DailyDirt: Nature Recycles All The Time, So Should We...

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

Plastics are everywhere. It's hard to imagine all the modern conveniences that exist because of the existence of plastic and polymers, and it would be difficult to continue living a modern lifestyle without plastics. Maybe we're starting to try not to use plastic bags to carry groceries home in some places, but the bad environmental reputation of plastic might have some solutions. Plastics could be made to be easier to recycle. Also, we could replace some of the more problematic plastics with more environmentally-friendly materials. After you've finished checking out those links, take a look at our Daily Deals for cool gadgets and other awesome stuff.
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Filed Under: fungus, ideonella sakainesis, materials, mold, plastics, polymers, recycling, thermoset plastics


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  • identicon
    Lawrence D’Oliveiro, 18 Apr 2016 @ 5:17pm

    Nature Also Runs Everything On Nuclear Power ...

    ... yet for some reason certain groups who describe themselves as “nature-lovers” are not so fond of this ...

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • identicon
      Duenston, 19 Apr 2016 @ 6:29am

      Re: Nature Also Runs Everything On Nuclear Power ...

      ...and Nature kills every living thing on the planet, eventually. Individual humans don't survive long, but we MUST save the plastics!

      Such appeals to "Nature" by environmentalist leftists are irrational.

      Landfills for plastics-garbage are dramatically more economical & environmentally safeer than recycling.

      If recycling made any economic sense, the government would not have to force people to do it-- people & businesses would eagerly recycle to make money.

      For average people, the only thing worth recycling is aluminum cans. No American municipal curbside recycling program even breaks even on the $$$ cost/benefit scale -- it's a huge scam on the public.

      Bury the plastics garbage.

      link to this | view in chronology ]

      • identicon
        Anonymous Coward, 19 Apr 2016 @ 10:51am

        Re: Re: Nature Also Runs Everything On Nuclear Power ...

        I failed to find any data backing up your claims, I even looked twice.

        Yeah, let's just toss our crap in the ocean - what could possibly go wrong?

        Oh ... and the market is self regulating - LOL - good one!

        link to this | view in chronology ]

      • icon
        Ninja (profile), 20 Apr 2016 @ 3:23am

        Re: Re: Nature Also Runs Everything On Nuclear Power ...

        U mad, bro?

        Taking steps to avoid screwing the environment costs. And there's no immediate benefit in applying such measures. But in the long term? The best example that comes to mind is Minamata in Japan. They only started caring for the waste they were throwing in the environment when several people started becoming ill and dying. When it starts costing money then companies will adopt treatment systems willingly. But then it might be too late.

        link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Recycle This - Recycle That, 18 Apr 2016 @ 6:58pm

    Recycle Tyres - Easy to do

    There at at least three different patented rubber recycling methodologies that extract the various component materials. The resultant products can include: steel, nylon, kerosene, carbon, sulphur, uncontaminated rubber crumb.

    The problem with implementation of these methodologies is the cost of the licences to use the patents. It will cost enough to actually build the processing plants, but add the ongoing licence fees and it becomes much less financially rewarding to do the actual recycling.

    When I looked at the situation in Australia, the minimum investment needed for a small plant was $10 million, it will be much more now. Not something I could lay my hands on easily enough then, let alone now.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Pixelation, 18 Apr 2016 @ 7:12pm

    "If fungus can be grown quickly enough, perhaps it'll make sense to replace some plastic products with fungus? "

    Just think, psilocybin water bottles...

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Anonymous Coward, 18 Apr 2016 @ 7:14pm

    we've had that for a while...

    its called hemp...

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Vekkon, 12 Mar 2018 @ 3:25am

    Expansion Joint

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • identicon
    Simay Özel Eğitim, 12 Mar 2018 @ 4:01am

    Batıkent Özel Eğitim

    link to this | view in chronology ]

  • icon
    Hayata Dokunanlar (profile), 16 Mar 2019 @ 8:04am

    link to this | view in chronology ]


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