A solution to plastic pollution

posted February 14, 2005

by Kitta MacMorris of Verde

The average American throws away 600 times his or her own weight in garbage in his or her lifetime.

Since 1950, Americans have consumed as much as all generations before us combined. Seabirds from the North Sea, Antarctica, and Hawaii have been found to contain plastic particles from discarded trash by consumers, in recent years in their stomachs. Plastic pollution is becoming more of a problem on a global level, and is just as bad (if not worse) locally. But what can be done to curb or reverse this epidemic of trash?

Luckily for those who are environmentally minded (or those who see the problem with excess plastic waste), there is a solution to this pollution epidemic— biodegradable and compostable products made by brands like BioBag, Nat-Ur, and Earthware, which are smart and suitable substitutes to plastic. Jesse Cool, restaurant owner and chef, and the Acterra High Schools Group are a few among many activists who have chosen to help combat the plastic beast by promoting and using these ingenious products within the community. New products available today include a variety of bags, plates, utensils, and cups made from a range of environmentally friendly base materials including cornstarch, sugar, wheat, and rice. All of these products completely biodegrade after being discarded. While these innovative products offer a reasonable solution to petroleum-based plastic items, the consumer demand is not yet at the level for them to be fully integrated on a local, national, or global scale. This is due in part to consumers’ levels of awareness of the realities of plastics.

To inspire awareness starting on the community level, the Acterra High Schools Group (a sub-group within the environmental organization, Acterra), is taking the problematic issue of excess plastic waste seriously by starting a promotional campaign with the aforementioned eco-friendly and biodegradable products. The ultimate goal of this campaign is to spread the word (and the products, themselves) locally by advocating and providing samples of the products and information on them to small businesses and farmers markets, to start. The major issue at hand surrounding the popularity of these products, that is the starting point to solve this plastic problem is to combat the common notion that plastic is some sort of magical material. After being used only once for packaging products, plastic materials are then disposed of as if they mystically disappear forever once thrown into the wastebasket. All the while, in the real world of plastics, the end of the line isn’t in the trash can. Plastic that is thrown away lives eternally in landfills, and plastic that is discarded as litter goes on to pollute bodies of water, endanger wildlife and lower the aesthetic value of various habitats. Main offenders of plastic pollution are plastic bags and six-pack holders, because they pose the greatest direct threats to wildlife. Plastic pollution is a physical problem that needs to be solved, and so far, there are some willing to combat the immortal monster: plastic.

“I think people are seeing a problem with plastics now, “ the Youth Coordinator of the Acterra High Schools Group, Drew Harwell, says. “When plastic products first came out, they offered benefits to consumers, like storage, easy transport, bags, and pipes, etc., which were so convenient. Later on, we see the problems associated with these plastic products, because they are so strong and durable, and because o convenient. Later on, we see the problems associated with these plastic products, because they are so strong and durable, and because they are made from non-renewable resources (like petroleum), which presents other problems, as well,” Harwell says. One issue with plastic products being produced with non-renewable materials is that we’ll start to see major shortages (possibly resulting in a price increase for plastic goods), because exploiting non-renewable resources is not a sustainable way to coexist with everything else on this planet that has to rely on those same few resources. “We need to see the shift [to a more sustainable way of living],” Harwell says. “To me, it’s important to see this shift now, and to not waste any more time.”

An especially fitting and appropriate “shift” that Harwell speaks of is the forthcoming “movement” of both bio-degradable and compostable products that are gaining popularity around the globe. “Products are being developed, but they are still in the early stages of development as of now,” Harwell says, who was first introduced to these new products close to two years ago, and is excited to see changes in a world inundated with plastic garbage. “We are in the age of the early adopters with these innovative products,” Harwell says. “Those who are developing the first kinds of these things are learning about what makes them work, what the early benefits and problems are, and then to spread the word among the community.” Different brands have been emerging since the start of this eco-friendly movement for plastic alternatives including Earthware, BioBag, and Nat-Ur, among others. These brands offer products that are 100% biodegradable and compostable, which means that less waste is left lying around in landfills, and less waste is produced in the first place. The compostable aspect of these products means that they will fully compost back into the earth after disposal. With mountains of petroleum-based plastic items filling this nation’s landfills, integrating biodegradable products into the mix would be a belated but necessary step on the road to recovery.

For the last 25 years, restauranteur Jesse Cool has been working with such a goal in mind. Throughout her years of experience running the Flea Street Café, the jZcool Eatery & Catering Co., and the Cool Café at the Cantor Arts Center on the Stanford campus, and reigning as chef-proprietor of all three, Cool has never strayed from her vision of using as many organic ingredients and products in her businesses as possible. “In our private and business lives, we need to take responsibility for our impact on the environment,” Cool says. “We have always tried to do as much as we can to recycle, compost, and use non-toxic, environmentally conscious cleaning products.” Cool is the first restaurant owner to fully integrate Earthware biodegradable products and fully compostable methods in her businesses.

The jZcool Eatery & Catering Co. is popular for it’s take-out section which uses only compostable products— from plates, to cups, to forks and spoons, so the waste produced ultimately biodegrades. By adopting these new methods and line of products, Cool saves money, as well because the waste disposal companies that take away her restaurant’s trash pick up compostable waste free of charge. “Anything we can do to create less materials that are not reusable, compostable, or recyclable is important,” Cool says. “In all, the new frontier is open and that is truly invaluable.”

Eventually, Paly would be an ideal place to use biodegradable garbage bags, at least, considering how much trash and plastic waste a public high school is capable of producing. Integrating products like these into the Paly scene might be a bit tricky,though for a while. In terms of garbage bags at least, Paly probably isn’t the best place to test out debut products like the BioBag full-size trash bag, simply because, being still in the early developmental stages, they normally compost in 10 to 45 days (depending on composting conditions), and the process is accelerated when liquids or wet-waste is introduced. For these reasons, it would be a better idea to wait and see what product improvements arise in the years to come. These products will change over time as the demand for them increases. For every different kind of consumer, from those running local businesses, to those in charge of public school systems, compostable and biodegradable products will be smart additions or substitutes to regular plastic ones. We live in a disposable age where petroleum-based plastic materials have never been used and discarded to this extent before, and the introduction of Earth-friendly materials will help in the fight against plastic abuse. But on the newly opened environmental frontier, who knows what BioBag ultimately has in store for us? v