![]() ![]() Terminology-wise, we need to be extremely careful with the word “bioplastic.” It’s a neurolinguistic booby trap. Yet again, it will be an uphill battle to ban those that turn out to be dangerous. Regarding toxicity, the same broken and ineffective regulatory system is in charge of approving bioplastics for food use, and there is no reason to assume that these won’t raise just as many health concerns as conventional plastics have. Therefore, we don’t have a system by which adopters of these new bioplastics would be responsible for recovering, composting, recycling, or doing whatever needs to be done with them after use. Once an item leaves their factories, it’s no longer the company’s problem. Biodegradable plastics may or may not be the next best step, depending on the properties of these new materials – but also depending on the particular object or application we are seeking to replace.įor many disposable plastics, solutions already exist, such as reusables (lasting bags, bottles, cutlery, cups, etc.) or alternative materials (such as metal, glass or paper.)Ĭurrently, manufacturers are not responsible for the end-life of their products. With new types of plastics should also come a concern over how we use plastics, bio-based or otherwise. The reality, however, is not that simple. Many eco-minded people see in them an easy solution to our plastic pollution problems. Add in the lack of producer responsibility, and the omission of the precautionary principle when it comes to product toxicity, and you have a perfect environmental and human health storm.Īs the magnitude and the human health implications of our plastic pollution problem are better understood, there is more and more buzz about plastics that are bio-based, biodegradable, or compostable. It is a problem created by irresponsible design, paired with unsustainable throwaway habits. ![]() Plastic pollution is not a problem created by improper disposal. When they eat the stuff, they cannot digest it, and eventually die with bellies so full of plastic that no food or water can pass through them. Sea birds and fish have a hard time distinguishing plastic from food. In addition, a material that has complex, non-transparent formulations involving toxic additives should not be in contact with our food and drink. ![]() A material that lasts hundreds of years in the environment should never be used for applications that last seconds, minutes, hours, or even days. It is our use of them that has catastrophic consequences. However, plastics are not destroying our environment and compromising our health by themselves. ![]() The most notable of these is called “the Great Pacific Garbage Patch,” but while the idea of a giant patch of garbage in the ocean is unsettling, the reality is more so: a planetary soup of small bits of plastic that circulate throughout the water column and which we have no hope of cleaning up. Our oceans and waterways are full of these small particles, which currents accumulate in convergence zones called gyres, located in the center of the word’s oceans. Once in the environment, plastic breaks down into smaller and smaller particles that attract toxic chemicals, are ingested by wildlife on land and in the ocean, and contaminate our food chain. Every bit of plastic ever produced still exists and will be here with us for hundreds of years. Plastic is a material that Earth cannot digest. Plastic Pollution Coalition The Bioplastic Labyrinth ![]()
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