6 ms·

> ... by 2015, humans had produced 6.3 billion metric tons of plastic waste That's about 0.86 metric tons (or 859 kg or 1895 lbs) per person. Crazy.

njarboe 9y ago
Or a cube of solid plastic about 1.5 miles on a side. It would be cool if some country took the West's plastic and recycled it by creating a series of kilometer sized geometric objects in a desert somewhere.
- Freestyler_3 9y ago
  > took the West's plastic Does it have to be the west's? Why do so many people blame the west solely, because other countries can't help it, or because other countries export to the west, or because the west exports an amount of trash to other countries? Not even a Billion people in the west, those other 6 had nothing to do with it? It seems like many here are making excuses why only the west is at fault. While most trash going in the ocean happens not in the west.
  - bllguo 9y ago
    1. western countries developed faster and started all this mad consumption and environmental abuse. Everyone else is copying us 2. the west is in the best position to start addressing this. Better educated, more prosperous, etc. 3. Much of the waste produced in other countries is for making things to ship to the western world We should not be playing the victim.
    - Freestyler_3 9y ago
      It is not about who is victim. It is about who is doing it NOW, and what can be done about it. Some plastic program in the west has 0% impact on the polution on global scale. That doesn't mean that the west shouldn't be active in addressing the problem, but it means focussing on where the problem is and actually doing somethig about it. You can blame the west all you want, but please don't think that other countries only produce for the west. There is a much bigger market.
      - pbhjpbhj 9y ago
        How can a program anywhere that results in decreased resource usage have no impact? Can you explain further.
        Freestyler_3 9y ago
        Statistically near 0%, it has impact but not much at all. Where in other countries there can be bigger gains with less effort.
  - njarboe 9y ago
    I used that phrase because of a recent policy change by China where they will no longer be the place where the West "recycles" its plastic garbage. The plastic that people in the West clean diligently and sort into the recycle bin, in a kind of ritual of forgiveness for consumption, must now find another final resting place. I just did not believe other countries feel the need for the ritual of recycling yet. If they just get plastic into a landfill after use, that is all that is really necessary for the environment. It would be almost impossible to calculate, but I would guess 98% of plastic reuse is an environmental net negative. Reduce and reuse. Then bury it. Maybe burning it for electricity generation would help if it would offset coal burning power plants.
    - njarboe 9y ago
      Edit: 98% of plastic recycling
- delecti 9y ago
  That sounds pretty similar to the Wall-* robots from Wall-E.
chillacy 9y ago
Sometimes as I take out my trash I consider how much of the landfill I personally contribute to. I mentally picture the bag containing plastics (especially packaging from shipping) joining all my other bags, and it's a terrifying amount.
reaperducer 9y ago
I don't see that line in TFA. From when until 2015? You can't divide 6.3 billion tons by the number of people on earth in 2015. You have to count all the people who ever lived and died between whatever the start date was until 2015. Without knowing the start date, I can't believe your figure.
- christophilus 9y ago
  It was in the video in the middle of the article. And yes, you'd have to count everyone who lived in the 20th century, too. Still, that's a staggeringly large amount of plastic per person.

njarboe 9y ago

Or a cube of solid plastic about 1.5 miles on a side. It would be cool if some country took the West's plastic and recycled it by creating a series of kilometer sized geometric objects in a desert somewhere.

Freestyler_3 9y ago
> took the West's plastic Does it have to be the west's? Why do so many people blame the west solely, because other countries can't help it, or because other countries export to the west, or because the west exports an amount of trash to other countries? Not even a Billion people in the west, those other 6 had nothing to do with it? It seems like many here are making excuses why only the west is at fault. While most trash going in the ocean happens not in the west.
- bllguo 9y ago
  1. western countries developed faster and started all this mad consumption and environmental abuse. Everyone else is copying us 2. the west is in the best position to start addressing this. Better educated, more prosperous, etc. 3. Much of the waste produced in other countries is for making things to ship to the western world We should not be playing the victim.
  - Freestyler_3 9y ago
    It is not about who is victim. It is about who is doing it NOW, and what can be done about it. Some plastic program in the west has 0% impact on the polution on global scale. That doesn't mean that the west shouldn't be active in addressing the problem, but it means focussing on where the problem is and actually doing somethig about it. You can blame the west all you want, but please don't think that other countries only produce for the west. There is a much bigger market.
    - pbhjpbhj 9y ago
      How can a program anywhere that results in decreased resource usage have no impact? Can you explain further.
      - Freestyler_3 9y ago
        Statistically near 0%, it has impact but not much at all. Where in other countries there can be bigger gains with less effort.
- njarboe 9y ago
  I used that phrase because of a recent policy change by China where they will no longer be the place where the West "recycles" its plastic garbage. The plastic that people in the West clean diligently and sort into the recycle bin, in a kind of ritual of forgiveness for consumption, must now find another final resting place. I just did not believe other countries feel the need for the ritual of recycling yet. If they just get plastic into a landfill after use, that is all that is really necessary for the environment. It would be almost impossible to calculate, but I would guess 98% of plastic reuse is an environmental net negative. Reduce and reuse. Then bury it. Maybe burning it for electricity generation would help if it would offset coal burning power plants.
  - njarboe 9y ago
    Edit: 98% of plastic recycling
delecti 9y ago
That sounds pretty similar to the Wall-* robots from Wall-E.

chillacy 9y ago

Sometimes as I take out my trash I consider how much of the landfill I personally contribute to. I mentally picture the bag containing plastics (especially packaging from shipping) joining all my other bags, and it's a terrifying amount.

reaperducer 9y ago

I don't see that line in TFA. From when until 2015? You can't divide 6.3 billion tons by the number of people on earth in 2015. You have to count all the people who ever lived and died between whatever the start date was until 2015. Without knowing the start date, I can't believe your figure.

christophilus 9y ago
It was in the video in the middle of the article. And yes, you'd have to count everyone who lived in the 20th century, too. Still, that's a staggeringly large amount of plastic per person.