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I think the main problem is that the average Joe/Jane confuses all types of pollution as equally bad. The real, most imminent threat is really CO2. That's what
by snek_case 4y ago
I think the main problem is that the average Joe/Jane confuses all types of pollution as equally bad. The real, most imminent threat is really CO2. That's what we have to spend the most money/energy on, because it could have absolutely catastrophic consequences in the next few decades.
Plastic in a landfill is just... Stuck there. It's unnatural, sure, but it's not immensely harmful, not nearly on the same scale as CO2, and realistically, in the future, we'll be able to mine it out of there and refine it into something usable if we need it.
- therealdrag0 4y agoGarbage is also a problem in the environment like plastics in oceans, but the problem is not enough (well run and used) land fills (in Asia) not too many!
- RajT88 4y ago50% of the plastic problem in the ocean is discarded fishing nets (generally accepted to be discarded from Asian fishing vessels).
- justapassenger 4y agoSource?
- azertykeys 4y agolooks more like 10% [0]. but it depends on where in the ocean you're talking about - they float more easily than a lot of plastic, and so are caught the pacific gyre. [0] https://www.greenpeace.org/aotearoa/publication/ghost-gear-the-abandoned-fishing-nets-haunting-our-oceans/ https://www.greenpeace.org/aotearoa/publication/ghost-gear-t...
- doomrobo 4y agoA more accurate claim: 46% of the mass of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is fishing nets. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-22939-w https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-22939-w
- justapassenger 4y agoPlastic pollution of oceans is much much bigger problem than just pacific garbage patch.
- zackees 4y ago
- paulryanrogers 4y agoNuclear fuel must first be mined, correct? That's not renewable and could offset the benefits somewhat. That said I imagine it may be better as a base load than dirty coal.
- shepherdjerred 4y agoWe’re not running out of fissionable material any time soon
- paulryanrogers 4y agoWhat are the limiting inputs? Because I imagine there is a lot to do to go from the ground to the reactor and back again?
- junofan 4y agoBreeder reactors produce more fuel than they consume.
- paulryanrogers 4y agoWouldn't that violate the second law of thermodynamics?
- cortesoft 4y agoIt isn’t creating more energy, it is just converting non-fissile material to fissile material https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breeder_reactor https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Breeder_reactor
- ncmncm 4y agoBut we don't build breeder reactors. For reasons.
- hajile 4y agoThe real threat is the nearly 1 trillion tons of toxic waste we're racking up PER YEAR. It's the most lethal stuff this planet has ever encountered. If the CO2 levels spike, life on the planet (including many or maybe even most humans) will survive. If you look at historic levels, they were hundreds of times higher and the planet was the greenest it has ever been. If/when that toxic waste leaks out and starts killing, NOTHING will survive.
- catalyst5a 4y agoI haven’t heard this before. What kinds of toxic waste are you talking about?
- varajelle 4y agoRadioactive, dangerous chemical, ... And the thing is that these are actually harming the people who are near the area where they are disposed, so the harm is more direct. CO2 is more like a global problem, so not as worrisome for the local population.
- ipaddr 4y agoThe area around Chernobyl is very green and many animals live there. Things survive..
- Melting_Harps 4y ago> The area around Chernobyl is very green and many animals live there. Things survive.. Only if you're talking about Putin's Little Green Men, in which case most were last seen heading to their deathbed in Belarus after having exposed themselves to deadly levels radiation after occupying the area and trenching it, to the total dismay of local Ukrainians and Plant workers! Life does indeed find a way, but not in the way most think. > In a way radioactivity is one of the easiest contaminants to deal... What an absurd statement, if that were the case you'd go live and work in Fukushima and take advantage of all the open area and low cost real estate, and all the plentiful food that comes from that region. Radiation to this day still hasn't been cleaned up in Chernobyl, which happened almost 40 years ago, and an Evacuation Zone is still in place. And by the way their is an ongoing fire in the area as we speak that is cause for concern [0]. 0: https://www.republicworld.com/world-news/russia-ukraine-crisis/ukraine-reports-massive-fire-near-chernobyl-npps-exclusion-zone-articleshow.html https://www.republicworld.com/world-news/russia-ukraine-cris...
- fomine3 4y ago"decarbonization" is a bad term. CO2 is the problem.
- gibolt 4y agoDon't forget methane! It is 80x more potent (eventually degrading to CO2 in the atmosphere) We leak it all over the place, with no plans to plug the holes. Instead we keep adding new piping all over.
- Auracle 4y agoSperm counts have been dropping for a long time (50%-60% over the past 50 years) without stopping, and plasticizers are the suspected culprit. It's incredible how many people need to do IVF now. I would argue that might be the most imminent threat but nobody seems to care.
- TameAntelope 4y agoPeople should have fewer kids anyway, I see this as an absolute win.
- bongoman37 4y ago
- Auracle 4y agoSpeaking as someone that had to go through IVF, that's a bit like celebrating cancer for reducing the population. Infertility is devastating for you and your relationship when you want to have children.
- choeger 4y agoDon't expect empathy from someone who has found the Rightful Cause(TM). You have my sympathies for going through a this procedure even though I never had to do that.
- TameAntelope 4y agoInfertility would be "none", and I didn't say that, I said "fewer". But I'm sorry you've put such an important emphasis on having kids in your relationship. The fact that you live in a society where that's reasonable is immensely sad, to me. You should feel whole without children, and the fact that you don't is the real tragedy, IMO.
- fredrikholm 4y agoAre you always this misanthropic and belittling?