One of the major arguments against plastics is that they last for a thousand years, so therefore we must avoid creating any waste plastic because it will accumulate and be with us forever. That sounds ominous, but is it true?
The first thing to say is that all organic materials degrade. For the layperson, organic means everything based on carbon. Organic materials include apples, meat, wood, paper, cotton, our DNA (a polymer), collagen (a polymer), leaves (made of cellulose, which is a polymer), crude oil and so on. Every person will realize this is true as soon as they consider their own experience. An apple will rot and eventually vanish.
Similarly, plastic items we use degrade and fail because they are also organic materials.
Many people will remember the original plastic garden chairs. They were made of polypropylene (PP), and after some months in the sun, they would turn white and brittle and break due to microcracks on their surface. Sunlight was enough to destroy these chairs in a matter of months.
I read an article about museum curators who were frustrated that Neil Armstrong’s iconic spacesuit was degrading and they were powerless to stop the plastic and rubber parts from crumbling. Think about that for a moment. A spacesuit carefully kept out of sunlight and at room temperature, yet still it degrades. In the end, the Smithsonian raised over $700,000 to restore the suit and put it back on display.
The spacesuit was not an isolated case. A good friend of mine was a Plastics Conservator at a London museum and his task was to try to stop the plastic exhibits from falling to pieces. These were all plastic items kept in the cool behind glass, and yet they were degrading in a matter of years or decades.
1000-YEAR PLASTIC MYTH The environmental groups tell us that plastics are bad because they don’t degrade. They normally give a number of either >450 years or a thousand years for the degradation of plastics. If that were true, it would be wonderful because the plastic on my car would last 1,000 years and I would only have to repaint my house every 1,000 years. The plastic siding on our houses would also last a millennium. If plastic did last that long, then we would see 1000-year warranties on the products we buy. Have you ever seen a 1000-year warranty on a plastic item? Try calling your local Home Depot or Lowe’s and ask what plastic products offer a 1000-year warrantee. Your call may well be met with hysterical laughter. No sensible person believes that plastics last that long. We know that from our own experience, so why do people believe the 1000-year myth? Would you rather believe your own eyes or some anonymous blogger?
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