TITLE: Reusing plastic water bottles, to-go containers? Scientists say that’s a bad idea.
ttps://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-solutions/2024/12/01/single-use-plastics-reuse-risk/
EXCERPT: Single-use plastics leach chemicals and shed microplastics into your environment. Though studies have not directly compared single-use and reusable plastic, experts say they are more concerned about single-use plastic because of how they’re made.
“I like to compare it to our skin constantly shedding skin cells,” Mason said.
That means a single-use plastic water bottle sheds micro- and nanoplastics into your water when you refill it, and a takeout container or frozen meal tray sheds these particles into your food.
Scientists have shown that plastic water bottles shed hundreds of thousands of plastic particles into the water, many of which are nanoplastics, which measure less than one micrometer, less than one-seventieth the width of a human hair.
There are about 16,000 chemicals found in plastic, Mason said, over 4,200 of which are considered “highly hazardous.”
Because many chemicals are not bound to the plastic, those compounds can migrate into your food or drink. Known carcinogens like styrene have also been found in plastics.
Chemical exposure increases if plastic is heated, typically in a microwave, a dishwasher or even by placing hot food in a takeout container. When heat is applied, molecules move faster, meaning it could be easier for some of these particles to make their way into your food.
The danger of heating your plastic also applies to reusable plastic, like sturdier plastic water bottles, baby bottles and plastic storage containers, according to Judith Enck, president of Beyond Plastics.
Black plastic poses specific dangers, said Liu, who published a study last month on the topic. The research found that black plastic in sushi trays, cooking utensils and other objects contain high levels of flame retardants. These toxic chemicals have been linked to hormone disruption, reproductive complications and elevated cancer risk.
“What we found is that they could be contaminated with flame retardants, likely as a result of electronic waste recycling,” Liu said.
The International Bottled Water Association said that it does not recommend reusing single-use beverage containers because of the “potential health risks due to bacteria growth and contamination.”
The impact of microplastics probably depends on how old you are, Mason said, with her biggest concern being “kids and people of reproductive age” given the link with declines in fertility and the disproportionate presence of microplastics in young children.
The most important thing you should do is avoid subjecting your plastic to heat, experts agreed.
“A pretty hard-and-fast rule is to never microwave plastic,” Enck said. “And there’s also a recommendation not to put plastic into the dishwasher if it’s on a hot cycle.”
If you order takeout, it’s best to transfer the food to a nonplastic dish as soon as possible, and you should use a plate when microwaving your food.
TITLE: Scientists make alarming new discovery about the behavior of microplastics: 'Even the smallest plastic fragments ...'
https://www.thecooldown.com/green-tech/hitchhiking-microplastics-pollution-water-flocs/
EXCERPTS: A recent study by researchers from Queen Mary University of London discovered that microplastics are now attaching themselves to swiftly moving natural particles known as flocs. These particles, which consist of clusters of organic matter and sediment, enable tiny plastic particles to travel quickly across considerable distances before descending to riverbeds or the ocean bottom.
"Our findings show that even the smallest plastic fragments can move over great distances and settle in unexpected places," said lead author Nan Wu, a Ph.D. student at the university, in a news release. "Understanding this process brings us closer to tackling the widespread issue of plastic pollution and tracking where microplastics are likely to accumulate."
While some devices help remove microplastics from the ocean, such as membrane filtration and magnet technologies, these mostly work to clean plastics from the surface of water.
Unfortunately, according to Copernicus Marine Service, roughly 99% of plastic pollution has settled on the ocean floor or floats beneath the surface. It's harder to access these microplastics and more expensive to clean them up.
However, scientists believe that narrowing down the size of microplastics that hitchhike on the flocs could be vital to predicting how they spread and identifying a way to remove them.
It's estimated that around 358 trillion microplastic particles are floating on the ocean's surface, per CleanHub. Furthermore, an Australian study revealed that there could be as much as 14 million metric tons (over 15 million tons) of microplastics lying on the ocean floor, per CNN.
If microplastics are now finding new ways to cross the oceans, that means they could potentially pollute even more ecosystems and put additional marine animals in danger if they mistake them for food. Plastics also release toxic chemicals into waterways and can disrupt natural carbon and nitrogen cycles.
Finally, plastics have been shown to cause a plethora of health issues in humans, from obesity to reproductive disorders. If humans eat seafood contaminated with microplastics, it could worsen these conditions and put others at risk.
Saudi, Oil Producing States Block Hopes for UN Plastics Treaty
https://www.asiafinancial.com/saudi-oil-producing-states-block-hopes-for-un-plastic-treaty
EXCERPTS: A small number of petrochemical-producing nations, such as Saudi Arabia, have strongly opposed efforts to reduce plastic production and have tried to use procedural tactics to delay negotiations.
“There was never any consensus,” Saudi Arabian delegate Abdulrahman Al Gwaiz said. “There are a couple of articles that somehow seem to make it (into the document) despite our continued insistence that they are not within the scope.”
China, the United States, India, South Korea and Saudi Arabia were the top five primary polymer-producing nations in 2023, according to data provider Eunomia.
Had such divisions been overcome, the treaty would have been one of the most significant deals relating to environmental protection since the 2015 Paris Agreement.
Carbon Brief said a global plastics treaty has important implications for climate change, because “the production, use and disposal of plastics is responsible for around 5% of global greenhouse gas emissions and they are typically made from fossil fuels.”
“This is roughly three times more than the emissions produced by aviation,” it said.
“Plastics production is expected to be one of the leading drivers of oil demand growth over the coming years,” it said.
“Measures to reduce plastics use will be a key part of the agenda, as around 90% of emissions from plastics come from production.”
Plastic production is on track to triple by 2050, and microplastics have been found in the air, fresh produce and even human breast milk.
Chemicals found to be of concern in plastics include more than 3,200 according to a 2023 UN Environment Programme report, which said women and children were particularly susceptible to their toxicity.
Despite the postponement, several negotiators expressed urgency to get back into talks.
“Every day of delay is a day against humanity. Postponing negotiations does not postpone the crisis,” Panama’s delegation head Juan Carlos Monterrey Gomez on Sunday, said.
“When we reconvene, the stakes will be higher.”
SEE ALSO:
Plastic pollution: Big Oil "dancing for joy" over Treaty talks collapse
https://oceanographicmagazine.com/news/plastic-pollution-big-oil-dancing-for-joy-over-treaty-talks-collapse/
Curbing plastics pollution could help reduce global burden of breast cancer, analysis suggests
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2024-12-curbing-plastics-pollution-global-burden.html
From Paradise to Plastics Pollution: Bali’s Battle Against Marine Plastics Debris
https://thediplomat.com/2024/12/from-paradise-to-plastics-pollution-balis-battle-against-marine-plastics-debris/