Mother Earth Monday - Plastic Panic

It was a wild and busy weekend which I have a LOT to blog about, but today is of course Monday which means we have to talk about Enviro-mente today. I wish I could say I thought up this idea but I credit this one to Becca. I think it was as we were eating pancakes Sunday morning and recycling plastic was brought up - I think it was because the margarine tub was a '5' and the lid was a '2' which I thought was weird. She asked what was the difference and what the numbers meant so I thought I would give everyone a little Plastic 101 today. I wish I knew the difference...I have pulled most of today's info from National Geographic's new magazine "Green Guide". So here we go!

All plastic is made out of chemicals (duh, no plastic trees around here I guess). Some chemicals are safe, some are not. Some can be recycled and broken down, some can't. Some are ok to have your food and water in contact with...some scarily aren't. Here's a breakdown of the different numbers...

"1" - PET or PETE (polyethylene terephthalate) - This is safe plastic and is recyclable. We most commonly see this in water and soda bottles. It is safe but you shouldn't be washing and reusing these - they chemicals eventually start breaking down (and getting into your stuff - yuck!) so these are a 1-use-only-please plastic. Make sure to recycle!

"2" - HDPE (high-density polyethylene) - Another safe and recyclable plastic. Some examples are milk jugs (and apparently the tops of Country Crock margarine?)

"3" - Vinyl or PVC (polyvinyl chloride) - Ok, so anything with 'chloride' in it I am not too fond of putting near my mouth...This should be avoided and is not recyclable. Some products can leak dangerous hormone-messing-with junk into foods. Um, so the example that they give in the magazine are the little vinyl lunch bags - I am going to throw mine away this second...yuck...

"4" - LDPE (low-density polyethylene) - safe and recyclable at places that accept it. Places that accept plastic bags will accept this - this will include plastic shopping bags and even plastic food wrap.

"5" - PP (polypropylene) - You see this a lot with food storage - especially yogurt and margarine containers. This is safe but beware - not all places (like Wytheville for one) accept this type of plastic so find creative ways to reuse this - cat food scoops, paint containers, seedling pots, etc. Be creative!

"6" - PS (polystyrene) - This one should be avoided - think Styrofoam picnic-ware - this can leak styrene - a possible carcinogen - into things. This can be recycled though if your program offers it but I for one wouldn't be using this one!

"7" -

PC (polycarbonate) - For all of you Nalgene-aholics like myself this one you should know is now considered possibly hazardous - it is made of 'bisphenol A' - a hormone-disrupting (what exactly does that mean? I am going to have to do some more research on that!) agent. I still don't know what I am going to do with my 5 Nalgenes - they are like souvenirs I have collected throughout the years! These are not recyclable. Maybe I can plant something in them? Anyone know a cool Nalgene art project?

PLA (polylactide - made from renewable plant resources - I guess there are 'plastic trees' after all!) - These are safe to use unlike the PC #7s but they are not recyclable - they can be composted however.

So, there is your intro to plastics. Be aware the next time you go shopping to make sure your food or whatever might come in contact with your mouth is something safe. A few more tips to remember is that microwaving plastic and dishwashing them eventually breaks them down. I am trying to wean myself off of them and use more dishes but I am always afraid of breaking them or carrying them back and forth to work. Also, look for the 'Preserve' line of reusable plastic picnic-ware - (they also make awesome toothbrushes) - the stuff is made from recycled plastic and is recyclable again. Neat! I haven't been able to find it around except for the toothbrushes but I am still on the look out. Hope this has been informative! Beware the Plastic!