Plastic angel or demon/recycling process
- 2. What does it mean plastic? Plastics are a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic materials that use polymers as a main ingredient.
- 3. Most modern plastics are derived from fossil fuel-based chemicals like natural gas or petroleum.
- 4. Plastics can be molded, extruded or pressed into solid objects of various shapes. Plastic materials are lightweight, durable, flexible, and inexpensive to produce. Thus it has led to plastic widespread use.
- 5. Plastic Types • Polyethylene terephthalate (PETE or PET) • Polyethylene (PE) • Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) • Polypropylene (PP) • Polystyrene (PS) • Polylactic acid (PLA) • Polycarbonate (PC) • Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) • Polyoxymethylene (POM) or acetal • Nylon (PA) • Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS)
- 6. How Much Plastic We Use? 9.2 billion metric tons of plastic are estimated to have been made between 1950 and 2017, more than half of which has been produced since 2004. In 2020, 400 million tons of plastic were produced. If global trends on plastic demand continue, it is estimated that by 2050 annual global plastic production will reach over 1.1 billion tons.
- 7. Plastic is useble BUT… It is extremely difficult to get rid of plastics. It takes approximately 400 to 600 years for plastic to decompose in nature.
- 8. Microplastics Plastic disperses into small pieces, then it decays into smaller pieces, and the process continues in this way gradually. However, at some point, small pieces of plastic called microplastics form and these enter the air or water much more easily than a bag or bottle and enter the circulation.
- 9. Microplastics were found in 44.3% of all fish, meaning approximately 1 out of every 2 fish contains microplastics.
- 10. Unfortunately, a study conducted in 2021 found microplastics present even in the placenta formed during birth and in the bodies of our newborn babies.
- 11. How Can We Solve This Problem? Plastic waste is typically stored in landfills.
- 12. Many people think that plastic recycling as an effective way to combat plastic waste.
- 13. But is it true?? Humanity has only recycled 9% of the 6.3 billion tons of plastic it has produced - with only 1% being recycled more than once!
- 14. Only about 8-9% of the plastics you throw into recycling bins can actually be recycled; because nearly none of the plastics are truly recyclable.
- 15. Plastic Recycling Process Harmful For.. • Toxic Emissions: Toxic gases and chemicals released during the melting or processing of plastics can harm the environment and human health. • Energy Consumption: Plastic recycling can be an energy- intensive process. Melting or processing plastics may require large amounts of energy, contributing to the use of fossil fuels and greenhouse gas emissions.
- 16. • Contamination Risk: Improper sorting or cleaning of plastic waste increases the risk of contamination in the recycling process. This can reduce the quality of recycled material and decrease the efficiency of recycling facilities. • Water Pollution: Untreated wastewater from plastic recycling facilities can harm water sources and contribute to water pollution. • The Potential Risk Of Fire : Plastics are melted or processed at high temperatures, there is a risk of fire.
- 17. What is the situation in Türkiye? According to the Environmental Performance Review data published by the OECD in 2019, the recycling (and composting) rate in Türkiye is only around 10%, with the remaining waste being used for landfilling.
- 18. One hand hand, while Türkiye continues to increase its own plastic production, on the other hand, it interestingly imports plastic waste from abroad. In fact, Türkiye is the country that imports the most plastic waste in the world in 2019.
- 22. What is your opinion on this matter? let's discuss
- 23. Thanks For Your Attention