50 years ago, scientists developed self-destructing plastic
Excerpt from the August 7, 1971 issue of Science News
![a gloved hand holds plastic pack rings (to hold six canned beverages together), behind the rings is a beach](https://i0.wp.com/www.sciencenews.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/062921_aa_50ya_oceanplastics_feat.jpg?fit=1030%2C580&ssl=1)
In the 1970s, amid public calls for eco-friendly products, scientists developed plastic that could quickly break down when exposed to light. Fifty years later, plastic pollution is still a problem.
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