menu_open Columnists
We use cookies to provide some features and experiences in QOSHE

More information  .  Close

The world held hostage by residue from the past

42 0
06.03.2026

Woke this morning covered in oil. The sheets above and below me, cotton blended with polyester, are spun from oil. The elastic in their fitted corners is derived from it. The mattress foam springs from it.

Subscribe now for unlimited access.

Login or signup to continue reading

Stepped on bathroom mat threaded with synthetic fibres. Plastic toothbrush boasted bristles of nylon and a handle of polypropylene - polymers born out of the compressed remains of ancient marine life and Jurassic bones.

Squeezed toothpaste from plastic tube made from petrochemicals. Water spiralled down basin sealed with synthetic compounds bonded by the black blood of the earth.

Showered with body wash from high density polyethylene bottle, its colourful label coated with petrochemical laminate. Shaved with plastic razor, moulded handle and lubricating strip courtesy of petrochemistry.

Dried off with "100 per cent" cotton towel. Brief respite from oil-drenched world. Chose to forget about the diesel-powered machines that plant the cotton, the petrochemical-powered fertilisers and pesticides employed to grow it, the plastic piping irrigating it, the fuel that transports it to the mill, the dyes and softening agents used in its manufacturing, the plastic wrapping in which it is sold.

Opened wardrobe. Dressed in oil. Cotton-polyester T-shirt. Polyester underwear with nylon stitching (because I'm cheap). Shorts with elastane waistband. Socks that stretch thanks to petrochemistry. Shoes cushioned with ethylene-vinyl acetate. Soles composed of synthetic rubber.

The day's outfit, engineered for comfort with ancient carbon.

The kitchen was slick with oil. Took eggs out of refrigerator constructed from petroleum-based polymers, insulated with petrochemical foam, sealed with synthetic rubber. Dropped eggs into non-stick frying pan. Admired how they slid across smooth tetrafluoroethylene surface engineered from fossil fuels.

Milk from a plastic bottle. Coffee from a crude oil supply chain. Washed up with a polyurethane sponge and soapy liquid containing sodium lauryl sulphate and linear alkylbenzene sulphonate, delightfully scented with a petrochemical-generated fragrance.

Home office another shrine to petrochemistry. Laptop casing, keyboard and the resin in its circuit boards permeated by petrochemicals. Chair with nylon wheels, made comfortable thanks to fossil fuels. Ballpoint pen with oil-based ink. Dog at feet dozed on polypropylene-composed mat. Printer........

© The Examiner