Some definitions: a plastic is a synthetic (man-made) organic polymer usually composed of a large number of simple monomer units chemically united (generally chemically) and usually used for its structural properties. For instance, the polypropylene fibers which make up a polypropylene rope would commonly be called a plastic but the polyvinyl alcohol used as a water thickener would normally not.

Biodegradation is any sort of chemical decomposition by environmental causes. These causes may include sunlight, moisture (water), and microbes. Heat, erosion, and oxidation are generally not included.

1. If you have read that every plastic ever made still exists, then you need to be aware that your gullibility is extreme and the source for that claim should not be relied upon. Surely, you've seen plastic burn. Surely, you don't believe that the burned plastic magically reassembles itself. Hence it is obvious that not all plastic ever made still exists.

2. We can change plastic. Because most plastic items contain many other chemical compounds, (often colorants, antioxidants, plasticizers, & fillers) it can be quite expensive to decompose them into useful materials.

3. Chemistry isn't magic. Any industrial chemistry involves people, equipment, transportation, and energy. That is, it takes money. Most plastic is made from natural gas (the polymer, that is), which is cheap and fairly pure (consisting of mostly a half-dozen chemical compounds). There are tens of thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands, maybe millions, of different plastics that have been made. Because of all the other stuff mixed into the polymers, and because the polymers can be very different, chemically, it is usually cheaper and easier to make a plastic starting from natural gas than starting from pre-existing plastic. Just the mix of materials separated from the polymers would be terribly expensive to dispose of.

4. The forces of nature will eventually bury some plastic, break up some plastic, and decompose some plastic. Nothing lasts forever. Very little of the plastic existing today will be present in 10,000 years. Erosion, aging, and biodegradation are the 3 categories of this degradation, along with mechanical forces. Much plastic exists in the oceans as microscopic bits. Some bacteria are able to eat some plastics. All plastics burn. Eventually all of the polymers present in the plastic here on Earth will either be converted to CO₂ (either in the air or captured in the ground (eventually as carbonate) OR subducted with the tectonic plates and thermally decomposed.

Some definitions: plastic is a synthetic (man-made) organic polymer usually composed of a large number of simple monomer units chemically united (generally chemically) and usually used for its structural properties. For instance, the polypropylene fibers which make up a polypropylene rope would commonly be called a plastic but the polyvinyl alcohol used as a water thickener would normally not.

Biodegradation is any sort of chemical decomposition by environmental causes. These causes may include sunlight, moisture (water), and microbes. Heat, erosion, and oxidation are generally not included.

1. If you have read that every plastic ever made still exists, then you need to be aware that your gullibility is extreme and the source for that claim should not be relied upon. Surely, you've seen plastic burn. Surely, you don't believe that the burned plastic magically reassembles itself. Hence it is obvious that not all plastic ever made still exists.

2. We can change plastic. Because most plastic items contain many other chemical compounds, (often colorants, antioxidants, plasticizers, & fillers) it can be quite expensive to decompose them into useful materials.

3. Chemistry isn't magic. Any industrial chemistry involves people, equipment, transportation, and energy. That is, it takes money. Most plastic is made from natural gas (the polymer, that is), which is cheap and fairly pure (consisting of mostly a half-dozen chemical compounds). There are tens of thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands, maybe millions, of different plastics that have been made. Because of all the other stuff mixed into the polymers, and because the polymers can be very different, chemically, it is usually cheaper and easier to make a plastic starting from natural gas than starting from pre-existing plastic. Just the mix of materials separated from the polymers would be terribly expensive to dispose of.

4. The forces of nature will eventually bury some plastic, break up some plastic, and decompose some plastic. Nothing lasts forever. Very little of the plastic existing today will be present in 10,000 years. Erosion, aging, and biodegradation are the 3 categories of this degradation, along with mechanical forces. Much plastic exists in the oceans as microscopic bits. Some bacteria are able to eat some plastics. All plastics burn. Eventually, all of the polymers present in the plastic here on Earth will either be converted to CO₂ (either in the air or captured in the ground (eventually as carbonate) OR subducted with the tectonic plates and thermally decomposed.

Some definitions: a plastic is a synthetic (man-made) organic polymer usually composed of a large number of simple monomer units chemically united (generally chemically) and usually used for its structural properties. For instance, the polypropylene fibers which make up a polypropylene rope would commonly be called a plastic but the polyvinyl alcohol used as a water thickener would normally not. Biodegradation is any sort of chemical decomposition by environmental causes. These causes may include be sunlight, moisture (water), and microbes. Heat, erosion, and oxidation are generally not included.

1. If you have read that every plastic ever made still exists, then you need to be aware that your gullibility is extreme and the source for that claim should not be relied upon. Surely you've seem plastic burn. Surely you don't believe that the burned plastic magically reassembles itself. Hence it is obvious that not all plastic ever made still exists.
2. We can change plastic. Because most plastic items contain many other chemical compounds; (often colorants, antioxidants, plasticizers, & fillers) it can be quite expensive to decompose them into useful materials.
3. Chemistry isn't magic. Any industrial chemistry involves people, equipment, transportation, and energy. That is, it takes money. Most plastic is made from natural gas (the polymer, that is), which is a cheap and fairly pure (consisting of mostly a half-dozen chemical compounds). There are tens of thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands, maybe millions, of different plastics that have been made. Because of all the other stuff mixed into the polymers, and because the polymers can be very different, chemically, it is usually cheaper and easier to make a plastic starting from natural gas than starting from pre-existing plastic. Just the mix of materials separated from the polymers would be terribly expensive to dispose of.
4. The forces of nature will eventually bury some plastic, break up some plastic, and decompose some plastic. Nothing lasts forever. Very little of the plastic existing today will be present in 10,000 years. Erosion, aging, and biodegradation are the 3 categories of this degradation, along with mechanical forces. Much plastic exists in the oceans as microscopic bits. Some bacteria are able to eat some plastics. All plastics burn. Eventually all of the polymers present in the plastic here on Earth will either be converted to CO₂ (either in the air or captured in the ground (eventually as carbonate) OR subducted with the tectonic plates and thermally decomposed.

Some definitions: a plastic is a synthetic (man-made) organic polymer usually composed of a large number of simple monomer units chemically united (generally chemically) and usually used for its structural properties. For instance, the polypropylene fibers which make up a polypropylene rope would commonly be called a plastic but the polyvinyl alcohol used as a water thickener would normally not.

Biodegradation is any sort of chemical decomposition by environmental causes. These causes may include sunlight, moisture (water), and microbes. Heat, erosion, and oxidation are generally not included.

1. If you have read that every plastic ever made still exists, then you need to be aware that your gullibility is extreme and the source for that claim should not be relied upon. Surely, you've seen plastic burn. Surely, you don't believe that the burned plastic magically reassembles itself. Hence it is obvious that not all plastic ever made still exists.

2. We can change plastic. Because most plastic items contain many other chemical compounds, (often colorants, antioxidants, plasticizers, & fillers) it can be quite expensive to decompose them into useful materials.

3. Chemistry isn't magic. Any industrial chemistry involves people, equipment, transportation, and energy. That is, it takes money. Most plastic is made from natural gas (the polymer, that is), which is cheap and fairly pure (consisting of mostly a half-dozen chemical compounds). There are tens of thousands, perhaps hundreds of thousands, maybe millions, of different plastics that have been made. Because of all the other stuff mixed into the polymers, and because the polymers can be very different, chemically, it is usually cheaper and easier to make a plastic starting from natural gas than starting from pre-existing plastic. Just the mix of materials separated from the polymers would be terribly expensive to dispose of.

4. The forces of nature will eventually bury some plastic, break up some plastic, and decompose some plastic. Nothing lasts forever. Very little of the plastic existing today will be present in 10,000 years. Erosion, aging, and biodegradation are the 3 categories of this degradation, along with mechanical forces. Much plastic exists in the oceans as microscopic bits. Some bacteria are able to eat some plastics. All plastics burn. Eventually all of the polymers present in the plastic here on Earth will either be converted to CO₂ (either in the air or captured in the ground (eventually as carbonate) OR subducted with the tectonic plates and thermally decomposed.