{"id":29203,"date":"2023-03-31t15:26:31","date_gmt":"2023-03-31t15:26:31","guid":{"rendered":"\/\/www.getitdoneaz.com\/?p=29203"},"modified":"2023-03-31t15:35:10","modified_gmt":"2023-03-31t15:35:10","slug":"solving-plastic-problem-past","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"\/\/www.getitdoneaz.com\/story\/solving-plastic-problem-past\/","title":{"rendered":"essay | is the key to solving the plastic problem in our past?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
less than 100 years ago, plastic was not a dominant material in human society, yet today its pollution is one of our most expansive, wicked<\/a> environmental problems. plastic dominates every part of society, from the grocery store to furniture, packaging, cars, children\u2019s toys, and more. its production continues to grow, as the american chemistry council<\/a> cites that 8.1 billion pounds of plastic resin was produced in the united states just in january of 2023. <\/p>\n\n\n\n the resulting waste after plastic is used is a problem that is overwhelming and difficult to solve. in particular, non-point-source pollution of plastic into oceans<\/a> that breaks down into microplastics that then enter the food chain, is a terrifying new reality for our planet. so, it is hard to believe that for some elderly people today, like my grandmother jane, born in 1930, the distant memories of a world without plastic do remain. i turn to jane in my search for answers to the plastic problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n when i spoke with jane about the issue of plastic, our conversation began with a deep dive into how her family acquired groceries when she was a child. jane grew up in connecticut, and she told me, \u201ci was 10\u2026 [when] they opened the first supermarket. before that, my mother ordered her groceries over the phone.\u201d jane described a system where different products came from separate stores as opposed to one large hub of the supermarket. \u201cthe milk was delivered and left on your back porch every morning. we always thought it was a great thing, if it was cold enough, the milk froze. the milk was separated, it wasn\u2019t homogenized the way it is now. so, we had cream floating on top\u2026 then we\u2019d spoon off some of this rich icy cream. it was a treat.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n