In “The Plastic Problem: PBS NewsHour Presents”, Amna Nawaz and her PBS NewsHour colleagues look at this now ubiquitous material and how it’s impacting the world, why it’s become so prevalent, what’s being done to mitigate its use, and what potential alternatives or solutions are out there.
Plastic Problem
Plastic Waste: We are the Problem
Worldwide 80% of plastic waste ends up in landfills and the environment. There it multiplies by breaking down into smaller pieces, up to sizes that are measured in microns (1000 microns = 1 mm). All the plastic ever manufactured still exists somewhere on Earth, most of it too small to see. It enters the food chain via packaging, water, agricultural produce and other species we consume, and ends up in us.