Plastic...is it too late?

[imwjl]

Originally Posted by Steve-arino

Thank you - I needed a good laugh today. I went for a calcium heart scan the other day, my heart seems to be ok but they found a "ground glass nodule" on one of my lungs. I'm waiting for my primary dr. to call me back to discuss next steps. I'm a nervous wreck.

Best wishes for that problem sent your way.

[Steve-arino]

Originally Posted by imwjl

Best wishes for that problem sent your way.

Thank you so much imwji. I feel those wishes now :-).

[Bob Womack]

Originally Posted by imwjl

Bob, yes that was really interesting to me when that occurred but I've also caught the story used by pundits as a red herring so not sure of the intent here. It did take a little longer, and it left more localized damage. I was fascinated by all that.

That is not the specific plastics problem where that is showing up in unrelated discoveries. Moving from sky to below....

My father worked directly with the folks who did the environmental study that turned up the physical data that the earth had cleaned itself within two years.*

I presented that, yes an atmospheric cataclysm, as encouragement that the earth has a way of metabolizing the pollutants man puts into its systems. Also, as a note that the popular attitude towards the status of the earth and its challenges can be absolutely wrong. Remember that our entire environmental system of agencies and industries, completely interconnected, depends for its funding upon there being an urgent need for their services. Think about that for a minute. Were there no emergency, there would be no funds. How neutral and objective do you suppose they can be?

Bob


* This was based upon the snow deposition in the polar zones. The method was, and still is, considered reliable for dating and tracking the pollution in the atmosphere. The reason that it didn't get reported much and was questioned was because it provided evidence against the popular narrative.

[Steve-arino]

The word "emergency" conjures an emotional reaction to a potentially quantifiable worldwide pollution problem.

We each have a carbon footprint. My son is an Environmental Economist on "loan" to the US Treasury. He is working on a methodology in order to quantify carbon footprints in order to "charge" $ per carbon footprint to more effectively fight pollution.

We need to take politics and emotions out of the equation in order to deal with pollution effectively. He could explain this a heck of a lot better than I can (he did a presentation at Stanford Univ last night on this topic) but that's the gist. We can't change our approach every time their is a regime change.

[mike o]

Thanks for sharing that story. My first time hearing that.

When I was stating 5 cataclysmic events, the last one was the meteor that took out the dinosaurs and most of everything else. Amazing as that is, earth did recover. Though, it did take a little time.

m

Originally Posted by Bob Womack

My father was an environmental scientist whose work was used throughout the world by the U.S. government. We discussed the environment quite often and I actually worked for an environmental science company while I was in college. He brought up an interesting fact: The cataclysmic eruption of the Mt. Penatubo volcano in the Phillipines in 1991 spewed more pollution of all kinds into the atmosphere than had been produced by man from the start of industrial revolution until the present. Yet the earth neutralized this pollution and had cleared the atmosphere to normal levels within two years.

Amazing. Not well-reported, either.

Bob

[frankmcr]

Between

Just sit back and wait for the problem to solve itself

and

Analyze the problem and use best methods to try & solve it

Seems pretty straightforward which is the better course of action

[Tunesalot]

There are plastics in the remotest reaches. They have found 6-12 pieces of Microplastics of many kinds lodged within each lava/pumice rock washed up on Thai beaches.
Most of us have measurably internalized it, even newborns test positive. Conscious vigilant abstention from using, touching and consuming all of it should be goals for all. Natural forces will not undo these forever creations any time soon. American water got better with the transfer of so much manufacturing in addition to restoration efforts. Not so for the places where those dirty factories we buy our stuff from moved to, which is mostly in Asia. Doesn’t hurt me to try harder.

[LAPlayer]

Great news - It's never too late to do your part.

[imwjl]

The two elements that have shocked or rocked me the most recently have been how all over including complicating heart disease, and the watershed and aquifer discoveries.

20+ years ago visiting remote beaches I thought a lot could be cleaned up. The water problems from the CAFOs made sense but tangents from it in my area were finding the microplastics and PFAS.

For a long time I've liked the synthetic fabrics for sports and in addition knowing some are all recycled materials. There was the mindset that would mean new drilling for oil and gas can be for critical stuff like ag, transportation and construction but not at first thinking lint from a shirt would join the plastic as a problem.

More awareness has to be good, and living with a smaller footprint isn't bad. Still I think other planning has to be in mind and considered. The well costs I mentioned come to mind. With homes in VERY different counties I see just like national news how areas are more and less proactive with problems.

[fazool]

Originally Posted by Steve-arino

T... they found a "ground glass nodule" on one of my lungs. .....

Good luck Steve.

My father-in-law was a glazier and he had a ground glass nodule. As I understand it, thats not dangerous per sa - I mean glass doesnt cause cancer or anything

[The Watchman]

Whether the earth has the capacity to mitigate itself or not, it doesnt mean the pollutants wont have harmful effects in the shorter term. Lead comes from the earth, and is concentrated in humans through our actions, and when we die it goes back to the earth. That doesnt mean its harmless while it's in you.

Plastic may be made from petroleum, but once its changed form, the earth is not going to change it back to oil

The volcano thing is well known among environmental scientists. But the conclusion that we should just throw up our hands and ignore any human impacts is pretty short-sighted. It just proves the world is a hostile place for human life, and we best avoid making it worse.

[RJVB]

Originally Posted by The Watchman

It just proves the world is a hostile place for xxxxx life

T,FTFY

We ain't nothing special in the grand scheme of things (or, as my favourite fortune cookie said: "man is evolution's masterpiece - but who says so?" )

[edcmat-l1]

Originally Posted by LAPlayer

Great news - It's never too late to do your part.

That's my thing.

[Dirk Hofman]

Originally Posted by The Watchman

Whether the earth has the capacity to mitigate itself or not, it doesnt mean the pollutants wont have harmful effects in the shorter term. Lead comes from the earth, and is concentrated in humans through our actions, and when we die it goes back to the earth. That doesnt mean its harmless while it's in you.

Plastic may be made from petroleum, but once its changed form, the earth is not going to change it back to oil

The volcano thing is well known among environmental scientists. But the conclusion that we should just throw up our hands and ignore any human impacts is pretty short-sighted. It just proves the world is a hostile place for human life, and we best avoid making it worse.

Well said. Big +1 on all that.

[stokes1971]

Originally Posted by Steve-arino

Thank you - I needed a good laugh today. I went for a calcium heart scan the other day, my heart seems to be ok but they found a "ground glass nodule" on one of my lungs. I'm waiting for my primary dr. to call me back to discuss next steps. I'm a nervous wreck.

Best of luck with that,Steve. I recently had that test after I had an issue with a blockage in my leg. They put a stent in and then did further testing. I was expecting to at the least need a few more stents, I've been a chain smoker for over 50 yrs. My diet is and has been what drs would call deadly. Came up clean on all fronts, heart, rest of my circulation syst. That one stent they put in my leg was so effective that I was almost disappointed I didnt need more.