dr. steven nutt is a professor of materials science at usc. he studies the physics and chemistry of materials like plastic. >> it seems to have been a material that was developed for convenience but we're now, you know, almost a hundred years later paying the price. >> if you look at the population as a whole, probably the majority have not yet realized the magnitude of the problem. >> and nothing symbolizes the problem like the omnipresent plastic water bottle. americans consume water from about 50-billion bottles a year. made from what's called p-e-t, or polyethylene terephthalate... two monomers... ethylene glycol and purified terephthalic acid... are combined to create a polymer... resulting in a lightweight but strong material. >> why then does it last almost to infinity in a landfill? >> these essentially are the same type of bonds that hold together a diamond. >> if you're conscientious enough to throw a water bottle into a blue recycle bin, like we do here at techknow, then you probably think that water bottle is gonna be turned into a