I don’t know about you, but I have been very concerned about all the plastic waste that is dumped in the ocean, the landfills or has been shipped to other countries to dispose of. Additionally, after years of sending boatloads of our garbage overseas, many countries including China have recently said “NO” to accepting any more shipments of our trash. China has been taking half the world’s plastic waste for years. Germany has been shipping three quarters of their plastic waste to China. Maybe this will motivate their brilliant engineers to invent a solution for this catastrophic global situation.
Every day we all have contact with thousands of different forms of plastics uses, from plastic wrappers, containers, toys, bottles, straws, etc.…. So, what to do about this global crisis that we have created for ourselves? Well, I was very interested to read in this week’s Economist that John McGeehan of the University of Portsmouth in Britain and his colleagues have reported details of the discovery of a bacterial enzyme called PETASE, which can break down the polyethylene terephthalate (PET) used in the production of plastic bottles. They have engineered a version of the enzyme that can digest plastic faster than any natural variety. The report is published in “Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.” This plastic-munching bacteria, called Ideonella sakaiensis 201-F6, was discovered in 2016 at a PET-bottle recycling plant in Sakai, Japan. While more research on the bacteria is needed, the discovery does, thankfully shine a hopeful light on the whole global crisis. If they can surmount the development for industrial use, PETASE might begin to make a dent in the alarming situation the world is in with all our plastic waste.
We must also do our part by becoming more sensitive to the overuse of plastic and its eventual disposal. One of the first things when out eating and drinking is to ask your server not to give you a plastic straw. Billions of straws are produced yearly, which often end up in the ocean where they all too often get caught in turtles’ noses or blocked their stomachs. If you want a straw, ask for a paper one or buy your own metal straw and carry it with you.
Recently, we returned from Maui, which we travel to often to visit our son who works there. There are so many wonderful turtles there to watch and enjoy but unfortunately, we see far too many who have been injured by the plastic in the oceans. Many of these injured turtles and sea life are often found on the beaches, or in some cases in the ocean in crisis. Some are fortunate to be rescued by volunteers and then operated on to clear their mouths, noses and insides from the pollution of plastic waste in the oceans. However, for many sea creatures it is often too late.
While the consequences of all this plastic waste in the ocean are not often visible to our eyes, the damage to sea life is obvious. Fine plastic particles are also causing imbalances in the water. When washed, synthetic fiber particles from some synthetic fabrics begin to break down in the water. Water balances are further harmed when plastic particles from beauty products such as shampoos and toothpaste have been made to incorporate these plastic particles.
So, if we can begin the cleanup process using the promising newly discovered enzyme, plus get more serious about recycling plastic into other products like roof tiles and synthetic wood, we’ll have hope for the future.
As I am writing this article for apparel-related professionals, who for the most part are aware of these issues, it is my hope that we can work together to help alleviate some of the industry pollution issues. The clothing industry is a guilty polluter of our environment and we should begin a serious dialogue to address and solve the problem of plastic waste, pollution of the ocean and the overproduction of clothing.
