Am I being unreasonable?

[Mad Doug Biker]

And as to the Americans - well, they could try using less. Just as you do, MDB.

This is true, but I am not the one needlessly burning the stuff every day just to get from A to B* **, and if I can, I'll use more natural materials for things instead.

A bike made out of twigs anyone??


...Of course, plastic doesn't get burned, it'll just last forever instead, which is, umm, slightly worrying, and makes me wonder what our foot print on this planet will be once we are extinct/off trashing a new planet (actually, have you seen the beach on Hawaii that is nothing but plastic??).


* - we wont get people out of their cars, Mr and Mrs average are too lazy for that, so it's only through greener technology that there will be a difference.

** - although I will have to, I admit, use a di*sel train later on today unless I go to Glasgow Central and use an electric service instead. Where does the power come from to power the wires?? I don't know, but I hope that some of it is at least from Hunterston.

Actually, I remember hearing that you could theoretically power the entire electric railway network using Nuclear quite easily, meaning that a lot of it all would be emission free.
There have even been proposals put forwards to do this in the past.

 

[mcshroom]

A bike made out of wood anyone??

Not as mad as it sounds. Don't know about wood, but there are definitely bamboo bikes.

 

[Mad Doug Biker]

Seriously??

I'd be scared that I hit a car and quite literally didn't have a bike any more!!

 

[buggi]

...Of course, plastic doesn't get burned, it'll just last forever instead, which is, umm, slightly worrying, and makes me wonder what our foot print on this planet will be once we are extinct/off trashing a new planet (actually, have you seen the beach on Hawaii that is nothing but plastic??).

QUOTE]
I was watching a programme the other day. there is a beach somewhere in the caribbean (sp? can't be arsed to check) (think it was there, came in half way through the programme) which is basically entirely made up of plastic washed up. Some of it very obviously broken plastic bottles etc, but the ecologist showed the presenter that the "sand" that they were walking on was in fact plastic. The plastic just breaks down and the "shingle" is actually tiny plastic bits instead of sand. very sad.

 

[Piemaster]

The Braer?? (Shetlands)

The Sea Empress?? (Pembroke)

I remember hearing that the rough seas round the Shetlands broke up and dispersed with most of the oil spilled from the Braer.

Chemical dispersants were sprayed onto the Braer spill by aircraft. That turned into a bigger pollution hazard than the original spill, due to it being being wind carried all over the nearby land.

I was on the lead tug that towed the Sea Empress from Pembroke up to the drydock in Belfast for repairs.

The Deepwater Horizon was one of the most sophisticated drilling rigs ever built. I'm sure 11 people that died on it did not want it to happen.

 

[Mad Doug Biker]

Chemical dispersants were sprayed onto the Braer spill by aircraft. That turned into a bigger pollution hazard than the original spill, due to it being being wind carried all over the nearby land.

Thanks. I just thought I'd heard that about the Braer somewhere. Obviously I was dreaming it.

And seeing a ship the size of The Sea Empress close up must have been impressive!

 

[Mad Doug Biker]

I was watching a programme the other day. there is a beach somewhere in the caribbean (sp? can't be arsed to check) (think it was there, came in half way through the programme) which is basically entirely made up of plastic washed up. Some of it very obviously broken plastic bottles etc, but the ecologist showed the presenter that the "sand" that they were walking on was in fact plastic. The plastic just breaks down and the "shingle" is actually tiny plastic bits instead of sand. very sad.

I saw this on the Tropic Of Cancer (I think) programme, and being in Hawaii, it was just the result of everything accumulating from around the Pacific rim. I'm sure other places must be the same.

Very tragic

 

[Fnaar]

Here we go... a TED lecture about Great Pacific Trash Island... really sad, esp the turtle...

View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=en4XzfR0FE8



... and here's some bikes made of more natural materials

 

[Piemaster]

And seeing a ship the size of The Sea Empress close up must have been impressive!

It is indeed a big ship.
Towing it up to Belfast, after learning the massive extent of the damage, two questions did occur to the Master of the tug I was on.
1. How deep is the Irish Sea here?
2. How much tow wire do we have paid out and does the winch emergency release work?