How many people today grab a takeaway coffee cup from the local cafe to drink on the go? We don’t know, but the number must be enormous.. Most every one of the above have a plastic top that will last 100s of years. Some cafes still use plastic cups that last a similar time. Is 10 minutes of coffee worth 100s of years of trash?
These items can be seen littering our gutters and on our streets all over the place. If they were all cardboard, they would still be littered, but they would, at least, be gone in a short time.
They do not need to be made of plastic.
On the way home from the gym last week, a distance of about 1 km (1/2 mile), I counted the items of plastic litter on the curb as I walked. In that short distance I counted 63 pieces of plastic litter. Plastic drink bottles, bottle tops, candy wrappers, plastic film, polystyrene fragments etc. That seemed to be a lot to me. I guess it is a generational thing. Our parents would have been horrified to see that amount, whereas it seems to go unnoticed by our youth of today. In another 20 years how many pieces will there be on this stretch, -- 200? What will today’s youth think of that new amount then when they are older? Will their children be so readily accepting of a higher amount of litter? 
Can seawater break down plastics? – Australia
Posted on October 5, 2023 by DrRossH in Plastic Waste NewsUniversity of Queensland researchers are developing a plastic that breaks down in seawater to help turn the tide on marine waste.
Source: Can seawater break down plastics? – Inside Waste
Dr Qiao said one technique they’ll use, called ring-opening polymerisation, allows them to precisely control the mechanical strength and shape of the plastics while giving the plastics a low-toxic polyester ‘backbone’.
“This means the plastics are able break down to a molecular state in marine environments,” she said.
Dr Qiao said the goal is to commercialise a new line of products in Australia and China within five years to replace traditional plastics and tap into a biodegradable market expected to exceed $9.5 billion by that time.
“Effective seawater-degradable polymer plastics will reduce plastic debris in oceans, boosting the health of ecosystems and the quality of life in communities around the world,” she said.
“We are also fostering collaboration between research groups in Queensland and China to further our strengths in polymer science and additive manufacturing.”
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