Plastics and the Cost of Modern Living
This April 22, Be an Earth Day Hero
On July 22, 2019, SPI went to Bennington College to record the story of Dr. Sherri A. (“Sam”) Mason. Dr. Mason is a professor of chemistry at Penn State University. She was the first person to identify the presence of microplastics and microfibers in inland waterways. Her work focuses on the monitoring, protection, and management of freshwater systems, specifically the largest freshwater ecosystem in the world - the Great Lakes.
Sam’s research began following a moment of quiet reflection when sailing on Lake Erie.
From her SPI recording:
“The idea hit me as I was looking at the water. I was just watching the water and thinking about everything that I had seen, heard, and read about plastic pollution in the world’s oceans. I thought, here is the largest freshwater ecosystem in the entire world, which is really kind of hard for us to fathom, but it’s true. There is more fresh water in the Great Lakes than in any other place in the entire world. And as much as we know about plastic pollution in the world’s oceans, I wondered if there was plastic in the Great Lakes. Well, that’s where it all started.”
“I wondered.” That simple phrase is at the core of every story in the SPI science collection.
She explains: “When we started the expedition, we were just looking for plastic. And quite honestly, from what I knew about the oceans, I actually thought what we would find were bags and bottles and straws. I thought we would find big things. And we found some. But what was really intriguing to me, from a scientific standpoint, was that the vast majority of plastics that we found were “micro.” As the pieces get smaller, the numbers increase - and they increase exponentially. You go from having ten large items to having millions of pieces of plastic that are less than one millimeter in size. As a scientist, I understand what that means because the smaller the plastic, the more easily it is ingested, and so it will have a much bigger impact on the ecosystem.
From the exhibit Flotsam and Jetsam at the Bermuda National Gallery
On the eastern part of Lake Erie, which is right before it goes into Lake Ontario, we had two insanely high samples that came in. One was with 460,000 particles of plastic, and the other with 690,000 particles of plastic per square kilometer of the lake surface. When those samples came in, they were the highest concentrations of any body of water that had been sampled at that point. Two years later, we were on Lake Ontario, and this data hasn’t come out yet [as of the recording date], but in Lake Ontario, we have a sample that has 1.3 million pieces of plastic per square kilometer of the lake surface. So, basically, Lake Ontario and Lake Erie levels rival the most polluted parts of anywhere on the planet.”
Learn about plastic pollution.
Understand microplastics and microfibers. What is the difference between the two, and where do they come from? They have been found in the most remote places on Earth, including the Mariana Trench and the top of the Pyrenees.
Be an informed consumer. Say no to plastic bags, straws, and cutlery. Say no to beverages and foods in plastic containers.
Learn about biodegradable plastic alternatives.
Pick up trash and dispose of it properly.
Make art from discarded plastics. It is a creative way to call attention to the problem. Take a look at some of the exhibited work from the Bermuda National Gallery. ->->->
Sam’s SPI recording offers an engaging starting point for understanding and actionable engagement. To listen, click here.
SPI also recorded the story of Ecovative Design Co-founder Eben Bayer. Ecovative is a materials design company that provides sustainable alternatives to plastics and polystyrene foams for packaging, building materials, and other applications by using mushroom technology. Listen to Eben’s story here.
What other materials might work as sustainable plastic alternatives? Now it’s your chance to wonder and explore.
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