plastic paradise transcript

Back in Oregon, I found one of these new technologies. The voyage she completes can motivate students to discover more about pollution of all kinds on their own. It was manufactured. They're not going to be able to continue to drill that oil and gas and burn it for energy anymore because the climate can't sustain it, so this is their lifeline. LAURA LEEBRICK, Manager, Government Affairs, Rogue Disposal: What youre seeing happening right now isthats a full-sizethat's probably a 53-foot trailer. And Liesemer found a solution. The recycling system that we have at the moment, its not really recycling because some part of it exportedbeing exported all over the world to be "recycled," but you never know whether its really being recycled overseas or not. Let's get these bills passed. Science tells us that we need to significantly reduce our use of materials overall, and yet for the most part, the policymakers are still focused with laserlike intensity on recycling. You guys have been around for a long time. But there are growing concerns here that a lot of plastic waste is not being handled the right way, and Indonesian officials are trying to prevent what happened in China from happening here. Watch Plastic Paradise: The Great Pacific Garbage Patc - Tubi Thousands of miles away from civilization, Midway Atoll is in one of the most remote places on earth. Sarah Appleton, National Geographic Society. Were they? The industry found another way to promote plastic using recycling. Behind the lens, Angela directed and produced the award-winning feature documentary film "Plastic Paradise: The Great Pacific Garbage Patch" currently on the film festival circuit and set to release later this year. Reflection of the documentary Plastic Paradise: The Great Pacific Have we made any progress? 'This is an issue of vast scales. Once in the ocean there is really no way to get it out, other than hope that it washes up on a shore and is collected. This package here is technically recyclable. Industry wouldnt even consider, say, no triangle, or a circle, or. This is the same kind of thinking that ran in the '90s. And the guy industry tapped decades ago to get recycling going isnt surprised. The Midwest Book Review'Intriguing..chilling filmJournalist Angela Sun offers valuable new insights.' Plastic Paradise is an excellent, accessible, and troubling documentary that reveals these issues. After a 30-minute drive, we reached a quiet neighborhood with an area hidden from the road. Were a not-for-profit. The Boston Globe, Sun, Angela (screenwriter) Were they misleading the public? As plastics break down through photodegradation, they leach out colorants and chemicals, such as bisphenol A (BPA), that have been linked to environmental and health problems. Plastic is different than any Film Review: Plastic Paradise, The Great Pacific Garbage Patch They said that the chasing arrows symbol was OK, as long as it was small and on the bottom of packaging. The big leverage is with the producers. It has really good engineering qualities; it protects food very well. Well, you would imagine that when you take a garment off the rack and take it to the checkout counter, then this should go back. [Chanting] Save our Earth! 18 billion pounds of plastic waste end up in the ocean every year. Id come to see what its archive could tell me about the evolution of the plastic problem. Use and discard, and then this is where it all ends up. But if it's not happening in Oregon, it makes me wonder what's going on in the rest of the country. It was a critical moment. While the efforts to change consumer behavior helped clean up the more visible litter problem, they did little to address the root cause. To preview films or license them for streaming, you must register and login. FEMALE. That was one of the comments early, that it implied that those products were being recycled. The U.N. estimates by 2050 there will be more plastic in the ocean than fish. Because we thought that it was getting recycled gave us the freedom"OK, no problem. Honolulu Pulse'Offers some alarming information that might cause viewers to think twice about buying one-time-use water bottles.' Dr. Mike SanClements, Staff Scientist, The National Ecological Observatory Network, Affiliate Faculty, Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research, University of Colorado-Boulder'Sun's documentary sends a clear and coherent message about one of the major environmental problems we face today. It really became a metaphor of, "We are bumping up against limits here. So let's take a look at these blueberries. Coy Smith ran recycling centers in Southern California in the 1980s and early '90s. Demand for low-cost plastic continues to grow, and the production of new plastic is rapidly expanding. The film won many awards and was released in 2013. Like in the '90s, the industry has been spending money on ads. Lets be the ones that came together to change the world. We took a trek up to Wilmington and this one DuPont executive, he said, "I think if we had $5 million"which seemed like a lot of money then"if we had $5 million, we could solve this problem.". Let's put these away and let me show you another recycling label. But it isnt just industry thats kept consumers focused on recycling for so long. Not a good idea for the environment. I think the chemical industry, and the plastics industry specifically, need to take very seriously this reaction thats going on. So, contaminated plastic trash is as big a problem for you guys as narcotics and drugs coming into the country. In 2015, a marine biologist came across a sea turtle in distress. We have not had any model shows around here in a long time! and plastic bans are spreading across the country. I would say that their conclusions in 1973, you say, are still true. It didnt make any sense. For the oil and gas industry, the stakes are higher, too, because single-use plastic is their Plan B. Recycle, bury, what to do with it? Do you fundamentally think that in the United States recycling could ramp up to a capacity to handle the vast majority of plastic that's being produced? What does coral treat? Dr. Sherri A. Mason, Professor of Chemistry, Environmental Sciences Program Coordinator, SUNY at Fredonia'We are all familiar with trash, but most of us likely are unaware of indestructible plastic trash that pollutes the oceans, contaminates our seafood, kills birds, fish, and marine mammals as well as carrying toxic substances into the environment and our bodies. It's margarine tubs, clamshells, deli containers. The big problem is that it is all about money, profits. There are a lot of different kinds of plastics that have to be sorted. I watched the film with some of my students so I can attest that it appeals to the younger generation. Plastic Paradise: The Great Pacific Garbage Patch DOCUMENTARY The invention of synthetic plastic created an era of disposable products. to tout the virtues of plastics as a way of heading off the criticism the industry was experiencing. In this independent documentary film, journalist/filmmaker Angela Sun travels on a personal journey of discovery to uncover this mysterious phenomenon. Recyclers and the plastic makers couldn't agree on how to change the code. What we put in our recycling bins ends up in sorting plants like this one, outside of Portland. But I had millions of dollars to do what I felt was necessary. Looking back, do you think putting the banner on the Mobro was a mistake? In Oregon, again, there are no curbside programs that would accept any of these tubs. I said everybody up here said they don't want the plant. Angela Sun provides an excellent model of how one curious person can use her talents to follow her interests, speak from the heart, and contribute to improving the world. Elizabeth A. Newell, Stephanie Hanus, Stevie Monteiro, Destiny Harbison, and James McTighe. This film makes the case that the only solution is source control, and that consumers have a great deal of underutilized power.' Plastic Paradise | Bullfrog Films: 1-800-543-3764: Environmental DVDs One of those companies is DuPont, and on the grounds of the first du Pont family home, I found the Hagley Library. The big problem is that it is all about money, profits. Plentiful supplies of natural gas are driving down the cost of making plastic. One in every 10 Americans took part in rallies, concerts and. [Speaking Indonesian] If its not useful, we put it into the community. Instead, what they disclose is the recycling logo. Americans need to know that your waste ended up here. Addicted to Plastic - DocuWiki We can't delay this for another 10, 20, 30 years or we're going to be. So, we dont think banning these products is necessarily the right way to go. ", "We must immediately undertake a major program of unprecedented proportions to reverse this fast-moving tidal wave of growing negative public perception.. It spent most of its money, millions and millions of dollars, on advertising. Documentary. Plastic Paradise is the first documentary to chronicle the rise, fall, and resurgence of tiki, or Polynesian pop, one of the defining cultural trends of postwar America. Plastic Paradise Worksheet.pdf - Plastic Paradise 1 Why is That wasnt the intent. David Allaway is a senior policy analyst with the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality. But even as Liesemer and his colleagues were publicly promoting recycling, privately, the industry had long expressed doubt it was ever going to happen on a broad scale. This confusion about what can and cant be recycled, and where plastic ultimately ends up, is no accident. Can we come in and look? From 1990 to 2010, production more than doubled. Let's just go knock and see if maybe someone will talk to us. based on Indonesian customs documents wed obtained. MALE SPEAKER: I don't want to pull it too hard. In a highly controversial action, one county in New York state has voted to ban all packaging made of two kinds of plastic. Once a completely natural product, much of today's plastic is man-made and largely dependent upon fossil fuels. How could they go into all of these communities and tell people "You just have to recycle" when they knew there were so many problems and so many hurdles? New Harvestindo eventually got back to us and denied it was responsible for doing anything that damaged the environment. By 2050, its estimated that global production of plastic will triple. Responding to pressure from states and environmentalists to better identify the many types of plastic, it created a code to tell them apart. In this state, none of this is recyclable. 'This is an issue of vast scales. We dont want that. Watertight and endlessly malleable, plastic is the perfect invention yet, its miraculous durability is also its curse because it never goes away. And the remaining plastic waste will then be disposed of. This is a pile of U.S. recycling. To appease government officials, the industry funded a local recycling pilot project. Funding for FRONTLINE is provided through the support of PBS viewers and by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Plastics have been around since the 1930's. It is virtually indestructible, never deteriorates and is produced by using resources from two of the largest money making industries in the world: oil and gas. Theres no one that would even take it if I paid them to take it." This is the big war. Thomas wouldnt sit down for an on-camera interview but agreed to talk on the phone. Plastic Paradise: The Great Pacific Garbage Patch - ResearchGate Allaway is a leading authority on the environmental impacts of materials, like plastic. Forty years on, despite a plastic crisis thats been getting worse, the industrys future seems bright. ", We never asked the question, "Are they doing it the right way? EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler was talking up the future of recycling. Plastic Paradise - YouTube I showed Ron Liesemer industry reports we found dating as far back as the 1970s. Go to some other symbol, just not the triangle. the equivalent of a garbage truck dumped every minute. So, it was up to us in the plastics industry to solve this problem so that they could continue to package their products in plastic. We cannot keep just continuing this mindless consumerism, mindless consumption and dump it somewhere else. harden plastic. LEWIS FREEMAN, VP, Society of the Plastics Industry, 1978-2001: A vice president of the DuPont company pulled me aside and said, "You guys better get up to Wilmington. The good news is they're coming. An endangered sea turtle? How did it get there?The trash survey was conducted on a beach. They want to sell more plastic containers. Idea for Use in the ClassroomHenderson Island in the South Pacific was named a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage site in 1988. Film Review: Plastic Paradise: The Great Pacific Garbage Patch Another priority is narcotics. Made from readily available petroleum, plastic was the go-to material for the war machine. The manufacturing of plastic has increased from 20 million pounds worldwide in 1927 to 115 billion in 2014. Dr. Joel Baker, Director, UW Puget Sound Institute, Professor and Port of Tacoma Chair in Environmental Science, University of Washington Tacoma'Angela Sun has found a way to present the imminent dangers of plastics pollution in a jarringly visual and inquisitive formatSignificant take-home messages include a misconception of just how few plastic products are recyclable, and that plastics production will continue to increase as long as the demand for plastic products remains. ThermaSet is the future. Honolulu Pulse'Offers some alarming information that might cause viewers to think twice about buying one-time-use water bottles.' Recycle, bury, what to do with it? 08/08/2014. The smell of burnt plastic was in the air, and all around, there were sacks of plastic, and big piles, too. Welcome to Portland. Along the way she meets scientists, researchers, influencers, and volunteers who shed light on the effects of our rabid plastic consumption and learns the problem is more insidious than we could have ever imagined. General Information . William J. Cooper, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Director of the Urban Water Research Center, University of California-Irvine'A fun and well-balanced introduction to a complex environmental topic. 1. We need to increase the interest in and demand for recycled materials and more products made from recycled materials. Thousands of miles away from civilization, Midway Atoll is in one of the most remote places on earth. Because that's how big a demand of manufacturing was there in China. If you have questions about licensing content on this page, please contact ngimagecollection@natgeo.com for more information and to obtain a license. We'll just buy new hangers. How does this conflict compare to what you saw happen in the '80s and '90s when this last came up with this kind of fervor? Considering the creation of plastic was used as a substitute for . Do your part, save the Earth, recycle. In the last 20 years weve seen more environmental degradations and environmental problems in Indonesia. Plastic Paradise looks to make difference with plastic consumption Well, that is a challenge. But more than half of all people that live in the Portland area believe this belongs in the curbside container. But as we continued our reporting in Oregon, we heard about a surprisingly similar effort that took place more than 25 years ago at a recycling company 50 miles away called Garten Services. Timothy Hoellein, Aquatic Ecologist, Assistant Professor of Biology, Loyola University'With fantastic archival footage, revealing modern images from the pacific and thoughtful, fact-based explanation, Plastic Paradise provides an educational, hip, and very entertaining look at some of the many ways plastic is affecting us all. What items were most common? Plastic Paradise CNN.com - Transcripts [Speaking Indonesian] It used to be only once a month, but now it can be two or three times a week. Plastic Paradise engages students by illustrating how their everyday interactions with plastic are connected to pollution at the farthest, most exotic corners of the world. That code was a numbering system put inside the well-known symbol for recyclingthe chasing arrows. The idea behind that particular facility is if we improve the way that recyclables move down the conveyor belt, so they get separated, we're going to create better, cleaner streams of like materials. In New Jersey, I met a man who built a $180 million recycling business off of that waste. The question that people are going to have is what are they supposed to do to make this better? Some people have a deep, abiding respect for the natural beauty that was once this country. This is one of the easiest visualizations of how humans (not all, but many) have lost connection with the environment--a sad state of affairs--but the truth.' The film's haunting message highlights the importance of society transitioning to the existing truly biodegradable polymers wherever possible and as soon as possible.' Starring Angela Sun Wallace J. Nichols. [CDATA[ How big can the trash get? Oh, yes. Carl F. Cranor, Professor of Philosophy, Faculty of Environmental Toxicology Graduate Program, University of California-Riverside'Plastic Paradise warns that the environment is everyone's responsibility, and that humanity cannot turn a blind eye to its own garbage forever. Reveals the history and worldwide scope of plastics pollution, investigates its toxicity and explores solutions. Others, like Colgate-Palmolive, saw a need for better education. I remember being a kid and watching those ads. Environmentalists have, too. And you just need to sort out your recyclables and do your part. Yes. COY SMITH, Former board member, National Recycling Coalition: During that time, the plastics industry, they went around to states and they convinced those states to pass lawsand they did this very quietlythey passed laws that required that symbol with the number on it be put on plastic containers sold in that state. And few places have pursed recycling more aggressively than Oregon. Lately there's been a lot of talk about how plastics impact our lives, for better or worse. For decades, the national response to the growing plastic waste problem has focused on one solution: recycling. Our system is woefully inadequate and it needs dramatic investment. But most other types of plastic are technically difficult and often costly to recycle, and that makes them nearly impossible to sell, so they keep piling up. Once in the ocean there is really no way to get it out, other than hope that it washes up on a shore and is collected. We call it Plasticstown USA. People start pollution. Can we afford, ecologically or economically, to turn it off or to leave it running? Using the infographic and a world map, point out the pattern of ocean currents. This is classic. Plastic Paradise: The Great Pacific Garbage Patch - Where Art Meets We reached out to the two recycling companies known locally as Harvest. New Harvestindo still wouldnt respond to us, and the other company denied it was behind the dumping.

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