The Big Issue With Plastic and What We Can Do to Help | Compilation

What is plastic really doing to our planet? Is it truly as bad as it's made out to be? How can we help? Join Michael Aranda as he dives into the world of plastic creation and pollution and what effect it's having on our planet. We'll also explore what we as humans can do to help! Join us for this new episode of SciShow!
Hosted by: Michael Aranda
Why We're So Bad at Recycling Plastic - • Why We're So Bad at Re...
Paper, Plastic, or Reusable? The Truth About Green Grocery Bags - • The Greenest Grocery Bag
Why You Should Care About the Plastic in Your Poop - • Why You Should Care Ab...
Should I Be Afraid of BPA? - • Should I Be Afraid of ...
How Can We Clean Up the Oceans? - • How Can We Clean Up th...
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[@mojosbigsticks]

Teach a sewing/textiles class in all schools. At best, they learn what's involved in making clothing, and might think twice about fast fashion. At worst, they learn how to recycle t-shirts into tote bags.

[@megashley1963]

I did have a sewing class in my middle school that everyone took. We learned how to sew, and I made a small duffel bag from virgin fabric, not reused t-shirts. I learned nothing about which materials cost more or less to produce, just how to stitch, and that I don't enjoy sewing. I learned a lot more about materials from these few minutes of a video, and for a lot less of a time and a school's cost than a semester long course.

[@jb888888888]

@@megashley1963 My school had semester long classes in sewing, home ec (mostly cooking), and wood shop that all students had to take over the course of the two years of Jr. Hi. I had two semesters of wood shop, IDK if that was just me or everyone had at a doubled class.

[@ValentinaMitchell1]

No sew glue works well too

[@twocvbloke]

I remember even in the 90s we in the UK still used glass bottles, with deposits, for soft drinks and milk, and you returned the bottles and got a little money back for returning them and the bottles were then cleaned, sterilised and re-used, cos glass is awesome...

[@mirandabeaudry7936]

I like that idea!

[@twocvbloke]

@@mirandabeaudry7936 It's how things just used to be prior to using plastic containers, I know in parts of the US you can still get money back from returning drinks cans in some states, but over here, no deposit means no incentive, no incentive, very little care about recycling... :(

[@kyracroft751]

Not even my grandparents can explain why we love using plastic plastic much here, I'd be happy if they delivered milk in glass bottles and reuse those bottles to get more milk. Like that's just one thing. America is a nasty mess of garbage😔

[@kyracroft751]

@@twocvbloke I mean, it'd help if we have actual recycling bins, cause people van only get overpriced apartments, which generates more garbage, and we only have a garbage dumpster, no recycle. We need homes and recycling bins and places to recyle EVERYWHERE, imo to make any difference. Cause' I see notbing changing here(the mass of apartments around me have so much garbage. They don't seem to care it's overflowing or anything.)

[@fclp67]

Even shards of glass you can melt and shape again

[@NajwaLaylah]

It's kind of easy to make a washable (and, yeah, *reusable* ) bag out of a (possibly cotton) t-shirt _you wouldn't wear--_ which is something your local thrift store may have available for a week before they send it "for recycling", or more often to a landfill. Where it rots. Possibly producing methane. I'm sure you see my drift. With the number of items of clothing discarded in the USA alone, there should be no shortage of bags. Also not mentioned: baskets.

[@lordgarion514]

"more often than not" No, that's wrong. Most thrift stores sell their unsold t-shirts to companies that cut them up and sell them as "shop" or "painters" rags. You can find them at paint and hardware stores.

[@NajwaLaylah]

@@lordgarion514 You do not have my knowledge and experience of how a certain region-wide organtisation's thrift stores operate where I live, so while I acknowledge that your local experience or what you've been told may vary, I cvan assure you I'm not wrong, either.

[@YourWealthCome]

and you don't even need to shread them down.. quilt them. XXL could make a full size bag without much processing. There is always a solution to any solution just have to dig deep and look.

[@NajwaLaylah]

@@YourWealthCome And no-one has to grow more cotton for the sake of these (except a minuscule amount of thread?) You'll find brand-new t-shirts to use, too; some people get them (or get them printed up), then donate them complletely unworn It's kind of insane, really.

[@mirandabeaudry7936]

+1

[@Master_Therion]

I know there's a movement to get rid of plastic grocery bags, but I find them useful. I use them to store all of my plastic grocery bags.

[@lordgarion514]

There's nothing better. 😃

[@XenXenOfficial]

Then I use those bags for my cats

[@nostalgiaprincess]

@@XenXenOfficial i just moved from NY to FL. i’m so happy to have my walmart bags back to clean out my litter box. 😁

[@64standardtrickyness]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/noayhXatZ9N0j6s Also, you can use plastic bags for garbage. Paper bags tear easily don't close properly and don't have handles you can hold.

[@Deeplycloseted435]

I pick up dogshit with them.

[@DarthAsthmatic]

“And that hasn’t caused the collapse of civilization, though 2016 may have come close” Oh you sweet summer child.

[@janmelantu7490]

2016 Aranda’s Hair wasn’t ready for 2020

[@Justin-cw7zf]

Ah the good old days. Back when we thought 2016,17,18, and 19 were as crazy as they could get. We had no idea what was coming

[@davidhaney4034]

Yeah that statement didn't agree well

[@potatonope9774]

So innocent

[@trishapellis]

It must be said when it's done well, too: Thank you guys for immediately putting the label 'Compilation' in the title.

[@lisaclay664]

DR ADEHIN PRODUCT CURED ME TOTALLY (#dradehin)

[@jamiehogan717]

I see how resource intensive growing cotton is, but what about hemp, bamboo, or other materials that aren't as bad on the environment to cultivate?

[@AshiwiZuni]

Hemp farmer here, 1kg of cotton takes a massive amount of irrigation. In order to have a harvest of 1 kg, you must water that cotton plant with over 2000 gallons over its cycle. Ive grown cotton, my family has grown cotton for generations. Hemp plants are a whole other ball game. On our farm it takes about 150 gallons of water to produce 1 kg of dry hemp. Of that hemp we process it and only use around 40-50 percent of the plant material. Its wonderfully weather resilient and requires very minimal pesticide intervention. We use lady bugs instead. The only downside is that we do get alot more wildlife coming around. But I dont really see that as an issue as long as things dont get too wild. Hemp is an excellent replacement for cotton, and even MEDICAL cannabis plants have many recyclable qualities as far as the fibers from the stalks go.

[@AshiwiZuni]

Another fun fact people here may like to know. Hemp is cannabis. Cannabis just isn’t necessarily hemp. People who smoke refer to different strains as “indica or sativa” and that comes from the different speciation of cannabis throughout the world. But interestingly enough, over the thousands of years of cultivation, most HEMP we know today is “cannabis sativa” and most weed people are smoking is actually genetically cannabis indica, with crossbred genetics of certain sativa strains. Even the “sativa feeling” ones. There has been debate among scientists in the botany field to classify cannabis plants into more or less species over the years with others being suggested to go along with sativa and indica and rudelaris such as : cannabis kafiristanica (sour diesel strains, high thc, minimal cbd/cbg) Cannabis afghanica (often referred to as “kush”) Just thought yall would find it interesting :) have a nice day everyone!

[@laneatkinson6441]

I heard about sugarcane too, not sure how environmentally friendly it is though

[@DoctorsSong]

There is a problem with growing bamboo (depends where it's grown) though I haven't properly looked into this yet so I don't know exactly what the problem is

[@Coop_Boop]

Linen is better than cotton, hemp is better than linen, and lyocel is the best. Shelbizlee(sp?) Made a good in depth video

[@joeystevens3308]

I always see solutions to our plastic problems, but it seems like no one actually ever implements the solutions.

[@charlesballiet7074]

well you have to convince bean counters to actually do something other than what is immediately the cheapest option

[@fancysalami]

@@charlesballiet7074 Some bean counters think there's potential in plastic waste. Norwegian company Quantafuel see a future where plastic waste is a resource. They use plastic to produce a kind of oil that can be used to make fuel or new plastic products. Although not a huge company it is registered at the Oslo Stock Exchange. www.quantafuel.com/

[@admiralspyro9722]

Well, would you spend all your time and earnings to implement these solutions? Not that it would be enough, only goverments can, tho they have no incentive if the consequences are decades away.

[@owenb6499]

The majority of plastic problems are from corporations, and saving our planet is not profitable in the short term.

[@mirandabeaudry7936]

Yes same, I’m looking for more ways to influence the production by knowing which products do better things and voting with my purchases. That’s what makes the big wigs pivot, losing a sale to another.

[@damdamfino]

The second I found out they were finding microplastics in women’s uteruses and in placenta, I stopped buying single use plastics.

[@noble1266]

theres a reason you cant buy face scrub with "micro beads" like we could 7 years ago

[@davidm.4670]

single use plastic is VERY hard to eliminate use of !

[@mat5267]

So what, even if everyone stopped buying them, they’ll still be around in the land and sea.

[@noble1266]

@@mat5267 if there is plastic at all. there will be micro plastics. as long as nonsilica eyeglasses there will be microplastics, etc etc etc.

[@MrMegaPussyPlayer]

10:48 good thing I use mine for several years. some already over 20. I have a nicer (thicker) one I already use over 5 years on a daily basis. (not just for shopping, but as my go to bag to go outside). I think I'm on the safe side. That being said, I usually also use single use bags more than once.

[@mirandabeaudry7936]

After combing through comments, I find relief in that this is a touchy topic for many and we are collectively curious for more solutions. Some faith in humanity can be seen in that. Y’all keep doing great things with bags!! And keep it going further into other areas of daily use things!!

[@Jay-ho9io]

... This is a pretty great comment. Thank you.

[@lisaclay664]

DR ADEHIN PRODUCT CURED ME TOTALLY (#dradehin)💯💖💖

[@MaxBrix]

The furniture, carpet, clothes, toys and electronics are plastic. Food is kept in plastic in a plastic fridge. People are surprised to find plastic. Shoes, curtains, blankets, cups, light bulbs, The clock on the wall, the paint, everything inside a car, air purifiers, shampoo bottles, My beloved Lego bricks...

[@nobiggeridiot]

'if you leave out one important factor' ... arguably the most important one. The energy cost behind cotton ought to be offset if the manufacturing produces less persistent and toxic waste products; disposal needs to be weighted at parity if not more heavily than energy consumption during production. It's about as short sighted as measuring the energy cost of the consumption of certain foods by only measuring how much work your jaw does. When you use 'status quo' accounting principals for these environmental issues, you are only going to perpetuate 'business as usual' practices ... which has been working real good so far :|

[@christopherjonson4072]

Excellent jaw analogy.

[@mirandabeaudry7936]

+1

[@christopherjonson4072]

Although secretly somewhat excited about the whole prospect of private space travel, I wish that we would spend the money on cleaning up the planet by collecting all plastic and nuclear waste, shipping it to the sun, only one shot and one planetary movement to change direction dramatically for what we are doing with concentrates of chemicals and molecules, never seen in nature (a dream I had when younger). It is the capitalist model that keeps this poisonous animal a threat to all living things including itself. I don't understand war to be anything but pure stupidity. Carl Sagan had a good statement.(you look it up) Another dream I had was the atmosphere completely "exploding" off of the earth. A vivid nightmare that my brain put much effort to. Have a nice day🧠🚛🌎⛏💡💲

[@lyreparadox]

@@christopherjonson4072 Putting nuclear waste into space is a terrible idea. Remember the Challenger disaster? Now imagine if it had been filled with nuclear waste - scattered across the entire planet and contaminating everything. TERRIBLE IDEA. Though I agree with you about spending space-race levels of money on cleaning up the planet of plastic, and implementing alternatives.

[@christopherjonson4072]

The waste would be shot into the sun....completely destroying it(?)

[@RidireOiche]

How many times do I have to reuse my duffel bag before I make up for its environmental impact? It's still in good knick, I've had it since college and I use it for everything; holidays, shopping and other everyday stuff.

[@98Zai]

Probably as many times as the equivalent bag in that table at 11:20 I assume it's thicker/more plastic than a reusable plastic bag, so maybe around 150/200 times? I think you've compensated for it's impact at this point. The amount of uses you get from here are environmental-hero plus points as far as I am concerned! I use a backpack for grocery shopping and it's well worth it in my opinion. If you take care of it, and mend it, it could last for a century! Just gotta watch out for UV radiation/Sunlight as that really breaks down plastic. In the case of a sturdy bag like a backpack or a duffel, it might even be worth it to buy a high quality canvas bag, as the possibility to repair/patch it is greater. I've seen Fjällräven backpacks from the 60's/early 70's, used every day still be in really good condition. And if you keep your bag in good condition for 50 years, it'll be worth a lot of money come retirement!

[@arxsyn]

Give it away should you need to part with it, free cycle things you have instead of trashing

[@benw9949]

During the pandemic, grocery deliveries have been hit or miss, and most of the time, they are in paper bags that easily tear or fall apart if they get wet or if frozen food sweats or melts. The plastic bags are somewhat better, but also not idea. The larger bags help some. However, there's no way to recycle any of it at my apartment complex. It all goes in a dumpster, unsorted. Cloth bags don't get used. Neither the grocery stores nor Amazon offer a pickup for used bags to recycle them. Cloth bags or plastic hot/cold large-size bags, or a box of some kind, seem like they'd be better, if only there was a path to turn in these, recycle them, clean and reuse, something.

[@virglibrsaglove]

My apartment complex doesn't recycle either. So I try to reuse my bags in any way that I can. I've gotten pretty creative including everything from trash bags to insulation, to packing material. My Walmart does have a bin that is labeled as being for recycling plastic bags. If I absolutely have to, I'll bring some of my bags there. Though I've been told that most of the time employees empty those bins into the trash. So, I'll continue to find uses for mine the best that I can. But, yeah. I feel your pain.

[@girlsdrinkfeck]

The best bags are the waterproof paper tear resistant ones. Only 20p each

[@NiklasLarssonSeglarfan]

@@girlsdrinkfeck But they are probably among the worst from every other factor than usage..

[@NiklasLarssonSeglarfan]

And of course that has to be considered in a real life cycle analysis.. If a paper bag breaks and part of the groceries gets destroyed hitting the ground, then that needs to be considered. In my personal experience paper bags are probably 20 times more likely to break under normal use compared to a plastic bag. And the paper bag gets even more likely to break if it is reused as its then probably been exposed to moisture once before.

[@girlsdrinkfeck]

@@NiklasLarssonSeglarfan how so ? its paper ,non toxic and renewable

[@flaminup]

Mw and my family have always stored the single use grocery plastic bags. We store them in a small box and every time we need to use them for any reason, we grab one from the box. Its pretty useful. We havent had to buy small plastic bags since we always have a grocery bag

[@megashley1963]

We do that, but they still build up over time. We acquire plastic bags more quickly than we use them, even with mostly using reusable bags at the store.

[@douglassherwood5690]

For cotton bags maybe using fabric from used clothing would be a good idea. Gives the original material more useful life.

[@ashleyburks4639]

I love this compilation and all the information you provide, thank you.

[@regular-joe]

Thanks for returning "compilation" to the title, guys!

[@secretofsecrets2858]

CASHIER: Paper or plastic? CUSTOMER: You choose. CASHIER: Sorry baggers can’t be choosers.

[@nostalgiaprincess]

🤦🏻‍♀️

[@andrewbryden9360]

Bwhahahahhahhahahahhahaha

[@caroljo420]

😂😂😂😒

[@michelleshorey8103]

Paper or plastic? No matter, I'm bisacktual.....lol!

[@kyracroft751]

Then paper bags get a 10 cent charge sometimes 😆

[@LoreCraft]

What about Hemp, Flax, or bamboo bags? There's a few more options available not mentioned here. I'd be keen to see the numbers on those.

[@ACheshireCat2001]

A study on wool bags too... if those won a lot of naked sheep for grocery bags might fix everything...

[@LoreCraft]

@@ACheshireCat2001 aye, they're gonna grow that wool whether we shear them or not, right?

[@jhwheuer]

Hemp and flax are brutal on their water and energy bill…

[@LoreCraft]

@@jhwheuer what I'm thinking is there's already a tremendous amount of flax and hemp being grown just for the seeds. We needn't upscale farming to unsuitable places where it would require a inconvenient restructuring of water allotments, but just redistribute production of the byproducts of the seed growing. Most of it is being sold to other industry- so just subsidize it and have a more significant portion go to reusable bags, rather than designer t shirts

[@cferracini]

The best bag is the one you have. Making something new is always worse than just reusing something you already have or get to reuse from someone else

[@DanielGBenesScienceShows]

I really appreciate all of the research, script and time that went into this episode, and all of the eye-opening info it provides! Every decision has an impact.

[@andrewbryden9360]

I use my plastic shopping bags as stuffing for when I move. Pretty sturdy tbh. Better than styrofoam if packed nicely.

[@dachavez86]

This is the second time I've heard the bags segment, and my question is still this: What about carrying capacity? If one load of groceries fits into 2-4 paper bags for me, that same load might get packed into 1-2 dozen single use plastic bags. Has this been worked into the Dutch/Danish (I forgot which country already) reuse numbers?

[@KY_CPA]

It's talking about each individual bag's use. Different people would use different numbers of bags for a grocery run, and pack them to different capacity, so that is not taken in to account in the study. But you can easily apply their results to your personal numbers. Per your statement, you use 6x as many plastic bags as paper, and assuming you reuse both types the same number of times, if plastic bags are less than 6x as beneficial they wouldn't be greener. More than 6x means they're still not greener

[@jennypulczinski7204]

I use the self checkout as much as possible and bag my own stuff. I use my reusable bags most of the time, but occasionally I forget them. With the self checkout I can put all my stuff in 2-3 plastic bags instead of the 5-6 the store puts them in. I have actually combined some of my stuff in stores with those bag carousels where you load the bags in your cart yourself.

[@chelseyaustin6015]

same! the one's that I use are pretty big and I can use 2 totes instead of 8 bags. Plus many times I need multiple bags for heavier items. I refuse to bag things that come in big boxes or bags like milk or potatoes. It already has a handle! what are you doing? lol

[@Sara3346]

I had no idea that cotton was quite that environmentally damaging. I guess reusable thick plastic bags are better than I thought.

[@RebelAlliance42]

Ohhhh no, the resusability of cotton bags, especially cotton canvas, by far outweighs any environmental impacts. Think about it. If everyone bought a few cotton canvas bags, they would last so long, you could pass them on for generations, and eventually they wouldn't have to make so many. Mine are 10+ years old and still in excellent condition. I wash them every other week, and repair any stitching as needed. My great grandchildren could use them when I'm finished with them.

[@mirandabeaudry7936]

This was an overgeneralization of all cotton farming so I wouldn’t take it as cold hard advice not to use cotton things

[@chelseyaustin6015]

I wish they would do a whole episode on cotton! I hate those cotton PSAs because it is so bad for the environment. Leather is better. SNS.

[@NakamoriAra]

i use reusable bags for everything even just moving things i can’t normally carry around, if i have a single use plastic bag i use it as a trash bag!

[@RebelAlliance42]

Yeh, they were never single use, but they certainly never were used 150 times over and over like cotton canvas bags.

[@laneatkinson6441]

I keep them in my trunk so I never forget to take them to the grocery store. When I do have to get disposable bags, I use the paper bags to hold all my paper recycling and the plastic bags for trash or containing my plastic recycling.

[@user-pz6kq2tv9m]

@@RebelAlliance42making cotton uses a lot of resources-damaging the enviroment, even more than plastic. the best bag to use is hard plastic which you can use for a lifetime

[@RebelAlliance42]

@@user-pz6kq2tv9m I've got cotton canvas bags that are at least 10, if not 12 years old that are showing no signs of wear.

[@user-pz6kq2tv9m]

@@RebelAlliance42 did you watch the video

[@murraygrigg]

Possible solution is to put a recycle charge on all plastic. It enough to promote recycling for profit so we can afford to recycle it. I once took a helicopter trip to the Chandeleur islands in the GOM. I was astonished to see what washes up on a island 30 miles offshore from Louisiana. Eye opener experience. Incentive to recycle would go a big step forward to solve this problem.

[@mirandabeaudry7936]

I like that idea.

[@laneatkinson6441]

As someone who works in a store that has a recycling center, I'm going to have to disagree. People bring in bottles and recycle them, but they still throw away any bottle that the machine does not accept. If people can't be bothered to do their part, even when money is involved, I think it'd just be better if companies ditched the single-use plastic for good.

[@RickKasten]

Any charge on any produce will not start on the producer; it will always get passed on the to consumer. The only real solution here is simple: STOP PRODUCING SO MUCH PLASTIC. The only reason any of this is a problem is because we are making too much of it. The plastics industry deludes and deceives everyone into thinking this is not an option, but it is. It really truly is.

[@98Zai]

I personally think bags and "disposable" items are way too cheap in general. We've pushed down the price on production over the decades, and that translates to plastic bags and all kinds of things. But I think they should be priced according to environmental impact. I can buy a cotton tote bag for 5 dollars, but it should be much more expensive, like 15 or 20 dollars at least. Just slap a fancy design on it or something, people will take greater care of them and might even mend them if they're expensiver. (yes, let's make that a word, I don't need to type "more" every single time).

[@murraygrigg]

There is likely test case histories in various states and other country on recycling- no just plastic but many forms of recycling. Land fills, grocery store package materials and fast food businesses are targets but that only scratching the surface. It needs to be supercharged with a consumer and business environmental tax which is added at the till and collected to pay for the programs. Consumers and businesses make some finds back by sorting their trash into recoverable items. Toronto has blue box program which claims 200,000 tones of recyclables annually. There are green box programs which are for batteries and electronics. Austin texas has a curb side recycle program. There are various recycling and disposal programs for old cars and other steel items. The trick is to charge enough at the businesses abs consumer so that their is incentive to make the system work. There are voluntary abs community service clean up programs for hi-ways done and the price of aluminum cans and glass bottles and other trash needs to be valuable enough that clean up exercises can pay the direct cost. Yes the consumer pays for it as it is consumers that both buy products and use products. Most states abs countries do have controls on whether some products can be sold for safety and those programs can be extended with more controls to ensure products have less environmental impact. Money lubricates the system and then businesses can afford to exist to clean up our messes. Ocean waste is more problematic and that require a change of behavior and change in products by regulations. Complex problem.

[@swolpertinger5004]

"Paper or Plastic?" "I'll just use my backpack" or "Paper please, it will give my rabbit something to play with later." (he LOVES 12 pack coke boxes and paper bags) edit: RIP Loki. He passed away last year in November. He would have been 9 in spring of 2022

[@wildlifewarrior2670]

Your backpack is most likely made with plastic also

[@swolpertinger5004]

@@wildlifewarrior2670 As a matter of fact, it is :) It's made from recycled plastic bottles as the main material and the nylon in it is recycled industrial waste.

[@gspaulsson]

The best bags are the reusable ones I already own and don't plan to toss.

[@DerpyLaron]

I would not count out cotton like that if it is used well. Just use old Fabric to make the bag and boom you got there.

[@standodge7687]

apparently hemp can replace plastic and wood

[@heyapoc]

And petroleum

[@heyapoc]

And hay

[@caroljo420]

They found a plastic bag in the bottom of the Marianas Trench. Micro-particles are found everywhere, including bottled water (especially water from Nestles).

[@DoctorsSong]

And in the womb (particularly the placenta)

[@brandonk5851]

@@DoctorsSong source??

[@ValkyrieofNOLA]

Anyone with an indoor cat has a giant plastic grocery bag full of plastic grocery bags. They are perfect for scooping cat litter!

[@Ayelmar]

Regarding bags, I'd be interested in seeing/comparing the impact of "cloth" bags woven from fibers spun from recycled PET....

[@LikaLaruku]

I've been reusing the same tote bags for groceries for around 10 years. I recycle big cat litter buckets into flower pots & storage containers. Bamboo seems like the ideal material for making them. It's a noxious weed that grows & spreads all by itself in both intense & poor water conditions.

[@rowinfun]

Why can't we use Hemp paper bags?

[@tylerthomas9947]

Imagine just reusing “single use” bags 🤯

[@masteryoda394]

That's what I do ✌️

[@moonyfruit]

@@masteryoda394 Same! We use them as mini-trash bags, and I also use them when I clean my rabbit's litter box. We use them until they're full, too. Each bag re-used to its fullest. :)

[@masteryoda394]

@@moonyfruit 👍✌️🐰🐇

[@uncannyvalley2350]

You can virtue signal all you want, but we must deal with the real world, and in the real world people just end up getting new ones and throwing them all away. Try to keep up

[@BinkyBorky]

If we had abundant nuclear power, with the waste being reprocessed to run smaller, more localized reactors, as well as abundant wind, geothermal, hydrokenetic and solar power, we could create reusable products that lasted a very long time without throwing so much away. Disposable society has to change or there won't be a society for much longer.

[@melanezoe]

That’s for cotton bags made from new fabrics. I make bags from discarded clothing. My paper products are used as layers in my garden, “clean ink” ones shredded for the compost heap, “dirty ink” ones as ground covers for pathways. Etc. while I am not paranoid about using plastic, I do try hard to be mindful.

[@Jennifer-mb7co]

I used shirts from Goodwill for grocery bags. They had already lived a good life, now get to be used again, which helps to reduce waste. They were much cheaper, and I can throw them in the washing machine! Super easy to sew and they come in all different sizes.

[@slevinchannel7589]

I have the arguably silly hobby to ask around if someone wants more science youtuber to check out aka recommendations that are science related.

[@brantwedel]

"Hasn't caused the collapse of civilization, altho 2016 may have come close" .... Laughs in 2020

[@Borrowed_Rowboat]

Hopefully viewers in 2025 won't be smiling wistfully at us thinking how cute we are thinking 2020 was a nightmare...

[@Jay-ho9io]

@@Borrowed_Rowboat WAIT FOR IT... 🤣

[@peggedyourdad9560]

Cackles in 2022…

[@madamsloth]

I swear that every time “plastics aren’t the worst: it’s complicated” is put forth they ask that the fact plastic has a horrific end of life impact be ignored. Single use - flimsy plastic items need to be banned. Medical is the only exception IMO.

[@daryldandridge9818]

So what’s your solution so replace plastic bags?

[@mirandabeaudry7936]

I agree. There are tons of immeasurable downsides that really do matter, there just isn’t a number associated to it yet.

[@justinblin]

But it is complicated. Plastic waste disposal is horrible, but the production of other options release far more greenhouse gasses. There are advantages and disadvantages for each type, it really depends.

[@revolioclockbergjr8482]

Didn't you watch the video? Replacing it even with paper bags isn't a whole lot better. The only solution seems to be using it repeatedly and disposing properly.

[@RickKasten]

Agree completely. Not taking end of life into consideration nullifies the entire study.

[@Inforza]

There are no problems, only solutions. That is what i like about this channel, not just to inform us but also give solutions to solve these issues.

[@stoodmuffinpersonal3144]

I am needing this video, today. Thank you so much for making it

[@TwinShards]

So about the bags, in my opinion you should consider also peoples that throw away garbage like they would destroy themself into the nature like any natural object (and more or less talked about at 12:22 ). So for me the Paper bag sound the best enviromental friendly because even if someone throw the bag in the forest or in the water, the risk to kill any animal is very low and it will be gone in a few years. example; someone throw a paper bag in the ocean and an animal eat it(like it has already been seen with turtle and plastic bag) I will assume it will not be very good for that animal BUT his body should be capable to decompose the paper and move on with it's life.

[@ihartevil]

my home town voted out plastic bags and then the government decided the gas and oil corporations more important and put plastic bags back into my home town and claimed because of covid when everybody knows that plastic bags make it so covid lives the longest unable to sex on plastic but lives 3 days i refuse to allow the lies about covid mutating be around people got injected with motor oil because the oil and gas corporations needed money so badly to be more exact polyethylene glycol meaning crude oil aka motor oil and petroleum aka vaseline months of nonstop research because i got to prove it the vaseline ingredient pretty hard for me to figure out but the lawsuits on vaseline made sense

[@electronresonator8882]

just to produce paper bags release tons of green house gasses

[@ihartevil]

@@electronresonator8882 i use a backpack i dont know what others use who said the bags need to be paper or plastic how about glass instead of plastic for bottles and as for bags paper works because it gets recycled but i think most people now use backpacks or those reuseable bags i got one i use for cold things my grandmother taught me well

[@Birddop]

In a landfill the decomposing paper bags produce a lot of Methane. A gas that influences global warming 10x more than CO2. I agree that it is way safer in nature. Just think it is all kinda complicated. Wonder if putting the paperbags in wormbins for compost is better.

[@michaelwittkopp3379]

Backpacks are a good example of re-usability, but where do the materials come from...the devil is in the detail. (Less a raw material has to be processed the better.) I will agree with you on using glass instead of plastic. (The whole plastic bottle thing is a farce.)

[@OperationBaboon]

they should have looked at other potential materials, like hemp. you can make every option out of it, if you wanted to; single use, biodegradable, tote bags, thick plastic and paper bags can all be made from hemp. hemp is very carbon friendly and growing just one cycle of a hemp field is gonna give you a good CO2 net negative to start from - 22tons of carbon per acre, with maybe two potential cycles per year, depending on location, giving you a net total of 44 tons. It also has less impact on the soil, requires much less water than cotton, and is way better to work with. Not only is processing hemp easier and cleaner than both, wood and cotton, you can actually make plastics out of it too. So you are left with all the options, simultaneously, as different parts of the plant would be used for different materials, and you are probably still left with some other useable plant material. the problem with all these studies - or our society in general - is the hyper specialisations, which create tunnel vision and potential solutions that are in the periphery tend to be ignored.

[@treehouse318]

this video has given me a lot to think about. thank you!

[@benw9949]

My apartment complex has multiple dumpsters and absolutely no separation of any recyclables. I quickly realized that within a day to a week, they were generating more that could've been recycled than all the trash my parents and I had ever carefully sorted and proudly recycled, in years and years, including when I had had my own house before having to move into an apartment.

[@RebelAlliance42]

I think with the bag debate, cotton bags, especially cotton canvas or duck materials, it's a no brainer that they win by a landslide. I've had my cotton canvas bags for at least 10 years, used them at least twice a week, and other than having to reinforce some stitching here and there, they're still going just as strong as when I first bought them. So if you crunch the numbers, they would've made up for their environmental impact after just 18 months, meaning over the last 9+ years, they've repeatedly made up for it multiple times over!

[@neverhomecompanion5087]

Why are we neglecting the fact that shopping totes can be made of anything? Old clothes, bedding, kitchen towels - anything. I, a fully grown adult, am still using the ones my friend's grandma gave me in fifth grade.

[@KimiAvary]

Great topic. Thank you for educating me. As a side note, I think you are all fantastic presenters and absolutely adorable!

[@KnighteMinistriez]

I think that us reducing the amount of plastics we use could also help. We should cleanup the oceans as much as possible too. I really hate dirty the oceans are, right now. I liked this video.

[@gearandalthefirst7027]

21:20 "although 2016 may have come close" remember when 2016 was the worst year we'd had in recent memeory? hahahahahahahahahahaahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaa... me neither, it's been a long 5 decades in the past 5 years...

[@catloaf9637]

Great video as usual.

[@youtubersanonymous8565]

Much love for all the sci show vids and other sub channels!

[@Shaurya_Pant]

Oww! The new into is lit! ❤️

[@NajwaLaylah]

There are fewer stores in my general area that allow the refill of containers than I remember seeing as a kid; thie makes me think that retailers are going backward and are *the holdup* in any kind of progress on the plastic issue.

[@lordgarion514]

If you're talking about refilling drinks, that got mostly stopped because of covid. Most health orders don't allow them now.

[@NajwaLaylah]

@@lordgarion514 No. Talking about soap, shampoo, detergent and so forth, oil, peanut butter, ground coffee... Also, the decline of places to refill containers dates from before the current deadly viral plague. To be fair, it's not something anyone would notice unless there'd been those options widely available in their area before. At least glass milk bottles haven't gone away.

[@lordgarion514]

@@NajwaLaylah Gotta say, I'm 51, and never heard of those being refilled anywhere near me. Kinda neat, wonder how common it was/is around the world.

[@NajwaLaylah]

@@lordgarion514 Probably a first-world North Bay Area / wine country organic grocery store fad that was never too common, but was less rare when I was a kid than it is now. Looking for it to become more mainstream *any day now.* That would be good, eh?

[@NajwaLaylah]

@@capturedflame Good; good to hear.

[@kly8105]

Oh Shi... I bought 2 cotton bags. I'm not getting into the good place am I? XD

[@JackieChandler69]

You'll be fine. This video is terrible. Just do your best to avoid plastic, and use your cotton bags as much as possible.

[@BoydGilbreath]

Long but thorough and i couldn't agree more except: when we say it's too expensive, as in not currently profitable. Whatever that means, the solution is for laws to be passed only allowing recyclable plastics to be made, and recycling only by the makers of the plastic.

[@sugarbabylove1000]

Wow! That cotton bag comparison was mind blowing. Of course maybe if we all made fabric shopping bags out of clothes we were going to throw away ...... Would be a good new trend maybe ????

[@brandynetherton5973]

This video doesn't talk about what we can actually do.

[@mirandabeaudry7936]

I agree, I made a comment to let them know what we were really clicking for

[@graphosxp]

George Carlin said that Mother Earth created human kind because she needed plastic and that once she has enough plastic she will shrug us off like a dog shrugging off a flea. Happy Fourth!

[@23skiddsy6]

I'd love to see info on PLA! A plastic that turns into harmless lactic acid with moderate heat is pretty appealing.

[@user-bp8yg3ko1r]

Great compilation! :)

[@nonegiven3814]

We have used the same cotton huge tote from the 90's. We use it for groceries & beach trips,, even driving vacations. People are just lazy when the solution is actually easy. Ps don't drink out plastic unless you are just trashy.

[@mirandabeaudry7936]

Thank you for reusing that bag! i appreciate you and commend your decisions!!!

[@timz9862]

Why does my lettuce have sand in it? ;)

[@talkashie]

we are so screwed

[@chelseyaustin6015]

I've used my re-useable totes for YEARS! Some are older than others, but most of them I have had for at least 2 years and one I have had since middle school when I made it for Home Ec. My mom and I use them for x-mas or b-day presents so it is a mixture of a clothing swap and present delivery. I also use my re-usbale ones for any shopping that I do. Another thing to do is use old t-shirts that I have gotten from events I have gone to. Sew the bottom and use the hems of the sleeves for handles. Then you can still show off all of your cool t-shirts!

[@NinjaNerdOG]

I really like this format of longer videos doing a more in depth explanation of things.

[@madsam0320]

I am really annoyed that the guy fudged the issue with ‘it’s complicated....’ What is not taken into consideration is paper and plant fibres, like cotton, are plant based materials, they absorbed CO2 while growing and new crops are grown after they are harvested, in a positive cycle. Plastic on the other hand, is dug from the ground and more intense processing needed. Those plant based materials, after their useful life will have taken a lot of carbon from the air and returned much to the ground. Plastic are hard to recycle, harm wildlife and polluting.

[@kalolord]

It is taken into consideration. It is a life cycle assessment.

[@madsam0320]

Nowhere is there mention of offsets for absorption of CO2 from the atmosphere. He talked about costs of planting the cotton but did not account for where the carbon in the cotton are from in the first place. That’s not the full life cycle assessment, is it?

[@kalolord]

@@madsam0320 Did you actually read it?

[@Tinyvalkyrie410]

If you read the studies he referenced all of that is in the equation. That is the whole point of a lifecycle assessment. Also, when that bag decomposes, all the carbon goes back into the air. If it was left as a tree or turned into long lasting products like timber, it would be a positive carbon sink. Anything that is composted or thrown away is actually producing greenhouse gasses. Edit: and I have read several of these studies. Have you?

[@madsam0320]

@@Tinyvalkyrie410 those plant based products actually take CO2 from the atmosphere, eventually they go to the ground, some may decomposed back to the atmosphere but still a net positive. Not all carbon will return. Trees will eventually fall and also decay, but that’s not the point, why must there be trees or paper? They are separate land use. So are timber. Paper can be manufactured from scapes and byproducts of lumber and clearings in forest management. Have you read the danish report he was referring to? Prove it by providing the link. I think all the plastic advocates are financially linked to the petroleum industries.

[@NANAbingbangboom]

What we really need is a Replicator

[@RebelAlliance42]

Agreed 🖖

[@GamerbyDesign]

Our factories already act as replicator. We need moleculer disaseemblers.

[@megashley1963]

@@GamerbyDesign Replicators do that too.

[@NANAbingbangboom]

@@GamerbyDesign it was a star trek reference

[@GamerbyDesign]

@@NANAbingbangboom Oh I know.

[@raventown3683]

Interestingly I've only used my reusable bags a few times each, but I've been using the same "single use" plastic Denny's bag almost every day for about 9 months.

[@slevinchannel7589]

Hi.

[@cornbreadfedkirkpatrick9647]

I like these long videos they give a different view on a wide variety of subjects like with any new invention there is room for greed and corruption even the 3 -D printers that could use recycled plastic could run into trouble I remember the growing bags video, what about the bacteria that has been eating plastic?

[@dafttool]

The whole point of degradable plastics is to make them smaller & smaller. But now we know about the dangers of micro plastics 😱 We need to get the micro plastics to degrade down even further.

[@lordgarion514]

Biodegradable plastics aren't "plastics" that come from oil. Breaking down biodegradable plastics is basically breaking down corn and potatoes.

[@blackpackhomesteadchrisand7337]

Homesteading always helps me reduce my carbon emissions. Raise my own food and grow a garden. My KZbin channel is based on that.

[@mirandabeaudry7936]

THISSSSSSS

[@blackpackhomesteadchrisand7337]

@@mirandabeaudry7936 I live what I believe. Thank you Ms. Miranda!

[@ascendantmadness347]

Use a laundry hamper/bag to go grocery shopping... If you are in a personal vehicle, don't bag them at all in the grocery store, just put them back into the cart and unload them into the vehicle directly. Once you get home, use any other practical thing you can think of to carry them into the house. No version of grocery bags required at all.

[@ebonyblack4563]

Another reuse option for plastic bags: Packing material, be this for something going into storage/mail/moving, or as a packing fill inside stuffed toys. This does make the stuffed object non-washable, but if you're looking at making/repairing a mostly decorative piece then it's perfect.

[@QueenElsaVeganfromEurope]

Wtf bro that's amazing!

[@robertgermainii7813]

Most definitely.

[@Felix.Wingfield]

Banning plastic in everything that you can find at a grocery store sounds good to me.

[@k0ziolRD]

While doing masters degree i had a thesis with BPA (immunology). It showed, that samples with BPA had increased inflammatory reaction than control group, but BPA with Lp(a) had decreased inflammatory response than Lp(a) alone, which suggests, that BPA can increase inflamation in your body, but when you need it (bacterial infection, thats why Lp(a)) your response is worse.

[@aptorres01]

Great wrk guys thank you

[@tenzinrigdol5936]

Plastic shouldn’t be villainies, it saved a lot of lives with all the medical equipment wrapped in it.

[@brittianyistre]

Yeah. They stated that already

[@jollyroger822]

Probably should have released a retraction to your Damascus Steel episode instead

[@vandanade84]

I can sleep tonight, I've been using my cottong bags as lady purse fir years and the same reusable plastic bags for years as well. And I walk to the stores and back... I feel good now, thanks

[@dimike96]

The reusable bags that I use are made from packaging that otherwise would become trash, my grandmother makes them out of birdseed bags for our whole family

[@TheKento10]

The problem of growing plastic alternatives is water and energy use compared to plastic.

[@robertgermainii7813]

Just here for the comments.

[@abcdeisthekeygaming277]

I still stand by. That a reusable shopping bag is better than a plastic one. Because you can use it for groceries, and anything else you need and you can carry A LOT more weight in them where you might need to use several plastic bags to carry the same item then throw it away after

[@abcdeisthekeygaming277]

Also, having one bag that I can use near unlimited times is better than using thousands of plastic bags that could end up in a landfill or strangling 1000 animals to death as the other extreme. There is too many nuances to say that reusable bags are that bad for the environment compared to single use

[@docwiz]

One incredible study is the micro particles we find in the Antarctic and most remote places on earth, thus reinforcing how intense the spread of plastic is. We are able to measure it on the smallest scales we can and we are worried they are smaller and able to penetrate cellular structures.

[@napoleonibonaparte7198]

We should just go back to a time when we didn’t use plastic instead.

[@Jenny-tm3cm]

Yeah 5:00 he makes a good point

[@lamplove4914]

I mean it is gradually sterilizing the human race and causing hormonal imbalances all over. Now I forgot where I was going with that point….

[@NovaHolyDays]

Population controll!

[@cornbreadfedkirkpatrick9647]

the elite tried this before it on certain minorities in the early days backfired leaving egg on the elites face big time.

[@NovaHolyDays]

@@cornbreadfedkirkpatrick9647 dosent matter what we do we will still create more chaos in the world. It takes less energy to create chaos than repair what has been done. We wont see changes until the Elite is affected by it

[@cornbreadfedkirkpatrick9647]

@@NovaHolyDays In which they'll never admit too

[@NovaHolyDays]

@@cornbreadfedkirkpatrick9647 gotta make that currency from pollution or fail at life :)

[@mirandabeaudry7936]

So I’m grateful for any content y’all make.. and also for providing a space for knowledge sharing. But for someone who find greats distress in the behavior of the world in such topics as mismanaged consumption, I clicked on this video for the “and how we can fix it” portion of the title and I’m left feeling like I have no actual applicable change tips. Now I just upset about most solutions seeming out of reach. Tips welcome from my fellow audience members? Background Note: I’m currently addressing the grocery bag issue already by decreasing my necessity to make grocery trips to begin with by growing food, chem free, and no-till. I also use paper bags for multiple reuses and have even asked a bagger to fill my cart with no bags before (recommend for smaller hauls) As a profession, I am a chem researcher who designs recyclable plastic. I am looking for more ways to help in every day cultural pivots though since that seems to be what’s adding up so rapidly. Does anybody know of clothing companies who publish their manufacturing impact or maybe like hygiene/bath products who use super degradable packaging?

[@unixtreme]

Here in Japan we dispose of plastic bottles without the cap and labels, caps are collected separately and labels go to general plastic as opposed to bottle recycling. So instead of it being separated at the recycling plants we do it at home. The problem being that many people don't bother to do this or to rinse the bottles ruining the recycling.

[@dafttool]

We need to learn how to make “plastics” out of biological materials that can be “grown” into the building blocks we can shape, like cellulose, so that it can eventually truly decay. -Get on that millennials. You don’t even have to give me any credit with your patent. My gift to humanity

[@cornbreadfedkirkpatrick9647]

there is a bacteria that eats plastic

[@cornbreadfedkirkpatrick9647]

@@loishawkeyz1246 nope it's already eating it up

[@cornbreadfedkirkpatrick9647]

@@loishawkeyz1246 really, I'm not sure but it's enjoying the free food

[@laze7992]

STOP COMMERCIAL FISHING

[@babecat2000]

No people need food. Just have it some fish are not caught for an amount of time letting them build up.

[@thegreenvibe9958]

You can make cotton or cloth bags with old clothes and even old curtains. I have been using the same cloth bags which were made by my grandmother 20 years ago repurposing old sarees, curtains, clothes, bedsheets and even sofa and bed covers!!

[@sephirothjc]

About the bag debate, I think it's pretty clear that a recycled heavy plastic bag is the best alternative. I have one that I've been using for 3 years now, which I got as a gift, and it's still got many years to go before it breaks.

[@zb4536]

You've arrived at a conclusion that I was presenting in my lectures for the last 20+ years (and wasn't believed by my students); now, make a similar show about energy sources (a spoiler: my message was very much like the one about plastics) -- as your reach could help many viewers understand this very important issue

[@neokhajit3978]

what about aluminium bags? 100% recyclable. Its a win win!

[@mmseng2]

I like this guy.

[@oxylepy2]

"2016 may have come close" Oh you sweet summer child

[@Pippis78]

I hope people realize everything concerning cotton bags applies to CLOTHES. Not buying those cotton bags might be "green", but if you don't change how you consume fashion, the impact is minimal... Not buying 1 cotton bag that you would easily use several years - but still buying 10 new clothing items every month. We should change our fashion culture. No more quick fashion. Quality clothes that endure. Using clothes as long as they can be. Recycling, upcycling. Oh! And fleece shirts and other clothes basically made from plastic - SUPER BAD! Washing them releases micro plastics into waters.