Plastic and Our Environment
By, Jujhar Singh Grade VIII
Points to be Discussed▪ What is a Plastic▪ Types of Plastic▪ Dangers by Plastic Packaging▪ Plastic Bags▪ Facts And Figures▪ Thank You
What is Plastic
a synthetic material made from a wide range of organic polymers such as polyethylene, PVC, nylon, etc., that can be moulded into shape while soft, and then set into a rigid or slightly elastic form.
Types of PlasticsPLASTIC
Thermosetting Plastics
Thermo Plastics
PVCPolytheneNylonBakelite Melamine Resin
Dangers by Plastic Packaging
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The most obvious form of pollution associated with plastic packaging is wasted plastic sent to landfills. Plastics are very stable and therefore stay in the environment a long time after they are discarded, especially if they are shielded from direct sunlight by being buried in landfills. Decomposition rates are further decreased by anti-oxidants that manufacturers commonly add to enhance a container’s resistance to attack by acidic contents.
Plastic Bags▪ Each year, about 500 billion to 1 trillion plastic
bags are used worldwide.▪ Because it costs more to recycle than produce
one bag, only 1% of the bags are recycled.▪ It costs $4000 to process and recycle 1 ton of
plastic bags, which are then sold for $32” ▪ A study in 1975, showed oceangoing vessels
together dumped 8 million pounds of plastic annually. The real reason that the world's landfills weren't overflowing with plastic was because most of it ended up in an ocean
▪ If just 1 out of 5 people in our country use cloth bags we can save 1,330,560,000,000 bags over our life time.
Facts and Figures▪ It takes hundreds of years for plastic bags to decompose
and while they do, they release toxins into our soil, lakes, rivers and oceans.
▪ the production of plastic bags requires millions of gallons of petroleum and banning the production would significantly reduce carbon dioxide emissions. reducing plastic bag production in Britain by a quarter would reduce CO2 emissions by 63 tons a year.
▪ In 2006, the United Nations found that each square mile of the ocean has 46,000 pieces of plastic in it.
▪ Plastic bags which pollute our oceans have a bad habit of killing sea turtles in particular.
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