Our Plastic Problem

January 1, 2025

Gr 4-7-This is a great introduction to the history of plastics, modern uses and challenges with plastics, and how perception of their use has shifted from positive to negative. Durnford explores how plastics came to be with an easy-to-understand description of plastic synthesis from ethane to nurdles (the tiny plastic pieces used to make larger plastic items). She uses highly relatable examples to show readers how plastics are deeply woven into every aspect of our lives, from the clothes we wear to the lifesaving advantages of plastics in the medical field. She discusses the ways that plastics persist in the environment, the challenges associated with recycling, and what people can do to help with the plastic problem. The text is very informative and written at a level that is digestible for young readers. There are photographs throughout depicting commonly used plastics and where these plastics end up in the environment (landfills, the ocean, etc.). Photographs are coupled with digitally rendered, clip art-style images that may not appeal to older readers. Quick tips and facts in sidebars will keep easily distracted tweens engaged. This text would work well with a study unit. VERDICT Hand this book to budding environmentalists or anyone interested in learning more about the plastic problem. A recommended purchase for updating nonfiction collections.-Jessica Trafton

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January 1, 2025
Grades 4-7 Plastic emerged in the 1950s as a "miracle material" that was inexpensive to produce, impervious to liquids, and easy to shape into different functional forms, depending on the product's intended use. Plastic has been used to solve problems in home kitchens, and it has provided useful, disposable health-care supplies for use in hospitals. Many plastic products can be recycled, but much more is simply discarded. Unfortunately, it does not rot or degrade. It simply breaks into smaller and smaller pieces that become part of the land, the oceans, and even our bodies when it is ingested. Microplastics have become a problem in oceans, where sea creatures often mistake them for food. After explaining the drawbacks connected with plastics, Durnford describes some international efforts to lessen their negative effects on the environment, and she praises several global problem-solving initiatives. Like other books in the Orca Footprints series, this volume is accessible, broadly informative, and illustrated with many pertinent color photos. A timely introduction to a serious environmental issue.

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January 15, 2025
It's essential, it's ubiquitous, and it doesn't go away when it's discarded--so what can we do about the growing problem of plastics pollution? Dubbing waste plastics the second-greatest threat to our environment (after climate change), Durnford effectively communicates a sense of urgency. Rather than laying out doomsday scenarios, however, she focuses on potential ways to reduce the use of plastic, and to reuse it. She readily admits that "we are all completely dependent on plastic" and points to large- and small-scale efforts to reduce the amount of plastic in our food chains, from experimental filters for the Great Pacific Garbage Patch and four other floating oceanic "soups" to chai vendors along Indian railways who are switching from plastic cups to disposable clay ones. Keenly aware that the crisis has social as well as environmental effects, the author notes that U.S. communities of color are disproportionately affected by hazardous emissions caused by the production of plastic. And her observation that waste plastics are often sent by wealthier countries to developing nations underscores the need for regulatory initiatives on an international level. Young eco-activists will also find general guidelines for localized projects, as well as specific instructions for laundering clothing to reduce microfiber shedding, among other immediately applicable advice. Stock photos of racially and culturally diverse groups of smiling young people join revealing views of factories, brightly colored plastic items, and cluttered beaches and landfills. Accentuates the positive without minimizing the issue's scope. (resource lists, glossary, index)(Nonfiction. 8-11)

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