2Last Name Elizabeth LeeMrs. Janevski & Ms. SchwartzEnglish 7 Period 731 April 2015The Poison We NeedFirst made by mistake, then globalized into a nearly omniscient material, plastic has changed the world. From food containers and Poland Spring bottles to ink and Chipotle bowls, plastic is everywhere. Over the years, it has been a controversial topic- is it a bad thing? A good thing? After decades of research and thorough studies, both the benefits and negative consequences of plastic have been recognized, leading to the conclusion that people should use it with limitations.Plastics damaging effects on the environment is something that has been studied for a long time. One of the major issues is the damage on coral reefs. According to the documentary, Plastic Paradise, there are more than 64,000 tons of old fishing nets floating around in the oceans worldwide. These nets, made of nylon (a form of plastic) and other strong materials, collect pieces of plastic and other garbage floating in the ocean. As they roll around the sea floor, they scratch and snag on corals, ripping them off the seabed. This can destroy years of growth in just a few minutes. The Northwestern Hawaiian Islands reefs are especially prone to this type of damage because of their location in the North Pacific gyre. From 2000 to 2006, NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) removed over 500 tons of marine debris from the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (How Pollution Affects Coral Reefs, par. 5). The other major issue is how animals are harmed, with the existence of plastic in the oceans. In the case of the previously mentioned nets, animals often swim into the nets and become entangled in the nearly unbreakable ropes. Many creatures, from seals to turtles, have died from strangulation in this way. These very common occurrences have lead to the idea of ghost nets, where the nets are no longer controlled by humans, but still fulfill their goals- catching fish and other marine life. Another way that plastic harms animals is through micro plastics. According to the Sea Education Association (SEA), micro plastics are microscopic pieces of plastic debris. They come from factory discharges, urban wastewater, and of course, the millions of plastic bags and bottles littered in the oceans around the world. Their widespread presence in the waters pose physical and toxicological risks in oceans because the chemicals that seep out of the plastics concentrate toxic chemicals already in seawater. Microplastics are often consumed by unknowing marine animals, and the chemicals build up in their bodies. A Finnish Environment Institute study confirmed that sea organisms are unable to separate plastic particles from their natural foods. Lab tests showed that plankton ingested microplastics while feeding. (Plastics account for majority of marine microlitter accumulating in food chain, par. 4). As plastic builds up in their bodies, fish and other sea animals die. Outi Setala, a researcher from the Finnish Environment Institute, stated, If nothing is done, this could become a new environmental issue. (Science Daily: plastics accounts for majority of marine microlitter accumulating in food chain, par. 10)The microplastics idea leads to the argument that plastic has detrimental effects on humans. One bad effect starts from marine animals consuming microplastics. As larger animals feed on these diseased animals, microparticles are transferred from one trophic level to a higher level (Plastics account for majority of marine microlitter accumulating in food chain, par. 4). In the end, the plastic will end up in peoples bodies, as they are at the top of the food chain. Furthermore, the most well-known argument against plastic focuses on BPA (Bisphenol-A), a chemical used to harden plastic. BPA is found in many objects around us, including receipt papers, childrens sippy cups, and recycled paper towels (ink contains BPA, thus towels made from the old paper contains BPA as well). According to the documentary, Plastic Paradise, BPA can go through human skin in a matter of seconds. Touching a receipt paper, and feeding ones child with a sippy cup might seem truly ordinary, but BPA is entering the body constantly. Now, heres the scary thing: BPA has been linked to breast cancer, early puberty, high blood pressure, ovarian syndrome, diabetes, anxious behavior, aggressiveness, and more. 100 human studies have shown that everyday BPA exposure leads to high blood pressure, ovarian syndrome, diabetes, etc. NJ Rowan University found that BPA levels linked to autism. The University of Houston discovered that flame-retardants in electronics linked to weight gain (Roizen MD and Oz MD, par. 5-7). The worst of all, BPA acts similar to estrogen. Studies have shown that BPA feminized male animal infants. In humans, the excess estrogen caused early puberty and an increased rate of breast cancer since WW2 (plastic productions increased rapidly since WW2) (Roizen MD and Oz MD, par. 10). Professor Von Saal of University of Missouri found that of 115 low dose BPA studies done in 2004, 94 found estrogen effects in animals. Furthermore, something that many people dont realize is that BPA-free nearly never means that the product is safe from the harmful effects of BPA. It most likely contains other chemicals with different names that still act like BPA, such as: Bisphenol B, C, E, F, G, M, P, PH, S, TMC and Z (Roizen MD and Oz MD, par. 11). Many people agree with von Saal that there is enough evidence against BPA for people to start taking action (Main, par. 25).Lastly, recycling plastic is not a solution to the plastics problem. According to Plastic Paradise, only about 23% of recycled plastic is actually recycled. Plastic, unlike glass and metal, cannot be recycled multiple times. If all the plastic bags that America produces in a year were lined up end to end, the chain would wrap the earth 20 times. But only a small percent is recycled by the people, and even less is actually recycled into new plastic products. This all comes down to mean that every second, these indestructible molecules of plastic are piling up in our oceans and lands, toxicating humans and animals both.However, there are several pros of plastic in our world. Plastic is well known for its cheap costs and safe uses. Plastic is safe to use around the household, even with children. Children often tend to knock down household objects, and plastics lightweight durability makes it the perfect material to stand against the children. Plastic will prevent parents from having to spend money on broken items and having to clean up shattered pieces that could possibly puncture their skin. If a young child knocks down a glass cup, it will most likely shatter into a thousand pieces, posing dangers to the child. But a plastic cup will only drop onto the floor in one, complete piece. Even if a plastic object does break, it can be easily replaced, as plastic is much cheaper than glass or metal. Plastic can simply be the money-saving option for parents worried about their childrens safety.The second major benefit from the plastics industry is the creation of jobs. According to the Natural Defenses Resource Council (NDRC), Reaching California's goal of a 75 percent recycling rate by 2020 would create at least 110,000 new recycling jobs and many more jobs in related industries Recycling 75 percent of plastic (an additional 2.12 million tons) would create 29,000 jobs -- more than any other material (Californias New Recycling Goal is a Green Jobs Creator, par. 2-4). Californias job creation plan for the next decade promises to create thousands of more jobs, which can only boost the states economy. Also, according to the documentary, Plastic Paradise, the plastic industry is among the biggest industries in the world, next to the oil industry. The thousands of plastic factories around the world already provide many people across the globe with jobs. Many others have jobs related to plastics, such as transportation of plastic supplies. Without plastic, millions would be out of jobs, unable to feed their hungry children.The third major argument for plastic is how much todays society depends on it. Plastic is literally everywhere in peoples lives, whether they know it or not. For one, plastic is essential in electronics, to make insulators and other lightweight parts. Music recordings, tapes and modern films would not have been possible without plastic. Also, despite the common belief that plastic is a flimsy material, if plastics molecules are aligned carefully in a certain way, it can become durable enough to make bulletproof vests, tennis rackets, and golf clubs (Stein, par. 33-34).Additionally, prosthetics are primarily made of plastic. Plastic-based artificial skin can save fire victims. Recent technology has enable tissue engineering, where plastic replicas of body parts (such as the ear or the nose) can aid in creating brand-new ears and noses (Stein, par. 39-41).These are only a few ways that plastic can help in the medical field. Most importantly, plastic replaces the need for paper. Using paper can lead to deforestation, which can speed up global warming (when trees die, they release the carbon they had stored inside, which adds to the greenhouse effect) (Stein, par. 24). Plastic can do papers job, with less negative consequences on pollution. In many aspects, people rely on plastic so much that it has become impossible to even imagine a life devoid of plastic.Based on the arguments presented above, it is clear that plastic is not something to support 100% or to get rid of completely. Instead, it should be used with limitations. As the pro arguments claim, plastic is so embedded in our society that it would be impossible to get rid of it completely. The job increases with the plastic industry are true as well. So in the end, the only thing to worry about is the environmental impacts and the human health impacts. To prevent plastic and its chemicals from entering the oceans, stricter laws should be put in place about factories controlling their dirty, polluted discharges. Landfills should be contained with better technology to prevent garbage from floating into the waters. Most importantly, governments should spend more money on cleaning up garbage on the beaches, or to support the non-governmental groups that will do the job. Cleaning up the existing litter and preventing future garbage can be the solution to getting our oceans pure, as it used to be. The first step in solving the BPA problem is recognizing the problem. The US government needs to refresh the Toxic Substances Control Act and make sure that people understand the damaging effects of BPA. The government should also support scientists to create safer chemicals to replace BPA. For the time being, families should be advised publicly to not use plastic objects for young children, since they are the most vulnerable to harmful chemicals. Also, in order to solve the plastic bags dilemma, all supermarket chains should be required to sell fabric shopping bags, which can be used multiple times, compared to the single-use plastic bags. With just a bit more attention to the issue, plastic can lose its bad reputation and become something that people appreciate in their daily lives.Overall, plastic certainly has its benefits and downsides; the best way to use it is with limitations. The truly good way to deal with a problem is not to ignore it, or to just say that something is bad. The reasonable thing to do is to find a realistic solution that keeps the benefits and gets rid of the negative consequences. With lots of support and help from the government, plastic could become a useful material for decades to come.