📘 Part 3: Plastic products

This episode's vocabulary

Packaging (noun) - the materials in which objects are wrapped before being sold.

Excessive (adj.) - too much.

Alternative (noun) - something that is different from something else, especially from what is usual, and offering the possibility of choice.

Impractical (adj.) - impractical arrangements, ideas, or methods cannot be done or used easily or effectively.

Cardboard (noun) - material like very thick, stiff paper, usually pale brown in colour, used especially for making boxes.

Lining (noun) - a material or substance that covers the inside surface of something.

Tie (noun) - any piece of string, plastic, metal, etc. that is used to fasten or hold together something

Thermosetting (adj.) - thermosetting substances can be melted and formed into shapes that become hard and cannot be melted again.

Biodegradable (adj.) - able to decay naturally and in a way that is not harmful.

To speculate (verb) - to guess possible answers to a question when you do not have enough information to be certain.

Carton (noun) - a box made from thick cardboard, for storing goods, or a container made from cardboard or plastic, in which milk or fruit juice, etc. is sold.

Readily (adverb) - quickly, immediately, willingly, or without any problem.

Redeeming (adj.) - making someone or something seem less bad.

Long-lasting (adj.) - continuing for a long period of time.

To degrade (verb) - (of a substance) to change into a more simple chemical structure.

Microbeads (plural noun) - very small pieces of plastic that are added to products for cleaning the skin.

Endocrine (adj.) - relating to any of the organs of the body that make hormones (= chemicals that make the body grow and develop) and put them into the blood, or to the hormones that they make.

To refer to something (phrasal verb) - to look at something for information or help.

To wrap something up (phrasal verb) - to cover or surround something in paper, cloth, or other material.

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Questions and Answers

M: Should we use plastic products, Rory?

R: I'm not sure what else we're supposed to use, to be honest. There's some packaging that is excessive, of course. But certain products have to be made with plastic because the alternatives are impractical. I mean, could you imagine using a laptop made of cardboard?

M: How can we reduce our use of plastic?

R: I'm hardly an expert. But if I were to guess, either removing or replacing certain components or elements of packaging would be a good place to start. For example, you don't really need your earphones delivered in a hard plastic case with a plastic lining and plastic cable ties, which are, I think they're almost always thermoset and immediately going in the bin upon opening. You could replace all of that with biodegradable cardboard, probably.

M: What kinds of plastic waste are often seen in your country?

R: Well, I don't really know a great deal about environmental or waste management. Although if I were to speculate, I'd say it would be any sort of packaging, including containers, like bottles and cartons. After all, everything we eat apparently must be packed in something. I suppose there will also be a huge number of plastic bags and packets just blowing around in the breeze, which is unsightly.

M: Why do people like to use plastic products?

R: I'm not sure they like it. It's just what corporations have decided is the cheapest and most readily accessible material to use. If they could have done it more cheaply with a different material then they would have. The one redeeming feature that might draw people toward plastic, I mean, if you can call it redeeming, is that it's long-lasting and usually doesn't degrade so easily.

M: Is plastic packaging the worst thing, when it comes to climate change?

R: Oh, I think only an expert in the process of industrial plastic making could tell you that. Though, if I were to guess I'd say that climate change is surely more about what is put into the atmosphere. And I'm not sure if plastic is related to that significantly. It might be bad for food chains and other forms of life, which is quite serious. But in terms of how it affects climate change, I would speculate probably not that big of a deal.

M: And how might it affect food chains?

R: Well, for example, microbeads in certain face scrubs go into what they get washed down the sink and they go into the food chain. And they're eaten by small fish, for example, which are then eaten by larger fish, and they're harvested and they are eaten by people. So plastic is actually in the food supply, which I don't think has positive consequences or could have positive consequences for anybody. I think somebody said that it affected endocrine levels, for example. So that's not good.

M: Is the amount of plastic we use increasing?

R: I have absolutely no idea. At a guess, I would say it might be decreasing slightly as companies become more environmentally aware and take measures to reduce plastic in their products. For example, my washing tubs come in a cardboard box. And you can see cardboard being used more and more as packaging in other things. But the population of the world is also increasing. So maybe that evens out any edge we might have had in reducing plastic. You would need to refer to the statistics to get a sure answer on that.

M: Is it better to buy goods with no packaging?

R: I'm not sure that's possible. However, we are possible getting things with reduced packaging would be a good idea until an alternative is created that isn't so harmful or damaging. Some items will need to be wrapped up in plastic though. I mean, can you imagine buying a pizza that was just left out in the open? Nobody would want to buy that.

M: Thank you, Rory, for your answers!

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Discussion

M: So, plastic.

R: Yes, plastic.

M: Plastic products, and plastic in packaging. So there is some packaging. Yeah? Packaging. That is excessive. So too much packaging, too many bags, too much plastic, when they package your product. Right? And this could be excessive. So, certain products, certain goods have to be made with plastic.

R: Ooo... Have to be made. Is it a passive structure?

M: With a model verb have to. And they do use plastic because alternatives are impractical. Right? So there are some alternatives to plastic but they are impractical. Not practical, impractical. Okay, dear listener? So possible - impossible, practical - impractical. And then Rory used his Rory strategy. I'm hardly an expert, but if I were to guess, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, bloody, bloody, blah.

R: Yes, I did. Because I'm not an expert, and I know no way to reduce the amount of plastic. Maybe buying fewer plastic products, but I don't know.

M: And then you gave us a good example. For example, you don't really need your earphones delivered in a hard plastic case. Because whenever, like many products we buy, they are in a hard plastic case, so they're packaged. They're like inside this plastic case with a plastic lining. So really specific phrases here. You can Google them, dear listener, and Google Images, okay? Go to Google Images, and type a plastic lining. And plastic cable ties. And just we open the case, and we throw everything in the bin. So the bin. In the trash can or in the bin, in the rubbish bin. And then Rory said that we could replace this plastic packaging with biodegradable cardboard.

R: You're really close. Biodegradable, but that just means that it degrades in nature and goes back into the earth with minimal consequences.

M: Yeah, degrades or it doesn't degrade. So plastic usually doesn't disappear so easily. But cardboard does. So cardboard is sometimes used instead of plastic.

R: So, speaking of things that are biodegradable, I talked about plastics, which are thermoset. And thermosetting plastics are plastics, which are really, really hard to recycle, because they're able to withstand really high temperatures. That makes them durable, but it means that they don't break down easily. So they're more damaging to the environment.

M: What kinds of plastic waste does Rory have in his count? Well, obviously, a number of plastic bags, packets, right? And pretty much all over the world, yeah, we have plastic bags, plastic packets, we have bottles, cartons. Yeah. All sorts of packaging. And bottles... Or, for example, cans, like Coca-Cola cans. Cartons, milk cartons. Because everything is packaged in something these days. Yeah? So pretty much everything we buy will be packaged. Well, most products. Speaking about the reasons why people use plastic, Rory said that plastic is readily accessible. So it's a readily accessible material to use.

R: Yeah. But that just means it's easy to access.

M: It's easy to access, right. So plastic. How do we package it? Well, we use plastic.

R: It's the easiest choice.

M: And then we can say that this feature draws people towards plastic. Right? It's cheap. And that's why people are drawn towards plastic. So they're kind of attracted to plastic. Well, especially corporations, when they package their products. And then also, you can say that some plastic is long-lasting, and it doesn't degrade easily. Yeah? So degrade is the verb. So it doesn't break into parts easily. Yeah. It doesn't disappear easily. Then Rory used his strategy again. I think only an expert in the process of industrial plastic making could tell you that. But if I were to guess, I'd say that...

R: But that's true. Like, I don't really know how plastic packaging affects climate change because climate change is connected to what's in the atmosphere. Whereas plastic is a physical thing that's on the ground. I mean, maybe the process of making it involves producing a lot of pollutants or atmospheric pollutants, but I don't know. I don't know much about how plastic is made.

M: Yes, dear listener. So this question is crazy, right? Is plastic packaging the worst thing when it comes to climate change? And if you have no idea, so, I'm not an expert. But if I were to guess I'd say that... And the easiest option is to speak about, yeah, like while they are making plastic or while plastic is being made, a lot of chemicals are emitted into the atmosphere. Right? And they pollute the air we breathe, pollution, and then it affects climate change. But yeah. At a guess is a nice one.

R: Is it?

M: Yes. So when you say, I have absolutely no idea, at a guess, I'd say that... And then you continue with some ideas. Yeah? At a guess, so kind of, I'm like guessing. Yeah. I don't know. But let me take a wild guess. And here we should use companies become more environmentally friendly, or more environmentally aware, right? Of this plastic issue. Companies take measures to reduce the plastic in their products. Well, some companies, right? So we can actually say that the amount of plastic is decreasing in some countries, yeah? Maybe. Or increasing everywhere. What are washing tabs?

R: Do you not have washing tabs? They're little pods that you put in with your washing in the washing machine.

M: Ah, yeah, that's what I thought. Oh, they're not called tablets?

R: Well, I call them tabs. But you could call them tablets if you wanted.

M: Ah, okay. Yeah, dear listener, so if you don't know the meaning of the word, washing tabs, go to Google Images, and just type in washing tabs, and then you will see pictures. Yeah, sometimes we call them tablets, tabs. And washing tabs that Rory buys come in a cardboard box. So no plastic, but they come in a cardboard box. Right? So they are wrapped inside a cardboard box, which is degradable. Yeah, Rory?

R: It's biodegradable. Yes.

M: Biodegradable. And you've used another strategy. It's better to check the statistics, you said. Like it's better to check the statistics to give an educated answer. Or something else. You said something else about statistics.

R: You'd have to refer to the statistics to get a more accurate idea, I think is what I said. Because like, I don't know. I really don't know, I think people want to believe the amount of plastic that we use is increasing, but maybe we're just more aware of it. And even if we tried to decrease the amount of plastic we were using, there are still more people now than there were before. So there could be more plastic being used overall, it depends.

M: Could you say it again, you need to refer to the statistics to give a more accurate answer. Yeah?

R: Yeah, I'd need to refer to the statistics or you'd need to refer to the statistics to get a more accurate answer or pictures.

M: Yeah, so that's our strategy. Again, dear listener, you can use it only once. Okay? Once in your speaking exam, you use it. No packaging or packaging? To package or not to package? That's the question. So these days, some companies have reduced packaging. So they have reduced their packaging materials. And then we can speak about like, yeah, people should buy goods without packaging, or with less packaging, or use alternatives, which are not so harmful, or damaging as plastic. Yeah? And some items, items like goods, products, will need to be wrapped up in plastic anyway. Yeah? Like, I don't know. Rory gave us an example of a pizza. But a pizza is usually it's in some cardboard "thingy".

R: Yeah. But it's not just in the cardboard box. It's wrapped up and it's wrapped up in plastic.

M: Really? Pizza?

R: Yeah. Or even like something that was just left out in the open.

M: Oh, yeah. Kind of like I buy a pizza. And then if I haven't finished it for some crazy reason. Before I put it in the fridge, I wrap it in some stuff. Okay, yeah.

R: Well, even if you're buying one, mostly, you wouldn't buy something that hadn't been wrapped up in something.

M: Yeah, yeah. So everything is wrapped up in something, dear listener. Wow. This podcast is, you know, wrapped up in love, and joy, and happiness we're giving you. You know. Yeah, we are anti-plastic podcast, no plastic. We just use our laptops and smartphones and all microphones which are made from plastic. And oil.

R: Could you imagine? Oh, and that's really that's a good time to draw attention to another way to give an example. So lots of times people just say, for example, for example, for example. You could actually use a question instead. So here instead of saying, for example, people wouldn't buy a pizza that was left out in the open, you can say, can you imagine buying a pizza that was just left out in the open? Or could you imagine using a laptop made of cardboard? You know, these are alternatives to just always using for example.

M: Nice. Yeah. And can you imagine doing something? Can you imagine buying? Can you imagine having? Can you imagine looking at Rory with pink hair? I'd love to see you with pink hair.

R: Kek.

M: Yes, now Rory is gonna go to the shore and pick up all this rubbish he's left.

R: No, I'm not. I'm in the middle of the countryside. There's no shore nearby.

M: Ah, really? So in your neighbourhood, there is no rubbish, there is no plastic waste? Or you, kind of, you don't use plastic at all, in this environmentally friendly Scotland?

R: Well, where I live, there's not really any waste at all. But there aren't that many people, so...

M: So no landfills? So all the rubbish issues are under control?

R: Here, yes. Elsewhere, maybe not. Probably not.

M: Wow, you see, dear listener, there are some places in the world, which are pure and clean. And I think Rory makes such places even cleaner and purer. Dear listener, thank you very much for listening and being with us! We'll get back to you in our next speaking part two episode. Okay? Bye!

R: Bye!

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