plastic out of the sea? We need to make sure trash ends up in the right places. Many poorer countries don’t have enough garbage trucks. They also don’t have enough recycling factories. Some companies are investing money to help those countries. They help them get rid of their trash safely.

    We can also make less plastic. That means using less single-use plastic. Some cities have banned plastic grocery bags. Some restaurants no longer use plastic straws. And Europe has passed a law banning some plastics.

    You can help too. You can’t give up all plastic. But you can use less. Don’t buy drinks in plastic bottles. Take reusable bags to the store. That way, you don’t need plastic ones. Do you like to drink from a straw? Think of that sea turtle. Sip from a glass instead.

    How do we keep plastic from polluting Earth’s oceans? Making sure that plastic trash ends up in the right places is one way. However, many poorer countries don’t have enough garbage trucks or recycling factories. So some companies are investing money to help those countries dispose of their garbage safely.

    Making less plastic trash is the other way. To do that, we’ll have to cut back on single-use plastic. Already, cities like Seattle and Washington, D.C., have banned plastic grocery bags, and restaurants like Red Lobster are getting rid of plastic straws. Europe has even passed a law that may eventually ban most single-use plastic.

    In the meantime, you can make a difference too. You can’t completely go without plastic, but you can buy fewer—or no—drinks that come in plastic bottles. You can also take reusable shopping bags to the store so that you don’t need plastic ones. And the next time it sounds fun to slurp soda from a straw, think about that poor sea turtle and sip from the glass instead.