Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

You are viewing this page in draft mode.

Plastics are forever

Nature Chemistry volume 11, pages 394–395 (2019)Cite this article

Subjects

Bruce C. Gibb explains why plastic isn’t always fantastic.

However, plastics have a dark side.

Your institute does not have access to this article

Relevant articles

Open Access articles citing this article.

Access options

Buy article

Get time limited or full article access on ReadCube.

$32.00

Buy

All prices are NET prices.

References

  1. Geyer, R., Jambeck, J. R. & Law, K. L. Sci. Adv. 3, e1700782 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Wright, S. L. & Kelly, F. J. BMJ 358, j4334 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Plastics – The Facts 2018 (Plastics Europe, 2018).

  4. Brooks, A. L., Wang, S. & Jambeck, J. R. Sci. Adv. 4, eaat0131 (2018).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Velis, C. A. Global Recycling Markets: Plastic Waste (International Solid Waste Association, 2014).

  6. Announcement of releasing the Catalogues of Imported Wastes Management Announcement no. 39 (Chinese Ministry of Environmental Protection, 2017).

  7. Jambeck, J. R. et al. Science 347, 768–771 (2015).

    CAS  Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Bergmann, M., Gutow, L. & Klages, M. (eds) Marine Anthropogenic Litter (Springer International Publishing, New York, 2015).

  9. van Sebille, E. et al. Environ. Res. Lett. 10, 124006 (2015).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Al-Sid-Cheikh, M. et al. Environ. Sci. Technol. 52, 14480–14486 (2018).

    CAS  Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Gasperi, J. et al. Curr. Opin. Environ. Sci. & Health 1, 1–5 (2018).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Rocha-Santos, T. A. P. Curr. Opin. Environ. Sci. & Health 1, 52–54 (2018).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Neimark, J. Microplastics are turning up everywhere, even in human excrement (National Public Radio, 2018); https://go.nature.com/2uu8ViO

  14. Lamb, J. B. et al. Science 359, 460–462 (2018).

    CAS  Article  Google Scholar 

  15. A Scientific Perspective on Microplastics in Nature and Society (Science Advice for Policy by European Academies, 2018).

  16. Alberg, A. J., Shopland, D. R. & Cummings, K. M. Am. J. Epidemiol. 179, 403–412 (2014).

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemistry at Tulane University, New Orleans, LA, USA

    Bruce C. Gibb

Authors
  1. Bruce C. Gibb
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Bruce C. Gibb.

Additional information

Twitter: @brucecgibb

Rights and permissions

Reprints and Permissions

About this article

Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Gibb, B.C. Plastics are forever. Nat. Chem. 11, 394–395 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41557-019-0260-7

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41557-019-0260-7

Further reading

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing