Inside the Lab That Could Solve the World's Plastics Problem (Unsolvable: Episode 1)

[@gregdubya1993]

How about no sales tax on goods made from biodegradable materials?

[@gregdubya1993]

I should say made from or packaged in.

[@gregdubya1993]

@@goodcat1982 (speaking for the USA] there are states without sales tax right now. It's not that big of a deal.

[@jeffreyquinn3820]

Not a bad idea. Subsidies are a lot simpler for governments to manage than microtargeted tax breaks, which is why we see them a lot on newer technology, but subsidies keep running afoul of international trade agreements once the technology starts making money. Something like a lower deposit for a greener container with the same refund either way might be workable. It wouldn't need complicated reworking of cash register systems, and would have the same price result to the consumer as a reduced sales tax.

[@davido.2908]

@@gregdubya1993 Correct. Iowa does not tax grocery store foods except the prepared 'grab & go' items, candies, soda & alcoholic beverages.

[@Sinista123]

Lowering taxes? That's not the way to go. You Americans should learn from countries that have a working country-wide recycling system already.

[@jeffreyevans3160]

i worked at a building supply store in the 80's . we had quality brass products RIGHT NEXT to cheap flimsy plastic items . i watched DAILY as people choose something that would likely break in a year and drive fuel prices higher ...as opposed to buying something that would last a lifetime . we are so dumb . now whales die with 40 pounds of plastic stuck in their bellies . seagulls starve to death with bellies full of plastic . we have as much plastic in the ocean as there are fish . we are failing as stewards of the planet .

[@BubblewrapHighway]

That's why it's so inspiring to see so many people who care enough to devote their lives to it. I want to devote my life to studying the endless ecological benefits of fungus, growing mushrooms and helping spread the food and wisdom.

[@williamnordeste9653]

Don't worry about this problem...Your Creator is coming very soon and will set it on fire.

[@nasirb3914]

@@williamnordeste9653 That's the problem with you selfish, religious nuts. You're just like the Egyptians, you care more about your afterlife than this life. You're a huge part of the problem, a dung beetle has more purpose in this world than you do.

[@paddywhack9261]

@@nasirb3914 Revision 3,126 on when the wrath will end all life. They got nuthin' never did, never will. I default and defer to Christopher Hitchens on this topic. I follow the precepts of "Mathew:25" and of The Golden Rule, sans the hocus-pocus, ceremonies, vestments, worship houses, tithing, hidden and open scandals and near-infinite hairsplitting versions extant of just who and what their creator is. Think: Michelle Bachmann's eyes.

[@highstreetkillers4377]

Ganges and Citarum Rivers in India. Look it up. Easy to see why the ocean is full of garbage

[@hankdyck8963]

There are alot of alternatives to bad plastics. It's the greed that keeps it going.

[@kathyyoung1774]

Hank Dyck And laziness. I know a family of 7 who eat out at least once a day, plastic cups and all, and recycle nothing. When I gently asked about why no recycling bin, they said they are TOO BUSY. There are many people like that. They don’t teach their kids that we all need to be concerned about others, including future offspring. Everything to them is about their convenience right now. We all know people like that.

[@cathalsurfs]

Yes and plastics (oil industry etc) is so heavily subsidised in every "monetary" way possible, that the cost is so low it acts as a feedback loop, for greed.

[@billybob1374]

Thank you captain obvious

[@masterpalladin]

hemp

[@masterpalladin]

hemp

[@jzk2020]

More short documentaries like this one please!

[@ryanfried3530]

I agree, im tired of the short 2 minute videos

[@kathyyoung1774]

I’d rather pay for research than documentaries. People already know we have a problem.

[@byronjones3579]

That what Bloomberg do

[@ilovecops5499]

Diet Coke?

[@Cranky0ldMan]

There is a company in Chicago that corn based packaging materials that is made from corn stalks and stuff. I think its Nationwide Packaging Inc. You should do a story on them. Save the Planet for our kids!!

[@jackgray4491]

@@halcyonoutlander2105 you mean 'planet eaters'

[@throttlebuff]

Hemp

[@qwedsaasdewq4100]

@1000 Subscribers With No Videos What's so important about your generation that it absolutely has to go on?

[@highstreetkillers4377]

That's worse. We need less farmland, not more. Problem is individuals that litter. Look up Ganges and Citarum Rivers in India. Easy to see who's the worst litter bug

[@highstreetkillers4377]

Halcyon Outlander Latex condoms not properly disposed of is a problem too. In Japan they recycle condoms. Proof plastic is the future if recycled

[@scottlavoie5405]

People like this help to restore my faith in humanity! I am into recycling hardcore, I even make sure my plastic is clean before I sort it into bins.

[@MusicLover-ti6zo]

Can we move back to when used mostly glass that is recyclable.

[@wyliehj]

Yo for real. It might inspire people to be less clumsy these days too lol

[@Barskor1]

@ You just WASH the bottles and if they are broken then you can send them to be melted into new bottles or whatever.

[@trickmiller8169]

Aluminum is much easier and better to recycle.

[@Barskor1]

@@trickmiller8169 Aluminum is reactive and currently they coat it with plastics to prevent that but yeah for many products it can be viable.

[@trickmiller8169]

@@Barskor1 it's cheaper and more efficient than recycling glass and you yield more from recycling it. It can be recycled endlessly. Reusing, rather than recycling, glass would be easier, but companies probably wouldn't go for it, due to how cheap the alternatives are compared to it.

[@ninehundreddollarluxuryyac5958]

The fastest way to make bio-plastic cost competitive is to tax the alternatives. You could even use some of the petro-plastics tax to subsidize bio-plastic. The subsidies could be given to domestic manufacturers to offset some of the costs of new tooling to use the new materials, giving them an advantage over foreign manufacturers. Because so much of our plastic products are imported, the petro-plastics tax has to apply to imported plastic products as well. If domestic manufacturers start using the bio-plastic first, they get a boost from the "plastic tariff", and the tax winds up encouraging foreign manufacturers to switch to the bio-plastic as well so they can avoid the tax even if we're not giving them any subsidies. If the tax makes bio-plastics cost competitive now, it will become even more advantageous as manufacturing adopts the new materials and costs come down, so eventually the tax won't be needed anymore.

[@petergambier]

That's for sure, also electrical companies get lots more subsidies than sustainable electrics do.

[@highstreetkillers4377]

No more TAX.

[@davidrosa3182]

Freakin taxes. Too many people see that as a cure for every damn thing

[@_multiverse_]

"consumers wouldn't pay a premium for renewable plastic" WHAT? I'd buy things packaged in this stuff vs conventional plastic in a heartbeat.

[@_Wai_Wai_]

And there are 90 % who would not

[@k.rizz.]

FW Poon what if you never knew...

[@_Wai_Wai_]

@@k.rizz. write proper english please, or people will not know what you saying

[@incognitotorpedo42]

@-- An analytical chem lab can tell the difference between renewable and petro-plastic. They have different chemical signatures.

[@highstreetkillers4377]

Not me. Conventional plastic is 100% recyclable. Our municipalities are too cheap to do it. Even though we all pay tax for them too

[@davidsmith6096]

I saw a video a while back where a company in England was mixing plastic with road tar, it makes it stronger, and doesn’t wear out as fast, if there’s one place you don’t want to wear out it’s roads, perfect way to reuse it.

[@Mom_sBasement]

I’ve worked in the water treatment industry my whole life, still can’t understand why people buy bottled water.

[@troyhoff3700]

Some areas are still forcing fluoride in our tap water. Fine for the teeth but i wouldnt recommend consuming it. After all, fluoride is poisonous. But the govt wont tell you that!

[@ChefofWar33]

Tastes way better.

[@armchair22]

Kinda hard to take a water treatment plant camping. And I think Flint, Michigan, storm victims, and the like sometimes depend on it. The water that comes from your plant may be 100% sweet when it leaves, but we all know that infrastructure has not kept up with population, and that water has to travel through aging pipes for miles. I don't mind paying $ .40 a gallon for my drinking water, and I reuse my 5 gallon jugs. It is a sign of the times...I pay $ .15 more a gallon for clean water now, than we did for gas 55 years ago.

[@lamebubblesflysohigh]

some places have really awful water though. I would encourage small home filters like Brita or something is people live in the area with awful water but still... I get it.

[@garybulwinkle82]

If you live near a river where your city gets its water and disposes its waste water, you are drinking treated waste water!!! Generally the closer you are to the ocean the further down the river you are, and everyone along that river has been drawing their water and returning treated waste water into your drinking water!! Sometimes the bottling companies use this same water to fill your plastic drinking water bottles! Another one of those "if you only knew" things people try not to think about!!!!

[@larrylord5351]

Idea to consider, stop paper lables print the lables directly in the container to eliminate the separation process to make it less expensive on the backend of the recycling journey

[@drcannabis420]

Hemp bioplastic as well as many more application for hemp and it's a renewable crop grown in just months for fiber, oil, food.

[@billybob1374]

What about a deposit on glass, plastic and metal??

[@njosborne6152]

Dr Cannabis California has made it illegal again through the Governor’s Decisions. Only big corporations have that right. They say, for example, that you can have plants but The greedy, using local building inspectors in bulletproof vests and Using citations, have made it impossible for growing.

[@StevenBrown-jr6ss]

What is help bioplastic and how is it different to other bioplastic?

[@altond511]

@@njosborne6152 Huh?

[@altond511]

@@billybob1374 How about burning it in waste to energy plants, instead of oil.

[@net81j]

How about each region standardize the plastic packaging such that it's easier for the local recycling plants to process the plastics later?

[@gregdubya1993]

How would that work? I wouldn't be able to get anything from another region that may be packaged differently?

[@acat6000]

@@gregdubya1993 how about national standards?

[@masterpalladin]

hemp

[@greezooo]

How does that solve the issue of the billion tons of plastic already in the oceans and landfills? Still need to a recycling solution...

[@masterpalladin]

@@greezooo plastic bags can be processed into burnable fuel

[@MrZoomZone]

I remember when Mars bars and sweets (Candy) was wrapped in waxed paper. The prices did not drop when they switched to silly plastic.

.....but the "shelf-life" went up dramatically: No 'call-backs,' complaints about freshness.....!??!?!?!

[@darryllandry9904]

The idea that we the consumer "just won't pay more" strikes me as blaming ME for the great stuff we don't have yet. I don't remember ever being asked! How do you know we won't pay?! What about that bad old thing REGULATION. They can mandate mileage and all this stuff, but nothing about putting 2 week milk into thousand year bottles?! Really?!

[@dlwatib]

How often do you check the recycling symbols on a product you buy so you can choose the more recyclable product/package? For most of us, that doesn't even enter into our decision making process at all. Since companies do put such symbols on their products and they do experiment with pricing of their products all the time, companies know exactly how much average consumers value such things as recycling symbols, which is the basis for the statement made in the video. There's nothing wrong with putting 2 week milk in thousand year bottles. We used to do that all the time, and then we cleaned and reused the glass bottles. We could still do that today. But people don't like that the cleaning process might occasionally fail to be complete, so now we put milk in single-use cardboard boxes and plastic jugs. But the cardboard is biodegradable and the plastic is recyclable. W could also crush the glass bottles and remake them, but that would require excessive energy. With the advent of computer vision systems we could go back to cleaning glass bottles, but with the added assurance that there was no contaminant remaining in the bottle after sterilization.

[@nyakwarObat]

Darryl Landry...they didn't ask you but did you even put an effort to read the small prints before you engaged to know what you were getting involved in?

[@blondie4750]

If I knew that I could buy something else that would have a lesser impact on the pollution of the earth then I would pay a higher price for sure. Things that are better than plastics are already created but aren't being taken mainstream because companies don't want to, they already have a cheap, light and durable enough material and don't want to invest in new ones because they cost more. People want to, big companies dont

[@AlexeiKremliovsky]

here is an example, there is such a thing as biodegradeable soap, but people still buy (for the most part) regular soap :(

[@nyakwarObat]

@@AlexeiKremliovsky exactly. People just wanna pick the easy options that are in their face and then act up all surprised when it all comes to a head

[@adrianpm9595]

The best way to use recycling plastics like those are applying them into construction or infrastructural projects, mixing polymers with cement or concrete gives the materials a lots of benefits like sealing them or making them more stronger and flexible, also the life of the material become much longer than other industrial products and when it's time to recycle them again it's easier to obtain the polymers by subtracting them from old materials.

[@uzzifennelli598]

That’s a fascinating short documentary. I’m doing a masters degree in Biotechnology of microorganisms and I wish my university had this kind resources in our Labs . 😍😍

[@shaunballagh196]

Hemp plastics have been around for years. Henry Ford made a car body out of it. Knowing that there is a better way and not doing it is globally negligent. It's up to us to make change. We, as consumers, dictate the market. Adoid plastic, and the market will change accordingly.

[@highstreetkillers4377]

Plastic and oil is better for the enviroment than having less trees and more farmland. Recycling is the solution. Japan recycles condoms. Proof it's possible if people weren't lazy

[@davidbrousseau5908]

@@highstreetkillers4377 You do know what they do to extract oil right? They level forests, infest oceans and pollute fields with oil extraction. It is absolutely brutal to the environment. Plastic water bottles are not needed , there are other ways.. as for food packaging there are alternatives. Plastic should only be used in situations where it is absolutely needed. Im sorry but your comment is ridiculous! I think people are completely oblivious to how damaged our planet really is, you people need to wake the fuck up... Also the process of recycling demands alot of resources , yes we need to recycle but also need to change our ways.

[@urduib]

@@highstreetkillers4377 My brain is in chock that anyone can sit and write what you just wrote.

[@urduib]

@@davidbrousseau5908 Spot on. Hemp also have the ability to protect other plants from harmful insects. Seen farm experiments where you put 4 tomato plants and 1 hemp plant and it turns out you can cut pesticides sometimes to zero. So it is probably not even needed to make a lot of new fields. also hemp is a drop and harvest plant. It is estimated that 5500 can be replaced by hemp

[@edge3369]

Corn stems or potato starch is cheaper and is equally if not better quality

[@SouthernBelleReviews]

The most important thing you need to do is start cleaning up what's already out there and then start working on a better way to reuse it.

[@safir2241]

Getting rid of disposable plastics is the #1 solution first

[@0Arcoverde]

Wrong A human life time usage of plastic is Lee's than 1/4 of it's whole lifetime Plus disease that could grow in such environment

[@usbackcountry]

Unfortunatley most plastics we conscientiously put in to recycling actually just ends up being burned or dumped in the ocean. So it's better to put it in the trash and let it go in to a landfill.

[@kathyyoung1774]

Complex problems never have simple solutions. Just suddenly banning single-use plastics won’t work. There are thousands of uses in medicine, for example, including equipment and supplies that didn’t even exist before we had widespread availability of plastics. Developing alternatives takes time and needs to be encouraged.

[@SavoyProductionz]

Not true. If everyone ate a fruit diet, this world would be back to Eden, which solves all problems.

[@bunzeebear2973]

I have no problem with banning single use products as we could eliminate DISCO

[@billybob1374]

What about a deposit on glass, metal and plastic container items. I know it works well with soda, beer and liquor containers!

[@totoroben]

Move beyond recycling! Create reusable packages tracked by RFID. The RFID could be used to issue back deposits on returns, identify the type of container, as well as identify the product enclosed in said container. The easiest thing to do would be replacing cardboard boxes with coroplast ones for companies such as Amazon and other e-commerce sites, but such a system could be expanded to grocery.

[@optimisticfuture6808]

totoroben I like the tote idea for amazon.

[@aniross5549]

Thank you so much Bloomberg for such informative, educational newscasts!! You are appreciated!!

[@mountopia77]

Get infinity stones, snap fingers, done.

[@fino291]

mountopian 1 I don’t know who you are but your the smartest person I know I bet you got to Harvard

[@nidzex4724]

GENIUS!

[@tlotlisomoletsane3598]

Think this is joke?

[@MsScarlettKnight]

I just don't understand why ANYONE would give this video a thumbs down...?? Thanks you for making this video!

[@TommyT777]

Gotta give some respect to the team at CarbonLite!

[@berniediapersanderslukso9204]

Reshape them into artificial reefs for fish. Turn them into wings for windmills. Turn them into holders for solar panels.

[@AlexeiKremliovsky]

i would pay a premium for the biodegradable plastic

[@masterpalladin]

hemp bioplastic wouldn't cost much more...might even be cheaper

[@ollie1505]

9:50 the bottles are sorted using optical sorters. thats an odd way to describe a worker😂

[@beescout13]

haha yeh 😂

[@chadkempton170]

Please build one of these plants in every state! Maine is a great place to start.

[@jaken005]

Sweden has a PANT system, when you buy a bottle of water or soda 1kr (ca10 cents) is added to the price. When consumed you can go to a pant machine wich sorts it and shipps it to a facility that turns it into new bottles

[@acetheblackfalcon]

I’ve seen those! They give you back the coin when you recycle the bottle, right? o:

[@Lumencraft-]

Right on, put me down for 2 of the E coli pillows!!

[@Yetipfote]

😃

[@lionele6183]

There must be a way for government to force businesses to use 90% recycled plastic regardless of oil prices. We need to get a grasp on this problem, shame on us.

[@sanniepstein4835]

How about consumer demand? Why go straight to the thugs?

[@chrisgast]

I just started buying glassed milk. If they can do the same for orange juice and apple juice, that'd be great. If I had the money, I'd invest in this type of project. I'd be more than willing to help stop the purchase of bad plastics.

[@highstreetkillers4377]

Why do you think glass is better? Cause it sinks in water so nobody sees it when you litter? Glass needs silica mines and a ton of energy to create it. Plus if you drop it you just released 100's of knives into the environment

[@tbonemc2118]

HK I can remember the day when all milk and soda bottles were glass. Most were washed and reused reportedly up to 50 times and then they were melted down making new bottles. Then the world worked out we could replace glass with plastic probably a few cents cheaper with no consideration for the cost of disposal and cost to the planet. Why is glass better. When was the last time you bought some beer in plastic bottles?

[@godji4467]

4:28 sugar is not infinite, it is actually limited by the number of sugar cane we grow annually - which is quite small

[@zindhuzanjo8813]

Maybe sugars from food waste??

[@joeyjohnson9586]

This isnt a consumer problem. This is a corporation problem. Big business dont wont it. Not the consumer. Dont lie. That is counterproductive.

[@sharefactor]

Many consumers wants as cheap as possible and don't care about the environmental/social cost. So yes, the consumer is part of the problem...

[@joeyjohnson9586]

@@sharefactor No. Many consumers want stuff that works. Company corporations want cheaper costs for a bigger profit. You cant blame the consumer. We only buy whats supplied. If corporations cared. The general supplies would be beneficial. Instead of cost effective. Thats sadly not the case.

[@jinijinxer97]

@@sharefactor most of us can't afford it so it's up to the big corporations

[@davidcraig9779]

It's everyone's problem.

[@incognitotorpedo42]

@@joeyjohnson9586 If there's two bottles on the shelf, and they have the same stuff inside but one of them costs more, most people will buy the cheaper one. We can fix the problem by subsidizing the one that's better for society, taxing the one that's worse, or some combination of the two. Or we can outlaw the bad stuff. It's a political problem.

[@skyak4493]

This is a real improvement that can and should be expanded. This still involves sorting and landfill -there is a technology for breaking ALL this PET down to molecules that are absolutely indistinguishable from virgin material.

[@mbabcock111]

Keep experimenting and innovating. The entrepreneurial spirit will win the day!

[@juliecain6397]

THIS IS GENIUS! WONDER WHY WE DIDN'T GET HERE SOONER?

[@emeraldfraser5223]

A lot of the time you mention consumers, you avoid the fact that some consumers really do care and really do make an effort, try reaching the zero-waste movement

[@r.r.r9300]

I'm not trying to be mean or anything but the people involved in the zero waste movement are only making a microscopic difference into the world's plastic pollution problem. Don't get me wrong they are making a difference but not at the rate that it would take to save the world. The majority of plastic pollution can be traced to only six or seven countries and most of the people there don't recycle or care about the environment. What humanity needs is a cheap and simple solution to the problem because the majority of people don't care.

[@YourMajesty143]

@@r.r.r9300 - Those countries get imported plastic from Western Society. So the zero-waste movement is still beneficial, as is the vegan movement. Both focus on reduced resource-intensive consumption of products. "Don't underestimate the power of a few highly dedicated individuals trying to make a difference in the world. In fact, it's the only thing that ever has" - Margaret Atwood

[@geewiz8253]

Bloomberg, I love you.

[@jarreddeforge8094]

I thought the thumbnail was about a bunch of Minions being dumped.

[@paramoreparks9960]

Oh please say it isn't so! Thanks to all you intelligent, caring professionals. Pushing to make this world whole again. Much love.

[@maze-nc1ut]

very inspiring, nice job. minnasota love from mexico

[@hallfamily2141]

If you did two seconds of research you would realize there are several different different strains of e. Coli. Many non-infectious.

[@xerizvillanueva9064]

Where i live biodegratable plastic is kinda a norm. Almost all of our plastic bags a biodegratable. And if they are not they are usually re used instead of buying a fancy toat bag, we just bring the bag that we used the last week to the grocery store, and keep using it until it has holes in them

[@CornelLingus]

Can't used plastics be made into cinder(building)blocks?

[@speciamdoesntdraw1052]

Yeah then buildings won't need to be repaired as often.

[@manikandan_k]

And increase the risk of fire hazard.

[@Anne--Marie]

I've also wondered about this.

[@speciamdoesntdraw1052]

K.Mani Kandan Well if people actually cared we would be able to possibly develop a plastic that is both hard, and resistant to fire. Or, their will be some cream/filling that is applied to the plastic blocks to lower the fire hazard.

[@kathyyoung1774]

Waxed cardboard, such as used in milk cartons, is an alternative for more items, even pill bottles. Trees used for papermaking are grown specifically for that use. Nobody is cutting down rainforests to make paper. They grow pine trees, harvest them, and immediately plant more. Paper is recyclable, too.

[@robertchambers4775]

Glass is a viable alternative and is more environmentally friendly and easier recycled

[@boomer_bob6493]

When I was growing up most drink products were sold in glass bottles and you returned them to the shop when empty for a refund on the deposit of 5 cents per bottle for sodas and milk bottles were collected by the milk man. Then litigation lawyers and cheap plastics made them non viable to use.

[@margap9622]

But breakable and heavy to transport -> expensive and environmental unfriendly. Therefore limited in use.

[@boomer_bob6493]

@@margap9622 Yes it's heavy and breakable but a damn sight more environmentally friendly than plastic as it can be recycled time and again or can be safely ground and returned to the environment.

[@kevinkiesel4937]

@@boomer_bob6493 I am just guessing, but what I think marga was referring to was the cost to ship heavy products? Not that I know anything, just what I took from their comment.

[@herrvonundzulustig]

I think the government should put the focus on hemp, it's growing very fast and you just throw the products back on the field and they help new plants to grow. I have no Idea if the water in bottles has impact on it though..

[@bradlyherrera1970]

6 years later.

[@alessandroscott5584]

certain bacteria has evolved to eat plastic

[@estebanperal9488]

Wow, do you know which ones?

[@superpichu9115]

@@estebanperal9488 sonplantone Is a bacteria which can eat plastic but most bacteria like this a maser in Labs and is very difficult to produce.

[@marcoaf18]

super pichu i just searched sonplantone and literally couldn’t find anything other than newspaper from 1967 and 1970

[@user-nf5ye4vn7z]

@@estebanperal9488 Idonella sakaiensis was one recently discovered in a Japanese waste site, and oyster mushrooms can 'eat' some plastics as well.

[@edge3369]

scott warwick no

[@nicolashug1293]

These are people who actually makes a difference.

[@scottm2553]

Ha! Optical sorters are people. 9:48

[@bunzeebear2973]

Don't laugh. They already use optical sorter(machines) to sort ripe fruit from not so ripe fruit in the packing houses. They also have developed picking machines to pick fruit from the trees(only the ripe fruit) and do it 4 times faster than people. Mexicans did not take away your jobs. . Machines did. How many people in that plant? A dozen, maybe?

[@friendlyneighborhoodcow8776]

This is why I use compostable bags or grocery bags for garbage instead of regular garbage bags

[@TempestBear06]

We’re all going to be drowned in garbage and no one will do anything because “it’s expensive”... well if there’s no world there’s no MONEY! I don’t understand how money is more important than life, but ok...

[@downbntout]

Spencer Chase To a company, cost cutting is life. A company that can't compete faces rapid extinction.

[@_Red_Hand_]

in this world everything revolves about that FREAKING MONEY !!!

[@myriad1973]

Exactly my thoughts

[@johnpanos2332]

another example of a externality of a consumer culture. the manufactures of this are barely mentioned. the consumer bears the responsibility-------brilliant

[@Marcel123-l8h]

Poland has decompose able bags

[@altinbey5831]

Please continue the unsolvable series!

[@aiRCoft]

E. coli pillows, just what we needed....

[@damianxavier7343]

Yes it is what we need...what's the problem with that?

[@TyBraek]

It's fun how they're testing new plastics and mixing them in plastic cups that they probably just throw away after. 4:07

[@nocensorship8092]

Just make plastic packages highly taxed. Companies will then sell linen bags, drinks in glass bottles and aluminum cans, cheese and foods wrapped in coated paper or will spend more to use plastic ish environmentally friendly materials... It wouldn't need to even change any prices, just reduce the consumption tax and make a packaging tax that is equivalent in how much tax it generates. Then the price is level but companies will be forced to compete to make the packages cheaper by going away from the highly taxed plastic. Then once less and less plastic is used the tax on plastic packaging increases to keep the tax revenue the same until a certain point where there will be both a plastic tax and consumption tax once there is almost no plastic used.

[@highstreetkillers4377]

Idiots proposing more tax should be shot. Its up to the individual, don't buy it, and recycle

[@leahcimthgirw3163]

I work for garbage company I shall not say which one and the amount of stuff that goes into the landfill is ridiculous there's no reason besides profit why a company can't sort the stuff collected and get a lot of it recycled

[@migstan1243]

what if everything is glass 🤔

[@armchair22]

I am nearing 70 years old, and my Legos have survived three generations. If you would take those cornflakes and turn them into building blocks about 2'hx2'w3'l blocks, we could pop a garage up in an afternoon, pump fire-resistant insulation thru the walls, and build a garage that could last 500 years. No reason houses and swimming pools couldn't be nearly as easy. Remodels, additions, almost fun. Earthquake, fire, and flood resistant. With plastic being so abundant and durable, it would make sense to build a brand new house with 2 car garage for $35,000, out of waste, and without any special needs except maybe site preparation. A piece of land, a few truckloads of plastic blocks, and that pegboard on the ground, and most anyone could build a strong building. Just a thought.....

[@Hotspur37]

government should demand everything be recyclable its totally a lack a will power

[@highstreetkillers4377]

In Canada we pay tax to the government and they're responsible for waste management. If people don't litter, problem solved. Look up Ganges and Citarum Rivers in India

[@zelenplav1701]

Lobby money and blackmail will not allow our representatives to act responsibly.

[@WonderMagician]

An excellent Report...as a consumer I can demand that the beverages I drink are packaged in recycled plastic bottles and packaging..

[@andrewjurgensen6187]

turn all the platistic into a wood substitute plastic 2x4s

[@jaddy540]

They do that with recycled milk bottles. Also weatherproof picnic tables.

[@fellowshipofthemystery6154]

Fossil fuels: cheap, plentiful, reliable energy for billions Hydrocarbon, or fossil fuel industry is the only industry that can produce cheap, plentiful, reliable energy on a scale of billions. That means that without such an industry, we don't have the amount of food we need, the amount of technology we want, the amount of anything we need or want. The first thing to realize is that the vast majority of the world's energy is in fact produced by the hydrocarbon industry. This was true back in 1985, and it’s also true in the present. Year 1985 Nuclear 5% Hydro 6% Gas 20% Oil 39% Coal 29% Year 2015 Nuclear 4% Hydro 7% Gas 24% Oil 33% Coal 29% As you can see, there’s much more overall energy consumption now and the vast majority of that is still fossil fuel energy. What that means is that we're using considerably more fossil fuels, not less.

[@diam4ntelo]

🌍Save The Planet🌎

[@lincolnthinking]

to deal with current plastic use, distribution and collection why not use a certain color logo or color spot on each and every piece of plastic product to identify the destination for recycle or destruction ?

[@kennethkustren9381]

How about trying bioplastic for yourself ?? Too easy. ONLINE RECIPE D.I.Y. Starch, water, glycerin and a drop or 3 vinegar for pliability. Add cotton cloth for strengthening objects. Totally reusable, biodegradable, recyclable, and food grade edible !! You could get inventive and package your own foods in this bioplastic.

[@chadleyarmaniiii8165]

Kenneth Kustren proud of ur comment

[@lilbaz8732]

When i was growing up we used glass bottles for most things. If you return the bottle to the shop they would give you some money back. The bottles were then collected, cleaned and used again. Pubs would do the same. No need for plastic at all.

[@Kiyarose3999]

Forget it, right from the beginning genetic engineering is mentioned, we have to stop using plastic, but for a few long term use plastic can be made from Hemp plastic.

[@PongoXBongo]

What's wrong with genetic engineering? Afraid to drink water out of a "franken-bottle"?

[@unknownbhu2574]

I'm so scared for my kids. They would have all kinds of unhealthy water and polluted air. Please make it more stricter

[@fromanabe8639]

They're not thinking outside the box. I think biologists should concentrate on breeding seagulls that can eat and digest plastic.

[@trashcatlinol]

I can't wait for the movie where this idea goes horribly wrong XDD

[@pluv1e]

We humans are going to need that too, the more plastic gets in the ecosystem the more likely it's gonna get ingested by us & give us cancer

[@y2n610]

I'm picturing a flock of seagulls attacking a Prius for dinner.

[@ulti8106]

@@y2n610 xD

[@sweettaterpie7009]

" In the 1960's plastic was just becoming popular." When I was a kid the milk man carried glass bottles to our door.

[@mobileplay3r496]

2:43 a lab trying to figure a way to get rid of plastic... Dude wears plastic gloves

[@sharifmasum6360]

gloves are made from rubber

[@IberianCraftsman]

dont know america but in Spain most big supermarket brands either sell cloth bags (to use lots of times), or cheap starch plastic bags that can dissolve easily, they only charge 5 cents or so, you can easily compost them like you would with paper.

[@d_1012]

Indian grad student comes on screen , suddenly cliche Indian traditional music in the background .

[@rowdy7870]

You are aware of that you should read about gerbils... Advertising loves to use propaganda

[@rylanwebb6921]

What is the timeline on being able to produce these plastic replacements being cheap enough to compete with plastic

[@bcbudGstatus]

this is stupid we already have a biodegradable hemp plastic the world just needs to legalise it

[@highstreetkillers4377]

Noooooo. Farmland is the wrose thing for enviroment. Canada legalized weed and now we have more pollution from the industrial grow ops

[@bcbudGstatus]

​@@highstreetkillers4377 You must be joking that's the dumbest thing i ever heard in my life. 1 pot plant produces 5 times as much oxygen as 1 tree and 1 farmed acre of hemp produces as much as 25 acres of forest.

[@endernightthedrokain1770]

It’s official this video restored my faith in humanity.

[@Atom15]

Just introduce Pfand like in Germany. Easiest way to get people to recycle.

[@cosmoplastic2256]

Germany is the biggest plastic polluter in Europe. Pfand is just a side show. Norway has a deposit system that runs with over 90% effectivity. That is remarkable. Also Norway has a bigger coastline and sees more foreign plastic swept onto the shores, that might be reason why they work harder on solutions than the country of thinkers and poets.

[@pins44]

I have as of last year made small changes not to buy single use bottle every time. I also will not use straw unless they can decompose. It's small changes, but everyday I make choices to change a bit more.

[@phantomwalker8251]

basically, the banks own the oil,we buy the product,they win,win,...

[@radiofun232]

Recently a bacteria (or fungus or whatever..) was discovered in the jungle that could digest PET plastic. March 2019.

[@ThunfischXXx]

is it saysay or do you have a goddamn source? A bacteria was also discovered in some larvae in spain last year. Economical value is the big hurdle m8

[@Nicholas-f5]

Plastic can be made with rapidly renewable plant cells vs ancient dinosaurs. And stop using single use plastic! It looks so trashy.

[@12vLife]

Recycling plastic is met with so many challenges from special interest groups to bought politicians and regulatory commissions... and even when red tape is removed it's just very dangerous work. This is going to be one of the greatest challenges for Artificial intelligence.

[@joeyjohnson9586]

Destroy the earth for a quick buck. When you could repair it and make millions. Typical human nature. We think we are smart. But we aren't.

[@davem.8681]

I remember in the movie "The Graduate", one of the guests told Benjamin, "Just one word 'plastics'". Before that the was just waxed paper.

[@AlexGutierrezPhotography]

OPTICAL SORTERS!!! hahahahha....Right for the environment, but even better for someones wallet....

[@PongoXBongo]

Also, faster and more effective than human eyeballs. Humans are only useful for human-scale (size, speed, etc.) jobs. Leave the rest to the machines.

[@zelenplav1701]

In Chicago we pay .7 cents for a thin plastic bag but nothing for all those thin water bottles that are unrefillable.

[@clavo3352]

Water shortages can be solved by making floating boats, from recycled plastic, that fill with rain water at sea and then autonomously go dock somewhere that they can offload their fresh water and go back for more via sail or solar or both power.

[@LelandLoyd]

Stop the Bottles

[@deathcheatersguild4266]

Here in the U.S. 🇺🇸 we must build more larger Recycling ♻️ Centers 🏭! And there needs to be mandatory Recycling throughout the whole country. Time to start converting over to biodegradable 🍂 and reusable plastics ASAP!

[@simonschertler3034]

So happy that we don't have any landfill sites here in northern and central Europe for dumping plastic materials. Plastic is recycled, used as refuse drived fue or send to a waste to energy power plant.

[@jacintakeeble1225]

Respect for trying to do the right thing!!! Just watched the film 2040 & they explained how great it would be to make plastic out of seaweed

[@briannacooper2628]

I enjoyed seeing this documentary and I certainly feel like the CarbonLite process is by far the best system I have seen but the comment about "People suffering in 50 years" gave me deep pause. People are suffering now. This is a current issue, not just a future issue. People living plastic dumps, breathing in toxic offgassing of the plastic melting in overseas "Recycling" processes, communities and ecosystems devastated by the oil economy and microplastics being tiny magnets for lipophilic toxins that poison the food chain and have real effects on human health- are all happening now, not in 50 years. Thank you for showing us an inside view of the CarbonLite process, I hope to see an expansion of such facilities.