Use the outline structure below to begin organizing your causal argument.

You may not have all

the details you need, but you should be able to determine what points you will make in your
essay and begin planning where your source material will go and how it will support your
argument. Remember that source material should not simply sit in your essay—it should be
utilized and incorporated smoothly to support your writing, not make the point for you.
Use the headings below and create your own document. Input as much information as you can;
this will make drafting much easier!

CAUSAL ARGUMENT OUTLINE

Introduction + Thesis
 What context do you need to provide to set up your argument?
o Plastic pollution is negatively affecting our community and human health.
Throughout the years the pollution has gotten significantly worse and will
continue to do so if we do not start taking action to eliminate plastic use.
 What does the reader need to know to understand the topic?
o Plastic negatively affects the environment by contributing to deforestation,
climate change, and creating land and water pollution. Plastic pollution also
creates health problems such as cancer, birth defects, diabetes, and asthma among
other illnesses.
 How will you catch the reader’s attention?
o I will catch the reader’s attention by stating a mind-blowing statistic about the
number of plastics that are produced compared to the number that is recycled
yearly.
 How will you LEAD TO your thesis?
o The thesis should be at the end of the paragraph
o Use correct person!
o I will lead to my thesis by bringing up a few of my supporting details and
previewing what my paper will be about.

Body Paragraphs
 Start with a topic sentence—what is the point of the paragraph?
o The creation of plastics comes from fossil fuels which release toxic chemicals into
the air and water in significant amounts.
o There are many different varieties of plastic in this world, some being more
durable while others are more flexible. No matter what type of plastic it is, it will
have a negative impact on our environment.
o Plastic pollution negatively affects all humans but has more of an impact on low-
income families, Indigenous people, minorities, and children.
o Plastic pollution endangers wildlife.
o Pollutants from plastic are everywhere in our world and threaten human health on
a global scale.
 o Plastic waste disposal negatively affects the environment and human health.
o Plastic production continues to increase even though we know the negative side
effects it causes.
 Think about what source material will support that point
o “Plastic and Human Health: A Lifecycle Approach to Plastic Pollution” –
“Extraction and Transport”
o “The Different Types of Plastic”
o “Plastic waste and health harms”
o “Effects of plastic debris in the environment and on wildlife”
o “Plastics and Health at a Glance”
o “Management of Plastic Wastes”
o “The Plastic Problem”
 Set up the source material by using credentials (not just signal phrases—introduce the
source and its relevance to your argument)
o Center for International Environmental Law is a government agency organization.
This organization focuses on using the power of law to protect our environment,
human rights and ensure a sustainable society.
o The Vanella Group is an organization that focuses on offering sustainable services
to people and creating solutions to pollution problems. This group is filled with
experts in the environmental and sustainable field. The founder of this
organization was also the founder of the popular Ronald McDonald pop tap
recycling program as well as one of the founders of the Recycling Association in
Minnesota.
o Environmental Health News is a news report written by Tatum McConnell who is
a freelance science reporter. She gets her information from Dr. Phillip Landrigan
who is a pediatrician, director at the Boston College Global Observatory on
Planetary Health, and a lead author of the report “The Minderoo-Monaco
Commission on Plastics and Human Health”.
o National Library of Public Medicine is a scholarly article run by a government
agency. This article focuses on the current consensus and future trends of plastics
and the environment.
o In the article “Plastics and Human Health” in the Plastics and the Environment
series, published by a government agency, is a known series of online sources
about the plastics crisis, the impact the plastics have on our environment and
humans, and ways our society can address this global problem. The region of
Geneva and the areas around it have been active in global environmental
governance for more than 50 years.
o ClinMed International Library is a national, government agency. This article was
written by experts in the Department of Biology and the Department of Social
Studies. This is a peer-reviewed article that talks about the effects plastic waste
disposal has and alternative, more sustainable ways to dispose of plastic.
 o The Center for Biological Diversity focuses on protecting lands, waters, and
climate that species need to survive on using science, law, and creative media.
This organization has been around since 1989. 83 percent of their lawsuits about
unsustainable actions have had successful outcomes. They work to make sure the
environment is a healthy place for all to live.
 Include the quote(s)/paraphrases you are planning to use & work on in-text citations!
o “Over 170 fracking chemicals that are used to produce the main feedstocks for
plastic have known human health impacts, including cancer, neurological,
reproductive, and developmental toxicity, impairment of the immune system, and
more. These toxins have direct and documented impacts on skin, eyes, and other
sensory organs, the respiratory, nervous, and gastrointestinal systems, liver, and
brain.”
 (Plastic and Human Health, 2022)
o Two of the most common types of plastic are polyethylene terephthalate (PET)
and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) which are both made from petroleum which is a
non-renewable source that takes hundreds of years to break down. These types of
plastics are known to contain toxic and harmful chemicals that leach into the
environment causing health problems in humans and animals. There are also
bioplastics which are made from renewable sources such as corn and sugarcane
and although they are more environmentally friendly, they compete with crops for
land and water resources.
 (The Vanella Group, 2022)
o “The Scientific Center of Monaco and Boston College found plastics
disproportionality harm low-income communities, people of color, and children.”
“The incorrect disposal of plastics leads to landfills that are often located in poor
communities that leach harmful materials into the air”. “Waste from electronics,
with plastic and metal components, create harmful exposures resulting in serious
illness such as lung cancer in those working around in, including 18 million
children”.
 (Tatum McConnel, 2023)
o “Over 260 species, including invertebrates, turtles, fish, seabirds, and mammals,
have been reported to ingest or become entangled in plastic debris, resulting in
impaired movement and feeding, reduced reproductive output, lacerations, ulcers,
and death”.
 (Richard Thompson et al., 2009)
o Humans are exposed daily to plastics. There are many different ways society is
exposed such as extraction and transport, refining and manufacturing, consumer
use, and waste management. “Recent studies have found microplastics in human
blood, lungs, and placenta.  As 99% of plastics are created from chemicals of
fossil origin, oil-associated toxicological short and long-term health hazards from
respiratory symptoms to adverse neurological effects, including stress and
generalized anxiety disorder are part of the plastic value-chain.”
 (Plastic and Human Health, 2023)
 o “Approximately 10% of household waste is plastics and mostly ends up in a
landfill”. Landfills are filled with toxic chemicals that leach into the air and also
create soil and groundwater contamination by disintegrated byproducts and
additives. “In the process of incineration of plastics, soot, ashes, and different
powders are produced, which eventually settle on plants and soil, with the
potential to migrate to the aquatic environment. Rainfall can make some of these
toxic compounds sink into the soil, contaminate the groundwater, or be absorbed
by plants growing on this soil, thus, becoming incorporated into the food chain.
Some of these plastic incineration products can chemically react with water and
the resulting compounds can alter the pH thereby changing the functioning of
aquatic ecosystems.”
 (Okunola Alabi et al., 2019)
o “In the first decade of this century, we made more plastic than all the plastic in
history up to the year 2000. And every year, billions of pounds of more plastic
end up in the world's oceans. Studies estimate there are now 15–51 trillion pieces
of plastic in the world's oceans. Not one square mile of surface ocean anywhere
on earth is free of plastic pollution.” Those numbers are just about the ocean-
imagine what they are for the ocean and land combined. This problem is growing
into a crisis. “The fossil fuel industry plans to increase plastic production by 40
percent over the next decade.”
 (Center for Biological Diversity)
 Think about (and write down) how you will make that source material work with your
point—answering the questions “what does this mean?” or “why does this matter?” will
help you use your own words
o This shows how the fossil fuels used to create plastic can be extremely harmful to
a human’s health as well as the environment.
o All plastics, no matter the type negatively affect our environment, even
bioplastics.
o This evidence shows how harmful it can be to humans and the environment but
how poorer people, minorities, children, and Indigenous people are even more
affected by the pollution.
o While humans are affected by pollution because it gives us illnesses, wildlife is
also physically affected. With reproduced productive output and death, it
decreases the species’ life span.
o Humans are exposed daily to plastic pollution through daily life products such as
clothing, furniture, and food containers as well as medical supplies, food, and
airborne pollution. Being constantly exposed to this pollution will greater
society’s chance of ending up with illnesses because of it.
o The way our society disposes of plastic is slowly killing us and our world. The
way we dispose of plastic right now creates many toxins and is extremely harmful
to our community and ourselves.
o We are surrounded by plastic everywhere we go. It is in our stores, restaurants,
single-use packaging we throw away, dishes, and even our clothes. Plastic
 production keeps increasing which means the pollution keeps increasing. Our
society needs to find a way to stop using as much plastic and help create a
healthier world to live in.
 Do not end a paragraph with source material!
o NOTE: multiple body paragraphs should be outlined—an 8-page essay should
have AT LEAST 8 body paragraphs!

Conclusion
 Don't get hung up here—think about how you could restate your thesis and what you
want the reader to remember about your argument
o In conclusion, plastic has many negative effects on the environment and will only
get worse if our society doesn’t start to take initiative in solving this problem.
Plastic is a great contributor to climate change, deforestation, and land and water
pollution. The pollution that these plastics and the way they are made and
disposed of also negatively affect humans’ health. You can be a part of the
solution simply by recycling more, buying more sustainable products and, even
reusing things more than once.