3 ms·

> 3R's was a campaign manufactured by the plastics industry A good idea coming from a bad source doesn't stop it from being a good idea though so I'm not sure

> 3R's was a campaign manufactured by the plastics industry A good idea coming from a bad source doesn't stop it from being a good idea though so I'm not sure why people bring this up so much. Individuals and companies both have a responsibility to reduce waste.

harperlee 5y ago
Public attention can only handle so much, so purposefully diverting it towards suboptimal focuses in order to make more money is not good behaviour, and deserves being denounced.
- seanwilson 5y ago
  https://www.npr.org/2020/03/31/822597631/plastic-wars-three-takeaways-from-the-fight-over-the-future-of-plastics https://www.npr.org/2020/03/31/822597631/plastic-wars-three-... > Starting in the late 1980s, the plastics industry spent tens of millions of dollars promoting recycling through ads, recycling projects and public relations, telling people plastic could be and should be recycled. How long have we known about this for now? At what stage does denouncing it become its own form of diversion?
  - harperlee 5y ago
    I’m not sure I follow you. From your link: > Industry Spent Millions Selling Recycling — To Sell More Plastic > For decades, Americans have been sorting their trash believing that most plastic could be recycled. But the truth is, the vast majority of all plastic produced can't be or won't be recycled. So yeah, the companies are keen on having public opinion thinking “consume without fear, we’ll recycle it”, because it has higher margin than being cleaner themselves. Fighting disinformation is not diinformation.
    - seanwilson 5y ago
      > “consume without fear, we’ll recycle it” But who is still loudly saying this disinformation and who is taking it seriously that it's worth bringing up whenever someone mentions that recycling is worthwhile? "Reduce, reuse, recycle" is in priority order too.
Cthulhu_ 5y ago
Oh I do think it was a good idea, and I do think waste disposal overall is pretty good - even if plastic is not disposed separately, it's sorted out in the waste processing plants. The problem at the moment lies not so much in waste collection and end users, but what happens to it afterwards. For example, plastic is considered "recycled" once it's been separated and baled up. But most plastic can't actually be reused. A lot of plastic bales like that are exported - no longer our problem - and becomes invisible. It's often just put in landfills or incinerated after that. Would not be surprised if it's dumped in the ocean directly or via a river either.

harperlee 5y ago

Public attention can only handle so much, so purposefully diverting it towards suboptimal focuses in order to make more money is not good behaviour, and deserves being denounced.

seanwilson 5y ago
https://www.npr.org/2020/03/31/822597631/plastic-wars-three-takeaways-from-the-fight-over-the-future-of-plastics https://www.npr.org/2020/03/31/822597631/plastic-wars-three-... > Starting in the late 1980s, the plastics industry spent tens of millions of dollars promoting recycling through ads, recycling projects and public relations, telling people plastic could be and should be recycled. How long have we known about this for now? At what stage does denouncing it become its own form of diversion?
- harperlee 5y ago
  I’m not sure I follow you. From your link: > Industry Spent Millions Selling Recycling — To Sell More Plastic > For decades, Americans have been sorting their trash believing that most plastic could be recycled. But the truth is, the vast majority of all plastic produced can't be or won't be recycled. So yeah, the companies are keen on having public opinion thinking “consume without fear, we’ll recycle it”, because it has higher margin than being cleaner themselves. Fighting disinformation is not diinformation.
  - seanwilson 5y ago
    > “consume without fear, we’ll recycle it” But who is still loudly saying this disinformation and who is taking it seriously that it's worth bringing up whenever someone mentions that recycling is worthwhile? "Reduce, reuse, recycle" is in priority order too.

Cthulhu_ 5y ago

Oh I do think it was a good idea, and I do think waste disposal overall is pretty good - even if plastic is not disposed separately, it's sorted out in the waste processing plants. The problem at the moment lies not so much in waste collection and end users, but what happens to it afterwards. For example, plastic is considered "recycled" once it's been separated and baled up. But most plastic can't actually be reused. A lot of plastic bales like that are exported - no longer our problem - and becomes invisible. It's often just put in landfills or incinerated after that. Would not be surprised if it's dumped in the ocean directly or via a river either.