PLASTIC STATISTICS

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  PLASTIC STATISTICS  
        plastic aint's so fantastic
                   
Shoppers worldwide are using approximately 500 billion single-use plastic bags per year.

This translates to about a million bags every minute across the globe, or 150 bags a year for every person on earth.  And the number is rising.

IF YOU JOINED THEM END ON END THEY WOULD CIRCUMNAVIGATE THE GLOBE 4,200 TIMES.

100,000 MARINE CREATURES A YEAR DIE FROM PLASTIC ENTANGLEMENT AND THESE ARE THE ONES FOUND.

APPROXIMATELY 1 MILLION SEA BIRDS ALSO DIE FROM PLASTIC.

A PLASTIC BAG CAN KILL NUMEROUS ANIMALS BECAUSE THEY TAKE SO LONG TO DISINTEGRATE. AN ANIMAL THAT DIES FROM THE BAG WILL DECOMPOSE AND THE BAG WILL BE RELEASED, ANOTHER ANIMAL COULD HARMLESSLY FALL VICTIM AND ONCE AGAIN EAT THE SAME BAG.

               

THE FLOODS IN BANGLADESH IN 1988 & 1998 WERE MADE MORE SEVERE BECAUSE PLASTIC BAGS CLOGGED DRAINS. THE GOVERNMENT HAS NOW BANNED PLASTIC BAGS.

IN IRELAND THEY INTRODUCED A 15C PLASTIC BAG TAX AND REDUCED THEIR USAGE BY 90% IN ONE YEAR. IT IS NOW 22 CENTS.
THE #1 MAN MADE THING THAT SAILORS SEE IN OUR OCEAN ARE PLASTIC BAGS.
THERE ARE BELIEVED TO BE 46,000 PIECES OF PLASTIC IN EVERY SQUARE MILE OF OCEAN.

THERE ARE 5 OCEAN GYRES IN THE WORLD WHERE PLASTIC GATHERS DUE TO CURRENT CIRCULATION. THESE GYRES CONTAIN MILLIONS OF PIECES OF PLASTIC AND OUR WILDLIFE FEED IN THESE GROUNDS.

IT CAN TAKE ANYTHING BETWEEN 20-1000 YEARS FOR A PLASTIC BAG TO BREAK UP. I MEAN BREAK UP AS THEY BREAK UP INTO SMALLER PIECES. THEY DON’T BREAK DOWN AND THOSE THAT DO, BREAK DOWN INTO POLYMERS AND TOXIC CHEMICALS.

IT COSTS US$4,000 TO RECYCLE 1 TONNE OF PLASTIC BAGS AND YOU GET A PRODUCT THAT CAN BE SOLD ON THE COMMODITIES MARKET FOR US$32. WE MUST STOP THEM BECAUSE RECYCLING IS NOT VIABLE.

IT TAKES JUST 4 FAMILY SHOPPING TRIPS TO ACCUMULATE 60 SHOPPING BAGS.
WORLD WIDE, 13,000-15,000 PIECES OF PLASTIC ARE DUMPED INTO THE OCEAN EVERY DAY.

EVERY YEAR, 6.4 MILLION TONNES ARE DUMPED INTO THE OCEAN. THIS IS THE SAME AS 3,200 KILOMETRES OF TRUCKS EACH LOADED WITH GARBAGE.

AT LEAST TWO THIRDS OF THE WORLD’S FISH STOCKS ARE SUFFERING FROM PLASTIC INGESTION.

OCEAN ACIDIFICATION IS A GROWING PROBLEM
SCIENTISTS HAVE IDENTIFIED 200 AREAS DECLARED AS ‘DEAD ZONES’ WHERE NO LIFE ORGANISMS CAN NOW GROW.

IN AUSTRALIA :

AUSTRALIA ALONE USES 6.9 BILLION PLASTIC BAGS A YEAR OF WHICH 3.6 BILLION ARE PLASTIC SHOPPING BAGS.

IF YOU TIED 6.9 BILLION PLASTIC BAGS TOGETHER END ON END THEY WOULD TRAVEL AROUND THE WORLD 42.5 TIMES.

AUSTRALIANS DUMP 36,700 TONNES OF PLASTIC BAGS INTO OUR LANDFILL EVERY YEAR. THAT EQUATES TO 4,000 BAGS A MINUTE OR 230,000 PER HOUR

ONLY 10% OF AUSTRALIANS TAKE THEIR PLASTIC BAGS FOR RECYCLING
IT COSTS THE AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENT IN EXCESS OF $4 MILLION TO CLEAN UP PLASTIC BAG LITTER EACH YEAR.

IF EACH AUSTRALIAN FAMILY USED 1 LESS PLASTIC BAG EACH WEEK THAT WOULD BE 253 MILLION BAGS LESS A YEAR.

LESS THAN 1% OF PLASTIC BAGS IN AUSTRALIA ARE REUSED.
IF YOU IMAGINE A PIECE OF PLASTIC 1M WIDE.

AS A CONSERVATIVE GUESTIMATE, A LENGTH OF THIS PLASTIC 40KM LONG IS PRODUCED EACH DAY AND THIS IS FOR ONE BRAND OF TOILET PAPER PACKAGING. FOR BREAD YOU CAN TRIPLE THE LENGTH (120KM LONG).

Bottled water story :

                                          More than a billion people around the world do not have access to safe drinking water. Most countries that buy bottled water have the luxury of quality tap water, yet despite this:

Drinking from a plastic water bottle left in a hot car can cause cancer.

             Fact: This rumor falsely claims that dioxins‚Äîa group of toxic chemicals associated with an array of health problems, including breast cancer‚Äîleach from the heated plastic into the water.

  

Plastics do not contain dioxins, and the sun's rays are not strong enough to create them, says Michael Trush, PhD, deputy director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Urban Environmental Health. Most single-use beverage bottles sold in the United States are made from polyethylene terephthalate (PET), a substance tested extensively for safety. There is some evidence that heat can cause bisphenol A (BPA), a compound that's been shown to have estrogenic effects in animal studies, to leach from plastic bottles into the water. (The "estrogenic effects" are thought to impact cancer risk.) However, most single-use water bottles sold in the United States are made from BPA-free plastic. And there's no proven link to breast cancer in women anyway. To be safe, drink from a reusable plastic bottle labeled "BPA free," or choose water bottles with a "1," "2," "4," or "5" in the recycling symbol on the bottom. 

Research shows they can miss up to 20% of breast cancers in women who don't have any symptoms. Mammography reduces a woman's risk of dying from breast cancer by only 16%, according to the Dr. Susan Love Research Foundation. And just because one exam comes back normal doesn't mean breast cancer won't develop later—which is why some current guidelines call for mammograms annually. To be safe, do self breast exams, paying particular attention to any changes in how your breasts look or feel. Women under 40 should have a clinical exam done every 3 years. Women 40 and older should get one yearly. Ask your doctor about the latest screening technology: Digital mammograms detected 15% more cancers in women under age 50 and 11% more in women with dense breasts, according to one study, and digital MRIs picked up 77% of cancers in women with a genetic mutation, compared with 36% detected by mammography.

                    

.Tips to use less plastic :
                                           Stop using plastic straws, even in restaurants. If a straw is a must, purchase a reusable stainless steel or glass straw
Use a reusable produce bag.

 A single plastic bag can take 1,000 years to degrade. Purchase or make your own reusable produce bag and be sure to wash them often!

Give up gum. Gum is made of a synthetic rubber, aka plastic.

Buy boxes instead of bottles. Often, products like laundry detergent come in cardboard which is more easily recycled than plastic.

Purchase food, like cereal, pasta, and rice from bulk bins and fill a reusable bag or container. You save money and unnecessary packaging.

Reuse containers for storing leftovers or shopping in bulk.

Use a reusable bottle or mug for your beverages, even when ordering from a to-go shop
Bring your own container for take-out or your restaurant doggy-bag since many restaurants use styrofoam.
Use matches instead of disposable plastic lighters or invest in a refillable metal lighter.

Avoid buying frozen foods because their packaging is mostly plastic. Even those that appear to be cardboard are coated in a thin layer of plastic. Plus you'll be eating fewer processed foods!