-Ch4s3- t1_j69ot84 wrote
Reply to comment by Partykongen in UV light from the sun slowly breaks down plastics on the ocean’s surfaces: researchers calculate that about two percent of visibly floating plastic may disappear from the ocean surface in this way each year by giuliomagnifico
Mostly if we could go after fishing waste and clean up the major rivers in South East Asia, there wouldn’t be a plastic problem in the Pacific.
Stardust_Staubsauger t1_j69wzvj wrote
Thats only partly true. The US waste water plans pollute huge amounts of microplastics because they don't implement effective filter systems. The Source of the microplastics are cosmetics and personal care products. Complaining about other continents is easy but maybe put your own house in order first .
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0269749116309629
xAfterBirthx t1_j6ablyb wrote
Well the best place to start are the absolute worst offenders…Asia.
https://www.ciwem.org/news/10-countries-biggest-contributors-marine-plastic-pollution
-Ch4s3- t1_j6a3090 wrote
But that’s a minuscule fraction, as far as I’m aware from reading about the topic.
Fairuse t1_j69q68b wrote
Are you willing to pay the price for the clean up? Most of the waste generate is behalf of your consumption.
-Ch4s3- t1_j69qxmn wrote
None of that waste really comes from the US since China stopped buying American recycling. There’s a lot of single use plastics used in SE Asia, and they lack the disposal infrastructure we enjoy in developed economies.
m_bleep_bloop t1_j69tyem wrote
Except that reuse infrastructure is mostly fraudulent, and generally involves exports to…Southeast Asia
That’s US waste that’s causing the problem
-Ch4s3- t1_j6a3hr2 wrote
Those countries don’t really buy US plastic waste anymore.
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