Episode 173

[FOCUS] Only 9% of Plastic EVER Produced Has Been Recycled

Episode Summary:  This segment is from a longer episode in which Olabanji and Leekei discuss the trap of plastic recycling and look for ways to take action  

Only 9% of plastics ever produced has actually been recycled knowing that the world has been producing plastic for over 70 years… 

The entire lifecycle of plastic is bad for the environment, from production to its disposal. We’ve been lured to the idea that recycling plastic is a sustainable option so we can keep producing and using more and more plastics. It is not true. It is a trap.

To listen to the full episode go here.

For more information on the project and to order your copy of the Carbon Almanac, visit thecarbonalmanac.org

Want to join in the conversation?

Visit thecarbonalmanac.org/podcasts and send us a voice message on this episode or any other climate-related ideas and perspectives.

Don’t Take Our Word For It, Look It Up!

You can find out more on pages 78 and 79 of the Carbon Almanac and on the website you can tap the footnotes link and type in 027 and 346

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Featuring Carbon Almanac Contributors Leekei Tang and Olabanji Stephen

Leekei is a fashion business founder, a business coach, an international development expert and podcaster from Paris, France.  

Olabanji is from Lagos Nigeria, he’s a Creative Director and visual designer that helps brands gain clarity, deliver meaningful experiences and build tribes through Design & Strategy. He founded Jorney - a community designed to help people stay productive, accountable, and do their best work.

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The CarbonSessions Podcast is produced and edited by Leekei Tang, Steve Heatherington and Rob Slater.

Transcript
Speaker:

Plastics don't go anywhere.

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They remain here the entire

life cycle of a plastic.

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It's dangerous from

producing to using to topo.

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Life cycle is, is just ridiculous.

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Yes, it emits a lot of carbon dioxide

and, and it's not easily . Uh,

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recycled as well in the almanac.

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I saw that less than, um, like

only 9% of plastic produced.

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Since 1950 has been recycled.

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Let me say that again,

but in a different way.

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So only 9% of plastic producers

:

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What that means is that all the

plastics that we've been producing

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on the earth since 19 60, 90

1% of them are still here now.

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Oh, not recycled.

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They're either in landfills, in trashcan.

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In the ground somewhere, but they're here.

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They're right here.

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91% of all the plastics.

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Now imagine the number of

plastics that are produced every

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single day all around the world.

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I cannot imagine that

they, I have no idea.

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. It must be a lot, my God.

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Then you have 91% of those

for, for like, that's about 72

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years of producing plastics and

not getting, Even 10% of them.

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And sometimes those are single

use plastic like cutteries,

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like you know, plastic bags.

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Not anymore, but it's

been going on for ages.

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, you know, whenever you go shopping,

you get plastic bags and cutteries

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I mean, when you take something to

take away and to have a picnic, they

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give you cuties, this kind of thing.

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This is crazy.

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I don't know.

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I think we need the government here

because the only way to get this companies

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to package without plastics is if the

government makes it a law, that's the

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only way that it's going to be gradual.

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But the government has to step up to this.

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We need to vote somebody in that,

in our, in our respective countries.

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I mean, what.

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I mean, if you can vote, please do vote

in someone that cares about the Earth.

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And before you vote them in, ask

them what's your plan for the earth?

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If they don't have a great plan.

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Don't vote them, vote someone

that is going to care about,

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you know, creating policies and

things that will help the earth.

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Example.

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Yeah.

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Tell the companies you

can't have plastic bags.

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Yes.

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No, actually the, the voting

part works for some sectors.

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Like, for example, in France

now, , we don't have plastic bags

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when you do your grocery shopping,

because before that we have.

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I mean, before that I didn't

even buy any, uh, bags for, uh,

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for trash because I just reuse.

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Yeah, my, my, the plastic bags.

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But now it's forbidden when

you go grocery shopping.

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No more plastic bags.

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, before I was giving for free

and also the plastic cuts and

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strolls, all those are bann.

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So we are making progress.

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Yeah, that sounds great.

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Yeah.

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Because there was a public pressure on

the government, uh, to pass those laws.

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And at the beginning

it was weird, you know?

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Yeah.

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Um, even for me, he was quite

environmental conscious.

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Yeah.

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I think I thought how I'm going

to do my grocery shopping.

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We have all plastic bags

and I just adapt my habits.

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. Yeah.

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That's, that's the fastest, most

impactful way to make a change.

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The government.

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Yeah.

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The government, I mean, the, the thing

has to, the regulation and the, uh, I

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don't know if it's the pressure, but

the frame of action has to come from

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the government , I really think so.

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One of the things I believe is.

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Honestly, if governments would, would

take a stand if they would care, and

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if they would work together, a lot of

things would really work on the air.

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But it's not their responsibility.

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Well, it's their responsibility

to do those things, but we

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also need to step up to demand.

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Many of these things to remind

them that it is their job.

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Yeah.

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To remind them that it's their job and to

react when they don't do their jobs right.

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We need to speak up and not just speak

up, take actions and when necessary.

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Right.

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Because the people have power

to, to control the government as

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much as the government has power

to influence the people as well.

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We can influence the government

by saying things that we want done

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and getting them to do them right?

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Yeah.

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Because I think that, you know,

um, if you buy things that contains

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plastic and believe that this will

be recycled, and you are, you are not

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doing anything damaging for the planet.

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It's a trap.

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Yeah, it's a trap because most of

the plastics cannot be, I, and as

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you said, most of the plastics that

we have produced are not recycled.

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Yeah.

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So making people believe that

it can be recycled and it

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will be recycled is a trap.

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And, um, so yes thinking of recycling

is one thing, but also we need the,

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the government to be involved and

explain things a little, little bit.

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Clarity, more clarity and

nuances as well, I think.

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Yeah, I totally agree.

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Useless plastic.

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Don't if you don't use plastics

or unless you absolutely have to.

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And if you want to throw them away,

look for an actual recycling plant.

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Oh, not.

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Believe that it will be recycled.

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Carbon Almanac

When it comes to the climate, we don’t need more marketing or anxiety. We need established facts and a plan for collective action.

The climate is the fundamental issue of our time, and now we face a critical decision. Whether to be optimistic or fatalistic, whether to profess skepticism or to take action. Yet it seems we can barely agree on what is really going on, let alone what needs to be done. We urgently need facts, not opinions. Insights, not statistics. And a shift from thinking about climate change as a “me” problem to a “we” problem.

The Carbon Almanac is a once-in-a-lifetime collaboration between hundreds of writers, researchers, thinkers, and illustrators that focuses on what we know, what has come before, and what might happen next. Drawing on over 1,000 data points, the book uses cartoons, quotes, illustrations, tables, histories, and articles to lay out carbon’s impact on our food system, ocean acidity, agriculture, energy, biodiversity, extreme weather events, the economy, human health, and best and worst-case scenarios. Visually engaging and built to share, The Carbon Almanac is the definitive source for facts and the basis for a global movement to fight climate change.

This isn’t what the oil companies, marketers, activists, or politicians want you to believe. This is what’s really happening, right now. Our planet is in trouble, and no one concerned group, corporation, country, or hemisphere can address this on its own. Self-interest only increases the problem. We are in this together. And it’s not too late to for concerted, collective action for change.