...let there be trash

Abstract

Arguably one of the most important human inventions, plastic has rapidly switched from being an amiable material to a vilified one. Tracking the origins of plastic all the way back to the oil industry, and following the processes of extraction, refining and exporting, we notice how the petro-cash and petro-power have changed appearance to become plastic goods. Originally designed to be of single use, plastic goods became a hassle to dispose of, hence, the emergence of the trade of plastic trash, a reincarnation of the petrol trade with different players. Capitalizing on this emerging need of making the plastic disappear, plastic waste became as much of a tool of nuisance as it is an apparatus of power. In order to manifest itself on the surface of the ground, oil inhabited tank farms especially built to celebrate the black gold, many of them now abandoned. Joining the two forms of oil on an infrastructurally-dense location can’t but affirm the embedded power this resource has on us. In creating a consumption haven around plastic on such site, ranging from an abyss of gluttony to a whimsical derive of gambling, one could affirm the necessity of plastic in allowing humanity to thrive. A direction with an ambiguous orientation. Thriving for a greener world or a more plastic society, a personal choice one makes in every decision.