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As oil it was trapped under shale or in sands where it had no effect on the water table and didn't get into the water or food supply. As plastics it is "broken
by pedalpete 6y ago
As oil it was trapped under shale or in sands where it had no effect on the water table and didn't get into the water or food supply.
As plastics it is "broken down" into microplastics, and gets into things and areas it was never intended to be. It is then consumed and builds up in the systems of animals, and even eventually by us.
Even your local landfill, is part of a management system, but will it really last 3,000 years?
We can't just keep adding and adding to it, we can't cover the planet in landfills of plastic, we aren't putting the "oils" back to where they came from.
In Canada, I remember being taught "give a hoot, don't pollute", and to us, as kids, that meant "don't create trash" as much as "clean up your trash".
- Dylan16807 6y agoCan microplastics escape landfills, or is that an issue for trash that didn't get into a landfill? > We can't just keep adding and adding to it, we can't cover the planet in landfills of plastic, we aren't putting the "oils" back to where they came from. Why does it matter if it's the same spot? More importantly there's only so much oil and putting it all in landfills would not cover the planet.
- refurb 6y agoMicroplastics mostly come from fabric like nylon. Small fibers that can be easily broken off. Your crushed 4L milk jug in a landfill isn't much of a source of microplastics, nor is it much of a threat to the water table (I mean, we use that same plastic for food).
- yazaddaruvala 6y agoThis doesn’t sound right. Do you have a source for this?
- LargoLasskhyfv 6y agoBy crushing it you weakened the structure, creating fissures where exactly that happens, and then over time eats into the rest.
- lorenzorhoades 6y agoi've heard this before. It was in regards to people washing their clothes.
- nitwit005 6y ago> As oil it was trapped under shale or in sands where it had no effect on the water table and didn't get into the water or food supply. In many places we knew oil was there because it was leaking out. Some of the deposits were exposed to the surface. We have ancient records of people making use of it to make adhesive or caulk boats. Those have just tended to have gotten used up by now.
- BlueTemplar 6y agoThose were probably a tiny fraction of all oil... not to mention are likely to have very different chemical properties compared to plastic ?