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Plastics are an increasingly important component of urban solid waste. The disposal of waste materials, such as used plastic bags, has become a major issue. The vast amount of waste plastic bags collected in the twenty-first century has posed significant challenges for their disposal. The amount of waste plastic in the home is substantial and growing. Our results indicate cement blocks are ideal for laying and finishing pathways and streets because they are easy to lay and finish. This study was carried out on experimenting the substitute materials in the mixture of cement blocks a component of building materials which is normally manufactured using the mixture of cement, fine aggregate and water, following a certain ratio. A series of three different percentages of plastics bags were added with the mix and certain quantities were replaced by quarry dust instead of Fine aggregate. Tests were done on the blocks to study its compressive strength, split tensile strength the water absorption percentage and acid test. Both the test compressive and split tensile tests were conducted on the seventh and 28th day. Based on the results acquired, for compressive strength tests on the 28th day, the result a good indication is that the blocks can be produced by replacing the cement and fine aggregate with utilizing the plastic for and effective way of 1:1 and 1:2, with 10& 20% replacing with quarry dust having strength 10.7 and 9.5 N/mm2 respectively Which is 165 more than the conventional type of blocks. Similarly the water percentage is also nil and very marginal in the same proportions. The decrease in weight is existed in all the samples tested the result is equal in all mix compositions. This is uniform rate implies block undergo certain abrasion. Conclusions were drawn for utilising the above composition in a suitable non structured places and minimizing the plastic waste.

Artykuł dotyczy performatywnych aspektów narracji ekologicznych, rozpatrywanych na przykładzie kulturowego wizerunku foliówki. Plastikowe torby jednorazowego użytku są we współczesnej kulturze symbolem zbiorowych win związanych z rolą tworzyw sztucznych w katastrofie ekologicznej. Na ich percepcję wpływają rozmaite narracje ekologiczne i kampanie społeczne, w których obraz foliówki ma budzić strach, niechęć, złość czy obrzydzenie i utrwalać opinię o plastiku jako nienaturalnym materiale zanieczyszczającym planetę. Skuteczność tych narracji jest ograniczona, skoro plastikowych toreb w środowisku wciąż przybywa. Autorka zastanawia się, czy można wyobrazić sobie inne, mniej antropocentryczne i potencjalnie bardziej skuteczne sposoby nawiązywania relacji z jednorazowym plastikiem. Wykorzystuje metody performatyczne do analizy krótkometrażowego filmu Plastic Bag (reż. Ramin Bahrani, 2009). Interpretację filmu opiera głównie na witalnym materializmie Jane Bennett oraz ciemnej ekologii Timothy’ego Mortona, by ukazać foliówki jako sprawcze byty związane na wiele sposobów z otaczającym je światem, a także zaproponować odmienne spojrzenie na ich potencjalne role w więcej-niż-ludzkich relacjach. This article considers the performative aspects of environmental narratives, based on the example of the cultural image of the plastic bag. In contemporary culture, disposable plastic bags have become a symbol of the collective guilt related to the role of plastics in the environmental catastrophe. Their perception is affected by various environmental narratives and social campaigns, in which the image of a plastic bag is to evoke fear, aversion, anger, or disgust, reinforcing the view of plastic as an unnatural material that pollutes the planet. The effectiveness of these narratives is limited, as the number of plastic bags in the enviroment continues to increase. The author explores the possibility of imagining other, less anthro-pocentric and potentially more effective modes of relating to single-use plastic. She uses performative methods to analyze the short film Plastic Bag (dir. Ramin Bahrani, 2009). Her interpretation draws mainly on Jane Bennett’s concept of vital materialism and Timothy Morton’s dark ecology to focus on the agency of plastic bags in various settings and offer a different perspective on their potential roles in more-than-human relationships.

The last decade increasing attention to litter accumulation in the marine environment revealed the issue of the terrestrial fluxes of plastic pollution into the oceans. However, limited studies investigate the macro-litter abundance and composition particularly in freshwater ecosystems and the adjusted coastal environment. In this study, we conducted an empirical analysis of anthropogenic litter (AL) in two freshwater streams and their estuaries of Lesvos island (Greece), strongly affected by the waste mismanagement in the Moria refugee camp. A total of 1,622 litter items were collected from five sites during the field campaign between the 3rd and 6th of June 2019. Among these, artificial polymer items (mainly drink bottles, single-use plastic bags, cutlery, and trays) irrespective of the site location constituted the major part ranging from 46 to 91% of total AL by mass. Drink bottles and plastic cutlery are found in higher percentage at Moria camp river and its estuary, while packaging and bag litter are more abundant at upstream sites. The operation of the camp has increased the AL abundance 13 times more than the reference site, causing severe threat to human health and to freshwater and marine environment. It is therefore important to improve the waste management system at (inter)national (change in production and packaging policy) and local scale (introducing sustainable solutions to refugee camp design) by promoting recycling and circular economy projects to diminish AL pollution.

The south of Brazil has a high production of peaches which generates the stone as residue. The recycling of biomass and plastic waste is a challenge that must be overcome. Therefore, co-pyrolysis emerges as a possibility for joint conversion of peach stone and plastic bags into value-added products. Thus, the objective is to obtain new products, emphasizing the organic fraction of the bio-oil obtained under the best experimental conditions, and to characterize it by GC-MS. The experiments provided a three-phase bio-oil: two organic phases with different densities and an aqueous phase. It was observed that the central point experiment (temperature at 500 °C and blend composition, % peach stone/polyethylene, 80/20) generated the highest yield of bio-oil. However, the experiment at the lowest temperature and with greater addition of plastic waste produced a higher organic fraction. Using gas chromatography, 161 chemical compounds were identified in the denser organic phase, emphasizing the phenols. In the lighter organic fraction, hydrocarbons were the majority among the 70 compounds identified. The results suggest that the interaction between biomass and polyethylene influences the characteristics of the products obtained, since polyethylene acts as dispersant and as hydrogen donor. Co-pyrolysis, in this research, proves to be efficient and viable, allowing the joint destination of those environmental liabilities.

The study aimed to analyse the potential risk behind kindling behaviour in Chinese rural families and to provide insights for policymakers in environmental health. A cluster survey was performed on 113 participant's families who were living in the countryside in the north of China, using solid fuels for cooking and heating purpose. A questionnaire survey on their kindling behaviour and family information was administrated. Harmful kindling materials including plastic bottles, plastic planting plates, plastic film mulches, plastic bags, waste foams, and medium density fibreboard (MDF) are targeted in the survey. About one third of participant's families have ever used the listed harmful material for kindling. Based on literature review and the exposure proportion estimated from the questionnaire, we estimated the population attributable fractions (PAF) for all cancer type (10.48-19.48%) and type 2 diabetes (15.57-27.86%) attributable to dioxin exposure. The PAF estimates were greater than our expectation from the view of the global estimate PAF for cancer and T2D. Moreover, we found farming families are more likely to use their farming-related plastic byproducts as kindling material. There is a huge knowledge gap in environmental health in rural China. Although we were not able to measure the specific exposure data, our survey provided a new research aspect for environmental health research and health education. Strengthened environmental health education, better relevant laws, regulations, and supporting policies for regulating rural and farming waste disposal are highly recommended for policymakers in China.

El uso de los biodigestores a nivel mundial y en Cuba específicamente, ha tenido un notable crecimiento por la puesta en vigor de políticas energéticas que potencian el uso de las fuentes renovables de energía. El objetivo del presente trabajo radica en mostrar las ventajas energéticas, agrícolas y económicas que el uso de los biodigestores debe propiciar en la granja porcina y fincas aledañas. En el anteproyecto fueron utilizadas metodologías de cálculos de biodigestores de la FAO, CEPAL y el Instituto de Investigaciones Porcinas de la República de Cuba. El cálculo realizado para la cocina de 100 comensales muestra que se requieren 13 bolsa plásticas de 10 m3 cada una. La evaluación económica es realizada en pesos cubanos (CUP) con una equivalencia de 24 $CUP/$USD y muestra que es necesaria una inversión inicial de 94,334.24 $CUP, que se obtiene un ingreso anual de 101,485.26 $CUP por el uso del biogás y la venta del abono, obteniéndose un VAN de 215,265.05 $CUP, una TIR de 30% y un periodo de recuperación de la inversión (PRI) de 3,2 años en una vida útil estimada de 10 años, lo que la convierten en una inversión atractiva. La inversión social propuesta tiene como objetivo mejorar las condiciones de vida y trabajo del personal que utiliza la leña en la cocción de alimentos y además contribuir a preservar el bosque cercano evitando la combustión de 56 t/año de madera como combustible.

Nowadays, the use of plastics is inseparable from daily life activities for both industrial commercial and household needs. Every year, an average individual consumes 700 plastic bags. Furthermore, the major types of plastic pollutants are High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) and Low-Density Polyethylene (LDPE). The nature of LDPE plastic makes it very difficult to undergo decomposition. Subsequently, efforts to overcome this problem have been carried out by several methods of processing or utilizing its waste through pyrolysis. This study aims to determine the effect of the quality of LDPE plastic waste on the plastic oil produced from the pyrolysis process. Based on their chemical compounds, all plastic oils produced were categorized as carbon compounds instead of hydrocarbons. Although, from the quality of the LDPE plastic used, the process produced gasoline, naphtha, and kerosene, the quality of each oil was different. Therefore, the higher the quality of the LDPE plastic used, the better the quality of the oil produced

Essential oils may be used as natural anesthetic for fish in several farming and laboratory procedures. They are considered safe for both the fish and the environment. In this way, studies that evaluate essential oils as fish stress reducers are necessary to confirm such recommendations. Transportation is one of the most stressful fish farming practices, since fish are severely disturbed. Stress among fish may induce undesired consequences such as diseases and mortality. This study evaluated the effect of Ocimum gratissimum essential oil on the physiological parameters of stress in Colossoma macropomum subjected to transportation. Fish were transported in plastic bags under different concentrations of O. gratissimum essential oil (0, 5, 10, 15 and 20 mg L -1 ) for 4 h. Blood samples were collected before and after transportation. Glucose and ammonia levels increased and lactate levels decreased after transportation with O. gratissimum essential oil in the water. The total plasmatic protein and hepatic glycogen levels presented great variations, while hematological parameters did not show any difference between treatments. The fish recovered from transportation stress after 24 h. The concentrations of O. gratissimum essential oil evaluated here were not efficient in mitigating the stress responses of C. macropomum . Additional studies are needed to evaluate effective concentrations of O. gratissimum that would reduce stress responses in transportation, along with their associations with other products and procedures.

Shopping plastic bag is a thermoplastic type LDPE and HDPE, that can be heated with hotpress. Through this recycling process come new material that can used for product material. The recycle plastic material has a lot of potential to be used as a product application. market research From founded many brands that try to recycle plastic still using another new material to give support to the plastic recycle material. Origami is a paper folding art that is commonly known by everyone. The study tried to apply the origami technique on recycled plastic bag material that has been heated with hotpress machine. With origami technique 90% the product can be made with this material entirely without the help of sewing and other materials. This is seen as an opportunity for the market that still use many new materials to support this material. The folding gives construction to the one sheet material and give new function to the recycle plastic material. The research uses experimental method. Series of paper origami patterns are applied on the recycle material, till founded several folding that can be apply on the recycle plastic sheet material. The research result is a variety of functional products made with origami techniques that have been egistered design industry copy wright.

Plastic pollution control has been on top of the political agenda in China. In January 2020, China announced a phased ban on the production and usage of various types of single-use plastics as a solution to environmental pollution problems. However, the outbreak of COVID-19 seems to be a new obstacle to the ban on single-use plastic products. To basically satisfied the daily necessities and contain the spread of SARS-CoV-2 under the background of the regular epidemic prevention and control in China, online ordering, contactless delivery and wearing mask have become an important and feasible way of daily life. However, the unrestrained use of disposable plastic bags, lunch boxes and masks within the nationwide quarantine leads to hundreds of millions of plastics wastes every day. The potential environmental pollution caused by the use of disposable plastic products during the pandemic should arouse social concern. The Chinese government should manage environmental protection in parallel with anti-pandemic endeavors as the situation of the pandemic evolves.

The aim of the study was to identify pro-ecological behaviors undertaken by students of the Faculty of Economics of WULS-SGGW and the problems accompanying such activities, as well as to assess the behavior of family and friends and the approach of decision-makers to environmental issues. The survey technique was used in the research. The sample consisted of 119 respondents from all degrees, forms and fields of study at the Faculty. Only half of the respondents considered themselves pro-ecological consumers. Students also assessed their families more favorably than their friends in this respect. However, a much larger percentage of the sample participants declared that they regularly undertook specific activities in this area, the most popular of which were reusing plastic bags during shopping and the use of public transport. The least often, students decided to buy organic food and industrial ecological products. There were some significant differences in the declarations of men and women. Students of the Faculty of Economics of WULS-SGGW in their behavior and frequency did not differ significantly from their Polish peers. The main barrier to their pro-ecological behavior was the high cost of ecological goods.

In Community Service activities, partners are Bika Bakar business actors in Medan City. The business partner has been engaged in the culinary sector, especially traditional cake type foods since 1990. The type of cake food produced by this business partner is baked bika cake. The production process is carried out at home with the help of several employees and equipment that is still simple, does not have accountancy , packaging that still uses plastic bags and limited access to marketing. Promotions that are lacking make partner products unable to compete with cake products produced by large businesses. Partners still use simple tools so that the production of bika bakar is not optimal in quantity and quality of production, so that Ms. Nurmalis' roasted bika is still less popular than cakes with well-known brands. Improvement in designing good simple bookkeeping in financial management. Increasing the quality and quantity of Bika Bakar production after the addition of a furnace and an increasing number of bika cake molds and using good paper bags, as well as product development through making brands in Bika Bakar Mitra products and online marketing.

Insects have a diverse range of ecologies that leaves many pre-adapted to exploiting manufactured products as food sources, including musical instruments. To review what is known and to make recommendations for preventing and managing insect damage to musical instruments, we conducted a systematic search and a narrative review of the area. Of 339 papers, only eight peer-reviewed publications met the inclusion criteria, and all were on xylophagous insects causing damage to wooden instruments. To supplement this material, we report a case of damage to the key pads (composed of felt enclosed in fish buoyancy bladder skin) of a clarinet by carpet beetles (Anthrenus verbasci (Dermestidae)), the first reported case of non-woody damage and the first instance of insect damage rendering an instrument unplayable. To avoid such damage, regular inspection of instruments is recommended, and rapid treatment of any insect infestations in the immediate environment that could extend to affecting stored instruments. Instruments themselves can be extremely expensive, and if insects are still present these should only be treated by an expert; instrument cases can be more easily dealt with by heat treatment (black plastic bag in the sun) or application of a residual insecticide. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry.

A detailed characterization of municipal solid waste (MSW) beyond a standard compositional analysis may offer insights useful for improving waste management systems. The present paper contributes to the scarce literature in the field by presenting new data from a rapidly developing Central Asian city, the capital of Kazakhstan, Nur-Sultan. Three sampling campaigns (each 1 week long) have been conducted at the city landfill over a 1-year period (2018–2019), and a detailed characterization for selected waste components and sub-components has been performed. The major fractions of MSW were organics (46.3%), plastics (15.2%), paper (12.8%), and diapers (5.9%). The detailed composition analysis showed high LDPE (low-density polyethylene) content (5.5%) mostly comprised of plastic bags (4.5%), transparent glass (3.2%), pharmaceuticals (0.4%), and fine (i.e., < 12 mm) organic fraction content (29%). The MSW generation rate of Nur-Sultan was estimated as 1.47 kg capita−1 day−1 based on the field collection as well as literature data. Among sustainable waste management recommendations addressed for Nur-Sultan and applicable to other cities in Central Asia, composting is recommended due to high organics fraction in MSW and its great potential to reduce the landfilled waste volume and to help valorizing the waste.

Günümüzde çevreyi korumaya yönelik uygulamalar ve sürdürülebilirlik kavramı giderek artan bir öneme sahiptir. Birçok ülke plastik atıkları azaltmada yeni uygulamaları yürürlüğe sokmakta, bu bağlamda 1 Ocak 2019 tarihinden itibaren Türkiye’de de plastik poşetler 25 kuruşa satılmaya başlanmıştır. Satılan plastik poşetlerin yasalarla düzenlenen belirli minimum sınırları olmasına karşın poşetin dayanıklılığı, üzerinde marketin logosunun olup olmaması ve poşetin doğada yüzde yüz çözünüp çözünememesi konuları farklılık göstermektedir. Literatürde çevresel sürdürülebilirlik bağlamında birçok araştırma yer alsa da özellikle parayla satılan poşetlere tüketicilerin tepkisi konusunda araştırmalar yeterli değildir. Bu çalışmada senaryo bazlı deney yönteminden yararlanılarak tüketicilerin plastik poşetlerin çeşidine göre davranışları incelenmiştir. Sonuçlar tüketicilerin aldıkları poşet kalınsa üzerinde market logosunun olup olmamasının tüketicilerin tatminleri ve alışveriş niyeti üzerinde çok farkı yokken, inceyse market logosunun olmamasının tüketicilerin tatminlerini ve alışveriş niyetlerini artırdığını göstermektedir. Ayrıca poşetler doğada yüzde yüz çözünemiyorsa üzerinde market logosunun olup olmamasının tüketicilerin alışveriş niyeti üzerinde çok farkı yokken poşetler doğada yüzde yüz çözünebiliyorsa üzerinde market logosu olmaması tüketicilerin alışveriş niyetini artırmaktadır.

Currently we are accustomed to disposable packaging, the habit generates a lot of waste because we are used to buying, use and dispose of when the lifespan has been exhausted with a consumption pattern like this, Indonesia has now become the world's second-largest plastic waste-producing country. With the product design approach, the student of Universitas Pelita Harapan (UPH) was tasked to recycle plastic waste in UPH environment into a functional product. Based on the results of observation and interviews, one of the waste plastic accumulated in UPH environment is the plastic shopping bag. LDPE is a thermoplastic. A type of plastic that can be formed repeatedly trough heat. The process starts by collecting, sorting, washing, then began the recycling process by heating it with oven and put them unto the mold. The purpose is to create new material that has an aesthetic quality and good structure. After the waste is processed into a functional product, the results are socialized to students from other majors in a workshop, where each participant must bring their own plastic waste materials. The result of this research and community service is a reduction in shopping bags waste that exists in UPH environment by 1%, increases millennials' awareness about plastic waste in UPH, and change their perception that garbage plastic bag shopping is not rubbish that should be discarded, but a material that is ready to be recycle and made into a functional product.

Bitumen is the most popular binding material in road construction. Nowadays due to rapid infrastructure growth and increasing in the number of vehicles it is necessary to build the roads which can sustain adverse traffic loading and extreme weather conditions. Also, disposal of waste plastic is a big problem nowadays. Studies have found that, effective use of plastic in the bitumen to improve its original properties. Plastic added to bitumen by two ways first is dry process and another is wet process. Most of the research was done on dry process. Coming to wet process some research works carried on adding waste plastic bags to the bitumen and found satisfactory. Present study concentrating on adding the shredded waste plastic water bottles to the bitumen to improve its rheological properties. In present study plastic is heated up to its melting point, then bitumen is added to the liquid plastic and mixed thoroughly with the help of mechanical stirrer. On the prepared composite material (i.e. plastic modified bitumen – PMB) laboratory tests was conducted like softening point, ductility value, elastic recovery, penetration, specific gravity, flash and fire point. In continuation, conducting Marshall stability test on the same plastic modified bitumen samples to finalize the optimum percentage of plastic to be added. Finally, comparison made between plastic modified bitumen sample with original bitumen sample. Present study concluded that, replacing the bitumen with 5% & 7.5% of PET plastic improves the rheological properties of the bitumen. From the Marshall test, it was declared that 7.5% replacement of bitumen with plastic gives more stability than 5% replacement. From this experimental investigation declared that, 7.5% of the PET plastic is the optimum percentage which can add to the bitumen to use in flexible pavements for improving the maintenance period also for improving the rheological parameters of bitumen.

En Colombia se generan más de 1.300.000 toneladas de resinas poliméricas y de ellas el 56% es usado para la producción de empaques como bolsas plásticas cuya principal característica es el uso por tiempo reducido y única vez aumentando la cantidad de material que es desechado con una biodegradabilidad mínima, lo que acentúa su impacto ambiental. Por esta razón, es necesario implementar diversas estrategias de sensibilización ambiental para desestimular el uso de bolsas plásticas. Para ello, se estudió el impacto de diversas estrategias visuales en el municipio del Socorro (Santander) y se encontró que más del 80% de la población conoce las consecuencias del uso indiscriminado de bolsas plásticas, pero no implementan prácticas que disminuyan tal impacto. Así mismo, se encontró que el uso de estímulos visuales que apelan a respuestas no conscientes de los habitantes puede generar una disminución en la elección del uso de bolsas plásticas en el momento de la compra

As condições climáticas do semiárido do Nordeste, caracterizadas pela irregularidade das chuvas, conferem à irrigação uma importância fundamental como instrumento que permite a viabilização de uma agricultura produtiva e estável. O presente estudo objetivou-se avaliar o desenvolvimento de mudas de gravioleira a partir do aproveitamento de água de ar condicionado e efluente agroindustrial. A pesquisa foi desenvolvida no setor de produção de mudas do Instituto Federal da Paraíba, Campus Sousa, Unidade São Gonçalo. Utilizou-se o delineamento de blocos inteiramente casualizados, com cinco tratamentos e quatro repetições. Os tratamentos resultaram das seguintes combinações: T1 = 100% Poço Artesiano, T2 =100% Ar Condicionado, T3 = Combinação 50% Ar Condicionado + 50% Poço Artesiano, T4 = Combinação 50% Efluente Agroindustrial + 50% Ar Condicionado e T5 = 100% Efluente Agroindustrial. As mudas de gravioleira foram produzidas em sacos de poliestireno, utilizando Neossolo Flúvico e esterco bovino na proporção (2:1) como substrato. Foram avaliadas as seguintes variáveis: altura de planta, diâmetro de caule, número de folhas, massa verde e seca da parte aérea e raiz e influência nos atributos do solo (pH, P, K, Na, Ca, Mg, MO, PST). Verificou-se que a utilização de água de ar condicionado é uma alternativa viável como fonte de irrigação para as mudas de gravioleira, enquanto que o efluente agroindustrial não se mostrou adequada para este fim visto que influenciou negativamente na maioria das variáveis analisadas.

By-products of raw artichoke (RA) (Cynara scolymus L.) and boiled broccoli (BB) (Brassica oleracea, var. italica) were ensiled in plastic bags for 24 days. Then, chemical composition, nutritive characteristics, in vitro rumen degradability, in vivo digestibility and phytosanitary residue contents of the silages were evaluated. The fermentative parameters studied indicated that plastic bags were a suitable method to silage RA and BB by-products. Both silages had a high in vitro rumen DM disappearance at 72 h, although it was higher in the BB silage (96.8 vs. 82.1%). In vivo digestibility of DM was similar and high in both silages (78.5 and 80.0% in RA and BB), but crude protein and NDF digestibilities were higher in the BB silage (83.0 and 88.3% vs. 55.1 and 78.8%). No residues of analysed phytosanitary were found. In conclusion, silages of wastes from the processing of artichoke and broccoli were free from the analysed several phytosanitary residues, their nutritive value made them adequate for feeding ruminant animals and are an environmentally friendly way of disposal of such residues.

Objective Accurate determination of the mixing time in bioreactors is essential for the optimization of the productivity of bioprocesses. The aim of this work was to develop a simple optical method to determine the mixing time in a photobioreactor. The image processing method should be based on freeware tools, should not require programming skills, and thus could be used in education within high schools and in early stages of undergraduate programs. Results An optical method has been established to analyze images from recorded videos of mixing experiments. The steps are: 1. Extraction of a sequence of images from the video file; 2. Cropping of the pictures; 3. Background removal; and 4. Image analysis and mixing time evaluation based on quantification of pixel-to-pixel heterogeneity within a given area of interest. The novel method was generally able to track the dependency between aeration rate and mixing time within the investigated photobioreactor. In direct comparison, a pearson correlation coefficient of rho = 0.99 was obtained. Gas flow rates between 10 L h−1, and 300 L h−1 resulted from mixing times of between 48 and 14 s, respectively. This technique is applicable without programming skills and can be used in education with inexperienced user groups.

The use of helium in plastic bag suffocation is a suicide method recently found in forensic cases. Although it is not common practice, there has been a strong increase in its use during the past 20 years, thanks to the accessibility of information on the web and materials needed to implement it. From a pathophysiological point of view, there are various theories on how helium can change the timing and, also, the cause of death when the head is inside a plastic bag. We report two cases where we believe that the action of helium, whose unequivocal use is demonstrated by the circumstantial data, has unfolded in a different way. In the first case, the discovery of an intense cyanosis of the face, blood leakage from the respiratory orifices and the destruction of numerous alveolar septa with histologically demonstrated blood extravasation, was left for a longer agonic period and a no negligible rate of pulmonary barotrauma in determination of death. In the second case, the total absence of external pathological phenomena, internal and histological, allows us to hypothesise an onset of death that is faster and catalysed by helium and explained by the known sympathetic hyperactivation and consequent cardiac arrhythmic death described in similar plastic bag suffocation cases.

The growing demand for plastics, for packaging and consumption, is a current environmental issue. Although there are many scientific developments concerning material science, knowledge about the public's perception is low, which can delay society's efforts to face this challenge. This study aimed to understand if Brazilians who practice different sustainable actions perceive differently biodegradable, recycled, and common plastics and have different purchase intentions for each specific type of packaging. A total of 1080 Brazilian adults were first classified by their day-to-day attitudes regarding sustainability efforts. Then, their purchase intention and perception about different plastics were assessed. Regardless of sustainability practices, people associate common plastic bags with negative attributes and biodegradable plastic bags with positive attributes. This shows that there is a well-established concept about these types of bags, even if there are some misconceptions (e.g. recyclable) or controversies (e.g. non-polluting). On the other hand, results showed that consumers who adopted more sustainable practices were 3.5 times more willing to pay for biodegradable packages, even though no differences were observed in the accepted price for biodegradable bags between consumer's groups. Finally, the purchase intention comparisons for products packaged in recycled and biodegradable plastics showed the consumers were more interested in those biodegradable plastics and the purchase intention was lower for perishable food (e.g. products that can have higher safety risks). The results are important for understanding environmental policy management in Brazil, highlighting the importance to improve the population's knowledge about different types of plastic, leading to more conscious choices.

Plastic pollution derived from the disposal of plastic bags in the environment is clearly evidenced. However, little attention has been directed towards plastic waste derived from plastic dog poop bags (DPBs), which are widely used and can never be recycled. Herein, we raise concerns about the contribution of DPBs to plastic pollution in the environment. Combining the weight of each DPB, the number of bags daily used for a dog, and the number of pet dogs around the world, we estimated the number of annual consumed and disposed DPBs at more than 415 billion, or equivalently 0.76–1.23 million tons of plastics based on various weights of different DPBs. Although plastic waste produced by DPBs only accounts for a small fraction (0.6%) of the total plastic waste generation, the extremely short life cycle of DPBs has made them a non-negligible source of plastic pollution in the environment.

International audience; Plastic pollution has been identified as a major threat for coastal marine life and ecosystems. Here, we test if the feeding behaviour and growth rate of the two most common cold-water coral species, Lophelia pertusa and Madrepora oculata, are affected by micro-or 18 macroplastic exposures. Low-density polyethylene microplastics impair prey capture and growth rates of L. pertusa after five months of exposure. Macroplastic films, mimicking plastic bags trapped on deep-sea reefs, had however a limited impact on L. pertusa growth. This was due to an avoidance behaviour illustrated by the formation of skeletal 'caps' that changed the polyp orientation and allowed its access to food supply. On the contrary, M. oculata growth and feeding were not affected by plastic exposure. Such a species-specific response has the potential to induce a severe change in coral community composition and the associated biodiversity in deep-sea environments.

Citizens increasingly dispose their waste at household waste recycling centres (HWRC). To enhance the collection of recyclables materials, local authorities and waste management companies invest considerable resources in planning. While the planning of these centres requires a comprehensive understanding of collected solid waste, only limited studies have consistently investigated waste data from HWRC. To fill this knowledge gap, historical data for HWRC from the Greater Copenhagen, Central Zealand, Silkeborg and Djursland in Denmark were analysed with regards to temporal and geographical variation. The results showed the mass of collected waste varies seasonally; this trend was consistently seen during the period 2010-2016. Moreover, the data revealed that the total waste collected was principally driven by the number of visitors. The geometric bar plot and ternary plot depicted an increase in the percentage of recyclable materials, whereas the percentage of incinerated waste decreased during the period 2010-2016. The waste characterisation study indicated that about 7% of small miscellaneous combustible waste was brought in black plastic bag, although these bags were forbidden; the results suggest that the percentage of misplaced recyclable materials could considerably decrease if citizens bring their waste in clear plastic bags.

The purpose of this work is to assess the environmental impacts of the collection of mixed municipal solid waste (MSW) in a selected neighbourhood of the Portuguese city of Aveiro. To this purpose, the main elements necessary for the collection process (carrier bags, dustbins, street containers and vehicles) were analysed applying the life cycle assessment methodology, making use of locally gathered data. The main impacts associated with this activity are mostly related to the use of polyethylene plastic bags to carry the waste from the household to the waste container, and to the fuel consumption of collection vehicle that picks MSW from street containers and transports it to the treatment facility. The impacts associated with the plastic bags were primarily due to their disposal in a sanitary landfill after use and secondarily to the consumption of fossil raw materials required for their production. Given the relative high impact of the plastic bags, alternative scenarios were tested: using bags entirely produced with recycled polyethylene and bags produced with bio-based plastics derived from starch (TPS) and from wastewater (PHA). PHA bio-based bags were found to perform slightly better than conventional high-density polyethylene (HDPE) bags, but HDPE bags with 100% recycled content remained as the environmentally best option. A sensitivity analysis was performed to check the influence of bag size. Regarding the fuel consumption by collection vehicles, a comparison was performed to check how sitespecific conditions can influence the impact of this activity, resulting in remarkably higher consumptions when local data were used instead of reference databases. This work received financial support from LIFE+, the financial instrument of the EU for the environment, for funding the LIFE PAYT project (LIFE 15/ENV/PT/000609). C. Dias-Ferreira received support through FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia – of POCH – Programa Operacional Capital Humano – within ESF – European Social Fund – and of national funds from MCTES – Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Ensino Superior (SFRH/BPD/ 100717/2014). info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

Bakpia is one food product that uses duplex cardboard as packaging material. Buying bakpia both in a small or big amount of packages need secondary packaging such as plastic bags and cardboards. “Rantang”-shaped packaging is designed to get practical, enviromental friendly, and attractive packaging. The objective of this research is to find out the importance level of customer attribute (Whats) against “rantang”-shaped packaging and to find out the technical responses that must be carried out by a manufacturer in order the packaging design is accepted by consumers. QFD method is used to find out consumers’ needs and desires as well as to systematically evaluate packaging capabilities sampled from 30 respondents. QFD method comprises of 7 phases, namely, collecting consumer voice, organizing House of Quality (HoQ), creating technical response, determining the technical response relationship to consumer needs, determining technical relations, benchmarking, and target. Results show the highest scores for importance level of consumer attribute go to packaging shape and packaging design with Importance to customer score of 4,67 dan 4,43 which are above average. Manufacturers should pay more attention to visual packaging design, packaging convenience while carrying, practical, varius number of stack, maximum limit of stack, appropriate cardboard, and precise packaging size as technical responses.

Polythene bags have been preferred for packaging purposes because they are light in weight, cheap and resistant to degradation. Despite the benefits, poor disposal of polythene causes degradation and pollution of soil, water, land and air resources leadi...

Garbage is an inseparable part of human life. Garbage is produced by humans as waste in fulfilling their needs. However, the presence of the garbage cause major environmental problems and threat to the tourism sector in Bali. Tourist comes to Bali to enjoy the splendour of its nature and cultures, but they have to see the reality that the island is less than their expectations. In contrast to Bali's image as a sun-drenched tropical island and the last paradise on earth, the ugly truth is that the island is awash in garbage. The beaches littered with plastic bags, bottles, straw, plastic wrappers. This phenomenon is getting worst especially on rainy season where most of garbage which is washed into waterways by the daily rains and carried into the sea resulting big mount of waste in the coast area. Complaints came from tourists about this issue is an indication that they feel uncomfortable with the presence of this garbage. If there is no serious action and commitment to solve this issue, slowly but surely there are more tourist will skipping to visit Bali. Regarding to this issue, Balinese have no one to blame but themselves. Garbage becomes a big problem because people have a thought that illegal dumping is the norm. The active participation of all stakeholders such as goverment, industry, local community also visitor is needed to overcome this problem to realize sustainability of environment and tourism of Bali. Keywords: Garbage, Tourism, Sustainable Tourism

As formas de apresentação final para comercialização dos moluscos produzidos pelas indústrias de Santa Catarina (SC) são bastante limitadas: ostras são usualmente vendidas vivas com as conchas, resfriadas e mantidas em caixas de isopor com gelo; mexilhões são vendidos cozidos e desconchados, resfriados ou congelados e acondicionados em sacos plásticos. O objetivo deste artigo é expor motivos que justificam a busca por técnicas alternativas de processamento e apresentação de moluscos e apresentar soluções tecnológicas para o beneficiamento dos moluscos utilizadas em outros países. As técnicas abordadas são: atmosfera modificada, congelamento individual rápido, pasteurização em temperaturas moderadas, alta pressão hidrostática, cozimento sous-vide, marinação, entre outras.

This study was conducted to estimate the generation of single-use plastics (SUPs) and elucidate consumer behavior towards a plastic-free university. The results show that the consumption rate of plastic bottles was the highest at 1.39 g per student per day (g.s−1.d−1), followed by plastic cups (0.20 g s−1.d−1), and plastic bags (0.14 g s−1.d−1). Approximately 94.41% of students were highly aware of the negative impacts of SUPs. More than four-fifths of the students (82.32%) assumed that they were responsible for the SUP pollution issue, whereas 59.52% considered SUP reduction (or lack thereof) by individuals, governments, and producers/businesses be important factors. Approximately 19.03% of the students supported implementing a high fine, one-tenth agreed for a total ban on SUPs, while nearly one-fifth believed reducing SUP consumption was unnecessary. Strategies for plastic-free universities was initiated by establishing the goal of “plastic-free university” and implementing integrated actions including a ban (plastic cups and bags) awareness-raising, and suitable alternatives.

Continuous use of plastic will use up some non-renewable natural resources. Besides it produces several substances which are harmful to human health. Utilization of plastic waste is an effort to reduce plastic waste to a minimum that can be done by recycling. The large number of plastic bag waste around the environment has led to the idea of ​​ using it into creative products that have artistic and economic value for residents around the campus. Based on this background, a problem arises. The lack of ability to recycle plastic waste into valuable products, therefore a movement needed to educate and provide skills to the community to recycle plastic waste. The purpose of this activity is to provide education and provide training to the environment around the campus, especially housewives and young women to recycle money into crafts from used plastic bags in the hope that it can reduce waste and generate new business opportunities, namely handicraft handicrafts from used plastic bags. Implementation of activities, namely providing counseling and practical skills to make products from plastic bag waste. The expected end result is awareness from the community about the dangers of using plastic bags and the skills to recycle used plastic bags. DOI: https://doi.org/10.26905/abdimas.v5i3.4912

Disposable plastic bags of two different chemical compositions and colors were remediated by the application of novel mesophilic group of bacteria isolated from the banks of sea water, using a 10 week soil burial method. The new strain, LNDR-1, was identified as Alcaligens faecalis by its morphological features and 16S rRNA sequencing. LNDR-1 was able to produce extracellular enzymes such as lipase, CMCase, xylanase, and protease, having PET surface degrading activity. It was found that LNDR-1 had a better decay rate of 15.25 ± 1% and 21.72 ± 2.1% for black and white plastic bags respectively in 10 weeks without prior oxidation as compared to S. marcescens. Polyethylene degradation was confirmed by substantial weight loss, alterations in surface topology, and hydrophobicity index and was found to be directly proportional to the ability to form biofilm on the plastic surface. FTIR results suggest presence of different metabolites in the bags treated with bacterial biofilm in comparison to the control setup inferring various types of metabolic pathways. Present study also reveals the ability of the strain to utilize the used polyethylene bag as the carbon source, without any prior treatment, and as per the literature survey, the working strain is with the capacity to biodegrade plastic at a considerably appreciable rate. This study suggests effectual method for the mechanism of biodegradation of plastic mediated by extracellular enzymes and formation of biofilm.

Preserved eggs without adding heavy metals in the pickling solution (heavy metals–free preserved eggs) have been developed, but it was found that the undesirable phenomenon such as dry shrinkage and fading occurred when they were not packaged and stored at room temperature. In this study, the effects of 5 packaging methods on the quality of heavy metals-free preserved eggs during storage were systematically studied. These methods included storage at room temperature and 4°C without packaging, wrapping with plastic bags, paraffin coating, and vacuum package. Through adopting these 5 packaging methods, the results showed that the moisture content and pH of the albumen decreased continuously, the mass loss rate increased continuously, the content of total volatile basic nitrogen increased firstly and then decreased, and the albumen hardness increased continuously. No microorganisms were detected in all samples with the 5 packaging methods during storage. Among them, the uncoated preserved eggs suffered the most serious moisture loss and mass loss, and the pH dropped at the fastest rate, followed by the preserved eggs wrapped in plastic bags. Preserved eggs stored at low temperature tended to turn yellow during storage, and the albumen showed higher hardness. The packaging method of paraffin coating performed the best in preventing the moisture loss of the albumen and the weight loss, which only decreased by 0.34 and 1.24%, respectively, after 3 mo. The best springiness, the darkest color, and the highest sensory score were found in the vacuum-packed preserved eggs after 3 mo of storage. It was concluded that paraffin coating and vacuum packing had better effect, while plastic bag packing showed the worst preservation performance for heavy metals–free preserved eggs.

El objetivo del estudio fue caracterizar fincas productoras de arándano azul (Vaccinium corymbosum L.), en Cañete, Lima-Perú. Para ello, se visitó 13 fincas al azar y se encuestó a productores, sobre aspectos sociales, económicos y técnico-ambientales. Como resultados, todos los productores tienen servicios básicos y 69; 2 % poseen instrucción superior. El costo de instalación promedio esUSD37 653; 85/ha, el mantenimiento anualUSD10 361; 54/ha, el precio de venta para exportación USD 9; 87/kg en finca y el rendimiento 4; 40 t/ha. La calidad de frutos es definida por grados Brix, calibre, color y presentación; los principales insumos requeridos son plantones certificados, plaguicidas, fertilizantes solubles y sustratos orgánicos. El 61; 5 % de los productores reportó a Heliothis virescens como principal plaga, aplicándose control químico y etológico; el 38 % reportó daños ocasionados por Phytophthora cinnamomi. Como artrópodos benéficos, sólo en dos fincas se encontró arañas. El cultivo se desarrolla mediante hidroponía, en bolsas plásticas con sustrato preparado y fertirriego por goteo. En conclusión, se caracterizó fincas de arándano azul en Cañete. Dicho frutal es una alternativa de desarrollo con valor agregado, genera oportunidades de empleo en igualdad de género, optimiza recursos suelo y agua, pero el control químico limita el establecimiento de organismos benéficos.

Plastic bag suffocation has been reported in cases of homicide, suicide, and accidental death, with an increase in numbers of suicide and accidental deaths. Though case reports are abundant, decomposition studies have not been performed. This study utilised 20 Sus scrofa domesticus to quantify the effect of a plastic bag covering the head on the rate and pattern of decomposition. A sample group of ten carcasses had plastic bags placed over the heads, with another ten carcasses acting as a control group, without a head covering. The carcasses were placed in an open field to decompose. Over the course of 52 days, data were collected bi-weekly on the rate and pattern of decomposition. The results show that a plastic bag covering the head of a carcass has an overall decreased effect on the rate of decomposition, compared to the control group. The decomposition pattern of head > trunk > limb in decreasing decomposition rate was not affected by the plastic bag; however, in comparison to the control group, the decomposition of the head and trunk regions differed significantly, while the limbs stayed unaffected. The heads of the sample group showed a decrease in decomposition rate, while the trunks showed an increase. This was deemed due to an increase in insect activity at the trunk and a decrease in activity at the head. An altered PMI calculation is provided.

The present study mimicked daily life exposure to plastic food package bags and evaluated its effects on the reproductive and neurobehavioral responses using zebrafish model. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometer (GC/MS) full scan analysis revealed that phthalic acid, isobutyl octyl ester (DEHP) and its metabolites were the main leachate from plastic bags. Our results demonstrated that during the eight weeks exposure, leaching from plastic bags treated with boiling water (P-high group) significantly affected the spawn egg production, embryo hatching and larval malformation rate. Cross-spawning trails between zebrafish collected from the controls and P-high group at the end of eight weeks showed that these adverse effects were more severe in the offspring derived from paternal exposure than those derived from the maternal exposure, suggesting leached chemicals may have a more pronounced effect in sperm than in eggs. In addition, P-high group male testis weight, sperm motility and sperm swimming velocities were decreased significantly. After eight weeks treatment, neurobehavioral tests demonstrated significant changes in the swimming speed during free swimming and light-dark stimulation in the adult zebrafish from P-high group, with the effects being more severe in the males than females. P-high group males also showed altered response in the light/dark explore and mirror attacks assays.

Surgical equipment, and especially the so-called ‘splash basins’ that are used intraoperatively, are a potential source of bacterial contamination in primary total hip arthroplasty (THA). With this risk in mind, many commercially available draping kits include plastic bags that can be used to collect fluid or to temporarily store instruments. Following this rationale, we hypothesised that first: the fluid collection bags are a potential reservoir of bacteria and second: there is a time dependency for bacterial contamination. After ethics approval, we investigated in a prospective, internally controlled, non-blinded trial 43 patients who received primary THA. At the beginning of the surgery, we took deep, representative, intracapsular tissue samples, which served as negative controls. At the end of surgery, tissue samples were taken from the bottom of the ‘fluid collection bag’ for microbiological analysis. All 86 control samples were negative. Out of the samples taken from the bags, a pathogen could be detected in four patients (9.3%). All pathogens were detected after a surgery time lasting longer than 90 min. We were able to show that fluid collection bags are a potential reservoir for bacteria in THA when surgery time was greater than a 90-min threshold. Our data suggest that the risks from fluid collection bags outweigh the advantages of using them. Therefore, we recommend against the use of fluid collection bags intraoperatively in primary THA.

In this study, Nannochloropsis oceanica CY2 was grown in deep-sea water (DSW)-based medium in 5-L plastic bag-type photobioreactors (PBRs) for the autotrophic production of Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, 20:5n-3). EPA production of N. oceanica CY2 was stimulated when it was grown in 100% DSW amended with 1.5 g L−1 NaNO3, achieving a EPA content of 3.1% and a biomass concentration of 3.3 g L−1. An outdoor-simulated microalgae cultivation system was also conducted to validate the feasibility of outdoor cultivation of the CY2 strain in plastic bag-type PBRs. Using an inoculum size of 0.6 g/L, the biomass concentration in the PBR culture was 3.5 g L−1, while the EPA content and productivity reached a maximal level of 4.12% and 7.49 mg L−1 d−1, respectively. When the PBRs were operated on semi-batch mode, the EPA productivity could further increase to 9.9 mg L−1 d−1 with a stable EPA content of 4.1%.

The plastic bag is a non-rigid container made of petroleum and natural gas. This project aims to design and fabricate an ergonomic trolley bag. From review of different types of bags for storage applications from 1852-2014, it was revealed that no work is reported on shopping bags using multi-functional features. It is ergonomics, adjustable volume, made by green material.

Macroplastics are a ubiquitous and growing environmental contaminant with impacts in both marine and terrestrial systems. Marine sampling has dominated research in this field, despite the terrestrial origins of most plastic debris. Due to the high surface water connectivity facilitated by roadside ditches, these landscape features provide a unique sampling location linking terrestrial and surface water systems. We collected and analyzed macroplastic accumulation by number of pieces, mass, and polymer type in roadside ditches across four land uses, before and during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Finger Lakes Region of New York State. Commercial land use plastic accumulation rate was highest, while forested land use accumulation rates were lowest on a piece basis. Pre-COVID-19 piece accumulation rates were significantly higher than COVID-19 piece accumulation rates across all land uses. Mass accumulation rates followed similar patterns observed in piece accumulation, but the patterns were not always statistically significant. Plastic type 4 (i.e. thin plastic films), especially plastic bags and wrappers, was the most frequently collected type of macroplastic by piece across all land uses within the 1-7 Resin Identification Codes. By mass, the data were distributed less consistently across land uses. Cigarette filters, containing the polymer cellulose acetate, were the most frequently found roadside plastic, but are not within the 1-7 classification system. Our results suggest that policies in place limiting plastic bag usage could substantially reduce roadside plastics but other plastics, such as food wrappers and other single use plastic films, which comprised a large proportion of the plastic debris collected, should also be regulated to further decrease macroplastic pollution.

Biomass obtained from microalgae research studies gained momentum in recent years because of their extensive application potential in multiple industries such as high-value nutraceuticals, bioproducts, cosmetics, animal feed industries, and biofuels while being a sustainable and environmentally friendly option. Although they have high biomass yields and rapid growth rates there are some limitations and challenges that remain for large-scale commercialized cultivation and harvesting methods of microalgae. Since there are multiple pathways related to efficient cultivation and harvesting methods to be viable, this study adopted, TOPSIS (Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution), a multicriteria decision-making tool, to find the most acceptable alternative by using excel spreadsheets to evaluate the information that is derived from literature and pilot-scale studies. As a result, tubular (helical) and plate (flat panel) photobioreactors (PBRs) for cultivation and chemical harvesting (with chitosan) and bio-flocculation for harvesting were deemed suitable, while plastic bag PBR and suspended air flotation were deemed unsuitable.

In this study, abundance, distribution and type of seafloor litter were determined in the Sinop Inceburun coast which is the northeast point of Turkey. Study was carried out in October 2014 and proposed methods by Guidance on Monitoring of Marine Litter in European Seas’ published by European Marine Strategy Framework Directive Technical Subgroup on Marine Litter section of seafloor litter adopted the region. Seafloor litter density was found mean 808.74±215.02 pieces per km-2. The amount of litter was found maximum in 34 m depth. When results were evaluated in terms of the type of material plastic was found 95.35% and encountered litter items were mainly composed of plastic bags. The size groups were found generally small than 50 cm x 50 cm in the classification according to the size groups. The data obtained from the study demonstrate that the seafloor in the region have highly littered compared to the other studies in the Black Sea. Marine litter pollution is a growing problem in the world all of the world’s oceans and also the Black Sea. Necessary measurements must be taken to solve this problem.

Plastic waste is a growing global environmental problem, particularly in the marine ecosystems, in consideration of its persistence. The monitoring of the plastic waste has become a global issue, as reported by several surveillance guidelines proposed by Regional Sea Conventions (OSPAR, UNEP) and appointed by the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive. Policy responses to plastic waste vary at many levels, ranging from beach clean-up to bans on the commercialization of plastic bags and to Regional Plans for waste management and recycling. Moreover, in recent years, the production of plant-derived biodegradable plastic polymers has assumed increasing importance. This study reports the first preliminary characterization of carbon stable isotopes (δ13C) of different plastic polymers (petroleum- and plant-derived) in order to increase the dataset of isotopic values as a tool for further investigation in different fields of polymers research as well as in the marine environment surveillance. The δ13C values determined in different packaging for food uses reflect the plant origin of "BIO" materials, whereas the recycled plastic materials displayed a δ13C signatures between plant- and petroleum-derived polymers source. In a preliminary estimation, the different colours of plastic did not affect the variability of δ13C values, whereas the abiotic and biotic degradation processes that occurred in the plastic materials collected on beaches and in seawater, showed less negative δ13C values. A preliminary experimental field test confirmed these results. The advantages offered by isotope ratio mass spectrometry with respect to other analytical methods used to characterize the composition of plastic polymers are: high sensitivity, small amount of material required, rapidity of analysis, low cost and no limitation in black/dark samples compared with spectroscopic analysis.

Plastic pollution and its environmental effects has received global attention the recent years. However, limited attention has so far been directed towards how plastics are regulated in a life cycle perspective and how regulatory gaps can be addressed in order to limit and prevent environmental exposure and hazards of macro- and microplastics. In this paper, we map European regulation taking outset in the life cycle perspective of plastic carrier bags: from plastic bag production to when it enters the environment. Relevant regulatory frameworks, directives and authorities along the life cycle are identified and their role in regulation of plastics is discussed. Most important regulations were identified as: the EU chemical Regulation, the Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive including the amending Directive regarding regulation of the consumption of lightweight plastic carrier bags, the Waste Framework Directive and the Directive on the Landfill of Waste. The main gaps identified relate to lack of clear definitions of categories of polymers, unambitious recycling rates and lack of consideration of macro- and microplastics in key pieces of legislation. We recommend that polymers are categorized according to whether they are polymers with the same monomer constituents (homopolymers) or with different monomer constituents (copolymers) and that polymers are no longer exempt from registration and evaluation under REACH. Plastics should furthermore have the same high level of monitoring and reporting requirements as hazardous waste involving stricter requirements to labelling, recordkeeping, monitoring and control over the whole lifecycle. Finally, we recommend that more ambitious recycle and recovery targets are set across the EU. Regulation of the consumption of lightweight plastic carrier bags should also apply to heavyweight plastic carrier bags. Last, the Marine and Water Framework Directives should specifically address plastic waste affecting water quality.