Archive for the 'Recycling' Category

Recycling of glass and plastics

Consumers are ‘Precycling’ to Avoid Creating Superfluous Waste

Published: 26 August 2008
Category: Packaging CONCERNS, Recycling, Sustainability

“BRANDWEEK” reports more and more consumers are engaging in “precycling,” which means consumers aren’t just recycling, but also avoiding products that create superfluous waste, such as plastic water bottles and shopping bags. An estimated 45% of trendsetters and 14% of mainstream consumers have “cut down on bottled water purchases” in the past six months, […]

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How to Save over One Trillion Plastic Bags from being used Over a Lifetime

Published: 24 July 2008
Category: Packaging CONCERNS, Recycling, Sustainability

The “Pocono Record” recently posted a slideshow about the “dangers of plastic bags” that provides facts about how many plastic bags are recycled versus end up in landfills, the costs of recycling plastic bags, the amount of plastic debris in our oceans, and what people can do to stop plastic bags from entering the landfill […]

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Pelosi’s Green Campaign Seeks Alternatives to Plastic Water Bottles

Published: 22 July 2008
Category: Packaging CONCERNS, Recycling, Studies/Federal Regulations, Sustainability

“CQ Weekly” reports House aides are looking into replacing the bottled water of companies such as Coke and Pepsi with water packaged in biodegradable containers as part of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s campaign to “green the Capitol”. Executives at the Coca Cola Company have reportedly responded to the campaign, saying that compostable water bottles […]

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Consumers Concerned about Effects of Plastics on Human Health and the Environment

Published: 17 July 2008
Category: Bisphenol A (BPA), Packaging CONCERNS, Phthalates, Recycling, Sustainability

According to “TIME,” consumers are concerned about chemicals leaching out of some common types of plastic and the potential harmful effects on the human body as well as what the plastic garbage is doing to the environment. The U.S. reportedly produced 28 million tons of plastic waste in 2005, 27 million tons of which […]

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Ottawa Schools may Ban Plastic Bottled Water

Published: 3 June 2008
Category: Packaging CONCERNS, Recycling, Sustainability

CBC.ca reports plastic bottled water may be removed from public school vending machines in Ottawa, Canada due to concerns about its negative environmental impact. Most bottles reportedly do not get recycled and there are also health concerns with plastic bottled water, as the bottles are made of petroleum-based materials, and their “chemical components may […]

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Chemicals in Plastic Water Bottles may be More Harmful than anything in Tap Water

Published: 21 May 2008
Category: Bisphenol A (BPA), Hormonal Changes, Packaging CONCERNS, Recycling, Sustainability

According to the “Ottawa Citizen,” although many people spend money on bottled water, the “stuff in plastic water bottles may be more harmful than anything in our tap water.” Certain plastic bottles allegedly contain an estrogen-mimicking chemical called bisphenol A (BPA), which has been linked to breast and ovarian cancers and childhood developmental problems. […]

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Bio-Plastics Can Damage the Environment and Add to Food Crisis

Published: 2 May 2008
Category: Packaging CONCERNS, Recycling, Sustainability

According to the London “Guardian,” bio-plastics, dubbed “sustainable” by some, can actually damage the environment, as the corn-based material allegedly emits climate change gas in landfills and adds to the food crisis by taking over large areas of land previously used to grow crops for human consumption. Such bio-plastic packaging reportedly barely breaks down […]

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Takoma Park, Maryland, Council Members Ban City from Buying Certain Bottled Water

Published: 1 May 2008
Category: Packaging CONCERNS, Recycling, Studies/Federal Regulations

“WTOP News” reports Takoma Park, Maryland, council members have banned the city from buying water in bottles containing less than one gallon, because according to the city, manufacturing and transporting individual water bottles wastes fuel. City officials reportedly say bottles often end up in landfills and add to the cost of recycling. Link to Full […]

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For Earth Day, Environmental Activists Urge Consumers to Stop Using Plastic Water Bottles and Bags

Published: 16 April 2008
Category: Bisphenol A (BPA), Cancer link & plastic packaging, Packaging CONCERNS, Recycling

According to Ontario’s “Sarnia Observer,” Sarnia’s Environmental Activists (SEA) are challenging local residents to stop using plastic water bottles and shopping bags for Earth Day. Members of the SEA urge reusing is better than recycling, but some kinds of plastic were not designed for reuse. According to the article, “They break down and […]

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Recycling Rates for Plastic Remain Stale, While Production Goes Up

Published: 8 April 2008
Category: Packaging CONCERNS, Recycling

According to “CNN International,” although there appears to be widespread public outrage at the harmful environmental impacts of plastic bottles and bags in particular, recycling rates have remained fairly stale overall while production levels have in many cases gone up. According to that article, only 1 percent of plastic bags produced globally each year, […]

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