Whether releasing wax moths on the world’s surplus plastic really is a sensible approach to the problem is not yet clear. For one thing, it has yet to be established whether the caterpillars gain nutritional value from the plastics they eat, as well as being able to digest them. If they do not, their lives as garbage-disposal operatives are likely to be short—and, even if they do, they will undoubtedly need other nutrients to thrive and grow. Another question is the composition of their faeces. If the droppings produced by eating plastic turn out to be toxic, then there will be little point in pursuing the matter.Either they're making the problem worse that way or the plastic eating moths will get out of control and become the formosan termites that destroy modern civilization. Obviously we should hope for the latter scenario.
Wednesday, April 26, 2017
Corexit bugs
Didn't BP's dispersant spray already demonstrate that this is probably a bad idea?
Labels:
caterpillars,
pollution
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