That's a very big question, but thank you for your observation and for your concern.
There are many different types of studies out there, and I would say Canada is a global leader in terms of studying plastics and microplastics. Dr. Rochman's lab is at the forefront of many interesting and relevant studies that help us to understand plastics in the environment.
There are many different approaches to figuring out what we find where. The more we look, the more we realize plastics are everywhere. Microplastics are everywhere. With everything from satellite surveillance and surveillance aircraft in the north Pacific to icebreakers in the Canadian Arctic and smaller studies on ship or shore in coastal waters, scientists have been busy trying to figure out how to get their heads around this complex pollutant problem.
Mr. Thurlow mentioned that it's different from the chemical problem, and it is, because of the snowflake issue. Every piece of plastic is different. I would go back to the fact that if we are going to deal with recycling, we need to increase the value of the recycled product. We need it to be food safe. We need it to be labelled. We don't want harmful chemicals in it, like flame-retardant chemicals or hardening agents that are estrogenic. We don't want those things in it. As soon as we increase the value of the recycled product or the product that will be recycled, people will pick them up and clean them up, and we'll have an aftermarket for that product.