The article in the link below uses Whole Food’s recent announcement that it will stop making plastic bags available for its customers (http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/byobag/) to highlight the extent to which modern society relies on plastics and the conflict we face in trying to find environmentally-friendly alternatives:
“We adore plastics for their versatility, lightness, strength and affordability, and it seems we can't get enough: the United States produced 6.5 billion pounds of raw plastic in December alone, up 2.3 percent from a year earlier. We deplore plastics for being cheap petroleum products and fear we'll never get rid of them.”
The article also looks at some of the unforeseen consequences of the recent drive to reduce the consumption of plastic bags:
“Bravo. Now tell me this: What am I supposed to line my garbage cans with? … So if I have to buy plastic bags by the box, that's better for the environment how?”
The upshot is that there is a great deal of promising research being conducted and there may be a future for plastics made from alternatives to oil:
“… the field is evolving rapidly, as researchers strive to spin plastics from renewable sources like sugar cane and grass clippings in lieu of fossil fuels, and to outfit their creations with the chemical grace to decay once discarded.”
Have a good weekend.
Dave
Bill Werther & David Chandler
Strategic Corporate Social Responsibility
© Sage Publications, 2006
http://www.sagepub.com/Werther
Adored, Deplored and Ubiquitous
By NATALIE ANGIER
1156 words
15 April 2008
The New York Times
Late Edition - Final
1
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/15/science/15angi.html
