– Much of the plastics in the oceans gets there through rivers – And most gets there only through a small number of rivers – these 20 are responsible for 67% of global annual river input (according to Lebreton et al.) That's why it's great that this is now in operation.
Trumpâs EPA ended the particulate matter advisory board nearly a year ago. The agency also replaced many of the academic scientists on a broader science panel with scientists from industry and conservative states.
Earlier this month, EPA chief Andrew Wheeler selected a new group of ânon-member consultantsâ to assist that panel with work on both particle pollution and smog. About half of the new consultants are linked with industry. Their recommendations to the panel will happen behind the scenes, rather than in public meetings.
Trump really does not care about the health of ordinary Americans, eh?
Trumpâs EPA ended the particulate matter advisory board nearly a year ago. The agency also replaced many of the academic scientists on a broader science panel with scientists from industry and conservative states.
Earlier this month, EPA chief Andrew Wheeler selected a new group of ânon-member consultantsâ to assist that panel with work on both particle pollution and smog. About half of the new consultants are linked with industry. Their recommendations to the panel will happen behind the scenes, rather than in public meetings.
One bright spot the researchers found was that wetland birds have made recoveries, driven largely by increases among waterfowl such as ducks, geese and swans. âItâs because of the strong constituency of recreational waterfowl hunters who raised their voice, put money where their mouths are and saw to it that conservation programs and policies were put in place,â Rosenberg says. âBillions of dollars (were) invested into wetlands (and) into wildlife refuges. The North American Wetlands Conservation Act was enacted in the late 1980s. All of these things were responsible for the turnaround.â The study also found that raptors such as bald eagles have rebounded after legislation extended protections for these birds and banned the pesticide DDTâthanks in part to Silent Spring.
Am happy to see our federal government move in the direction of banning some plastics. Plastics have brought us so much good, yet clearly we do not need to use plastics for convenience sake alone (e.g., retail shopping bags, plastic dinnerware, some take-out food containers, etc.).
What about fleece clothing? Been a big fan of synthetic outdoor clothing for a long time and have recently learned I am depositing micro-plastics — everywhere. Time to send the pile, fleece clothing and underwear to the landfill?
Back to wool?
Thoughts?
I gotta tell you, replacing synthetic clothing for wet, cool west coast autumns and winters is going to be hard.
CNN reports that âCanada will ban many single-use plastic items by 2021, including bags, straws, cutlery and stirring sticks, to cut harmful waste damaging the country's ecosystems.â
The move comes as âthe European Parliament passed a similar ban on single-use plastic items in late March, including a target to recycle 90% of plastic beverage bottles by 2029. In May, the United Kingdom followed suit with a plastic ban by 2020. Officials estimated 4.7 billion plastic straws and 316 million plastic stirrers are used in England every year.
âA report by the European Commission found that 80% of litter in the world's oceans is plastic, due to its slow decomposition. Plastic has been found inside marine animals including sea turtles, seals, whales and birds.â
In a prepared statement, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the plastic issue was â"a problem we simply can't ignore ⦠Plastic waste ends up in our landfills and incinerators, litters our parks and beaches, and pollutes our rivers, lakes, and oceans, entangling and killing turtles, fish, and marine mammals.â
Trudeau said the Canada government âwill work with companies that use or create plastic products to set targets on waste.â
It's kind of sad, tho, when people come in wanting a resume printed or invitations, and they want to look at paper samples. I have to say, "We can't get nice paper anymore. You need to go to Walmart or envelopes.com. We'll do the printing and I'll do the designing, but you have to bring us the paper you want."
I work in the dead trees industry and even tho there aren't as many people making things out of slices of dead trees anymore, it was sort of a shock when we ordered $300 worth of dead trees only to be told that our account has been closed because we don't order enough dead trees anymore and anyway the minimum dead trees order is now $500 and they're not going to deliver it either.
That is, the only paper distributor within 500 miles just told a printer that they won't sell them paper.
