PBS NewsHour to Explore Global Environmental Threat from Plastic Pollution with Four-Part Series “The Plastic Problem”

Washington, DC (September 25, 2018) — PBS NewsHour will air a special four-part series “The Plastic Problem” exploring the global environmental threat to humans and animals from plastic pollution Tuesday – Friday this week (check local listings). As part of the effort, PBS NewsHour will look at the impact of plastic in the world, why it’s so prevalent, what’s being done to mitigate its use and what potential alternatives are out there. The series will extend online to include digital and social video and further reporting.

By 2050, one study estimates there will be more plastic than fish in the ocean. It’s a material intended to last forever, but nearly 40% of all plastic is used once and then discarded. The material isn’t biodegradable and breaks down into smaller pieces, eventually becoming microplastic.

NewsHour’s broadcast reports include:

Tuesday, September 25, 2018 – National correspondent Amna Nawaz looks at how plastic has become such a big part of our lives in a relatively short amount of time and the problems it’s created in those 70 years.

Wednesday, September 26, 2018 – Nawaz explores innovative ideas for reducing plastic use, reusing plastic and finding ways to get rid of it completely. In San Diego, a British startup put down the first road in the U.S. that mixes plastic with asphalt to make a stronger, cheaper surface. In Seattle, Nawaz and team get an update on the city’s recent straw and utensil ban. Then, in Portland, Oregon, they visit a new graduate who has discovered a naturally occurring bacteria that eats plastic.

Thursday, September 27, 2018 – Business and economics correspondent Paul Solman reports on the global economics of recycling our waste.

Friday, September 28, 2018 – In spite of its remote location, Easter Island, more than 2,000 miles off the coast of mainland Chile, is one place grappling with microplastics. It’s very close to the South Pacific Garbage Patch, which means plenty of plastic is washing up on its remote, rocky shores. The tiny island has another problem: it’s become a tourist mecca and as a small island, what to do with the waste generated by all those people is a challenge. A recycling plant opened in 2011 and processes 40,000 plastic bottles a month but much of the island’s garbage cannot be recycled. PBS NewsHour chief correspondent for arts, culture and society Jeffrey Brown talks with the mayor, recycling officials and a woman who runs a music school made out of recycled materials.

Coverage will extend online and on NewsHour social to include:

• Digital and social videos on why you can’t recycle plastic bags, the act of plogging (outdoor jogging while picking up litter), whether you should buy glass or cans based on how they’re recycled, the economics of plastic straw alternatives, and a taste test of alternatives to plastic straws.
• Written content on good uses of plastic and how our use of it can be better.
• An Instagram Story from our field reporting in Washington, Oregon, and California, a Twitter Moment of the series; a Twitter chat; and Facebook LIVEs, Periscopes, and IGTVs of each broadcast segment.