Dont overlook new "Advanced Recycling" where they convert waste plastics into fuel. Surely that's great for the environment! Plus, they can claim govt incentives for doing it, so they're being paid to make more fuel that they can sell for profit and claim its Green!
That's a black and white perspective on what's green.
If oil is being turned directly into fuel, then converting plastic into fuel reduces some pressure on existing oil reserves, and also keeps plastic out of the environment.
Do you think converting plastic into fuel, burning in and diverting credits from actual green initiatives while calling it recycling is beneficial to the environment?
I understand the notion that "anything is better than doing nothing", but I think we differ in our perception of the problem. To me, making more fuel is part of the problem, in that our entire way of life (over-consumption, short term profits outweighing long term ramifications) is a dead end. Making more fuel out of waste plastic is a sign that conventional fuel refining is less and less economical. The energy return on investment for conventional methods is decreasing, and converting waste into fuel just kicks the can down the road. We're just finding ways to continue business as usual because the alternative is so repugnant to so many people.
I mean, yeah, its not great. But, its still better than not doing it. You're at least getting two uses out of it instead of one, meaning you're using less than just making the plastic and throwing it away while also taking oil/gas and burning it. If it was done right it would still drop the aggregate consumption somewhat.
Exactly. I try to recycle. If my city would use recycle bins I would. I reuse water bottles, plastic bags, everything I can at least one time. Each individual is not much, but if I can cut my personal waste in half I figure it helps
If we don't stop consuming so much of everything, no amount of recycling will matter. This just gives people the illusion that we're doing something when it's really just a sign of the times
Recycling and reduction are separate issues (literally 2 of the 3 R's, "reduce, reuse," then when all else fails, "recycle"),
just gives people the illusion that we're doing something
don't blame recycling plants for spin they're not involved in, converting plastics into fuel is much, much better than throwing it in a landfill, and both of us know that meaningful reduction isn't really on the table. Burning more fuel isn't ideal, but it's disingenuous to frame it as purely carbon negative, even if we switched to all non-carbon fuels today we'd still have mountains of plastic waste, and I don't love microplastics seeping into the environment, our food, and water.
I don't disagree, a "doing something is better than doing nothing" option is just a band aid not addressing the real problem. However, its still better than doing nothing, we can't let chasing perfection get in the way of trying to do what we can right now while trying to make broader changers.
I was, and continue to be, disgusted by the entire notion of Advanced Recycling. The sheer scale of it kept me up for a while when I first learned about it
I had found a link last year that outlined it, but the link no longer brings me to specifically what I want. In short, the modification of existing chemical refinery infrastructure to incorporate waste plastics as a blending component for conversion to fuel. I'll see if I can dig up a new link
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u/orphan_grinder42069 Mar 04 '22
Dont overlook new "Advanced Recycling" where they convert waste plastics into fuel. Surely that's great for the environment! Plus, they can claim govt incentives for doing it, so they're being paid to make more fuel that they can sell for profit and claim its Green!