Originally Published 1/3/12 in The San Francisco Examiner By: Joshua Sabatini | 01/03/13 4:00 AM SF Examiner Staff Writer As a small Massachusetts town became the first U.S. community to ban the sale of single-serving plastic water bottles Tuesday, even eliminating such packaging from large events continues to elude San Francisco despite years of discussion. While The City hasn’t been shy about taking on plastic bags or plastic foam food containers, water bottles have thus far managed to avoid its ever-growing ban list. In 2007, then-Mayor Gavin Newsom issued an executive order banning... Read the Rest →
Originally appeared on europa.eu. Marine litter is a serious threat to the coastal and marine environment around the globe. Marine habitats are contaminated with man-made garbage and other waste, posing growing environmental, economic, health and aesthetic problems. The European Commission is raising awareness about this global problem, in line with commitments made in Rio this summer to reduce the incidence and impacts of such pollution on marine ecosystems. Environment Commissioner Janez Potočnik said: ”At the Rio +20 Earth Summit, World Leaders committed to achieving a significant reduction in marine litter by... Read the Rest →
Originally appeared on PlasticsNews.com, 12/12/12 By Jeremy Carroll | WASTE & RECYCLING NEWS Posted December 12, 2012 CHICAGO (Dec. 12, 10:50 a.m. ET) — Recycling and reducing common wasteful practices can save hospitals money – lots of it, according to a recently released study. Susan Kaplan, research assistant professor at the University of Illinois-Chicago’s school of public health, was the lead author of the report, which says the industry as a whole could save $5.4 billion in five years and up to $15 billion in 10 years if it adopts sustainable practices. The... Read the Rest →
Originally appeared on Plastics News Nov 19, 2012 By Mike Verespej | PLASTICS NEWS STAFF Posted November 19, 2012 WASHINGTON (Nov. 19, 5:10 p.m. ET) — Women who have worked for companies that make plastic injection molded parts for the automotive industry have a significantly higher risk of developing breast cancer than women who have not been exposed to that type of working environment, say a team of 12 researchers, whose work was funded by a number of Canadian groups, including Health Canada. The report, published Nov. 19 in the Journal of Environmental... Read the Rest →
By Conan Milner, Originally published in The Epoch Times on 11/13/2012. Every day in the industrialized world, we ingest small amounts of Bisphenol A, better known as BPA. One of the most widely used synthetic chemicals in industry, BPA can be found in everything from water bottles to food can liners, from children’s toys to register receipts. After years of careful evaluation, regulators insist it is safe. Manufacturers have been using the chemical for over 40 years, but recent research has raised concerns. Animal studies suggest that BPA exposure is... Read the Rest →
Originally appeared on PlasticsNews.com, 11/13/12 BEIJING (Nov. 13, 1:30 p.m. ET) – Plastics recycler Shenzhen New Rainbow Recycled Materials Technology Co. Ltd. has seen its imports of waste HDPE bottles drop at least 20 percent this year as China’s government has cracked down on bringing waste plastic into the country. New Rainbow is not alone. Hong Kong-based Lung Shing International Group Ltd. has had imports of recycled plastic drop by one-third through the port of Guangzhou, but Alex Xie, general manager of its Guangzhou factory said Lung Shing considers itself lucky... Read the Rest →
Originally appeared on PlasticsNews.com By David Eldridge | EUROPEAN PLASTICS NEWS Posted November 8, 2012 WEISBADEN, GERMANY (Nov. 8, 1:30 p.m. ET) — The frustration of the plastics industry at the poor perception of its sustainability and health credentials surfaced at the PolyTalk event organized by PlasticsEurope. The September event in Wiesbaden brought together business leaders from the European plastics industry, with representatives of the green lobby and officials from European organizations. Some sympathy was expressed by keynote speakers Janez Potocnik, European Commissioner for the Environment, and Sir Jonathan Porritt, founder and... Read the Rest →
Originally appeared on Plastics News By Mike Verespej | PLASTICS NEWS STAFF Posted November 2, 2012 WASHINGTON (Nov. 2, 2:15 p.m. ET) — In the aftermath of pressure from environmental groups and legislators, the California Environmental Protection Agency has lowered the estimated recycling rate of plastic bags in the 11th-grade teachers’ guide of the state’s K-12 environmental curriculum. The revised text also deletes a section that had listed several advantages of plastic bags. Among them: that plastic grocery bags require 70 percent less energy to manufacture than paper bags, that they cost... Read the Rest →
Originally appeared on NPR’s The Two Way by SOPHIA JONES October 28, 2012 5:24 PM Move over Abba, Sweden has found new fame. The small Nordic country is breaking records — in waste. Sweden’s program of generating energy from garbage is wildly successful, but recently its success has also generated a surprising issue: There is simply not enough trash. Only 4 percent of Swedish garbage ends up in a landfill, according to Swedish Waste Management. Due to its efficiency in converting waste to renewable energy, Sweden has recently begun importing around 800,000 tons... Read the Rest →
Originally appeared in The Register-Guard on 10/23/12 The Eugene City Council on Monday night flexed its environmental muscle, approving a ban on plastic bags and a statement in opposition to coal trains. The council voted 6-2 to ban thin plastic bags from all of the city’s retailers. On a closer 5-3 vote, councilors approved a resolution against the railroad shipment of coal through the city. The ban will take effect in six months, in order to give stores time to eliminate their plastic bag supplies. Environmentalists asked the council for... Read the Rest →
