Is it ok to burn plastics??
Well, after the first few days I thought that I had failed at zero waste. But then I realized that all those foil, plastic bags that are normally the only contents of my garbage bag, can actually be burned. Because of this idea, my garbage remains empty! Well maybe not completely empty. There's the jar and bottle lids (I'm sure they're not recyclable. Even www.terracycle.net that reuses old beverage bottles, is looking for ways to reuse the lids) and some old gloves that have served their time volunteering in local parks (holes in almost every finger).
Then I wondered ... is it ok to burn plastic? Does it release toxic chemicals into the air? If it's not ok, it is zero waste, but still harmful so I'll need to work at avoiding these items more. I also should check out those bag "recycle" bins at grocery stores ... are they really recycled or actually reused?
I have avoided buying a few items because of the excess packaging, but haven't yet talked to retailers. I have avoided eating out where they use disposable utentils. Things that I can't recycle at work, I do bring home.
To help my family reduce their waste, I bought some 'recycled plastic' shopping bags (www.bringyourownbag.com) that fold up real small. Now, how do I politely get people to take their reuseable mugs to get coffee?!!
On Hornby Island, they don't have a garbage dump ... it's a Recycling Depot. People burn all their burnables, so this takes care of most of the waste.
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Well, it's been a few weeks
Well, it's been a few weeks now and what have I learned?
- Avoiding plastic wrap is a big challenge. For now I will have to accept some amount of plastic wrap until I find alternatives (live_plastic_free_in_2007). I'm sure one good option is to do more home baking and keeping snacks in reused sandwich bags. Homemade granola bars are on the agenda for weekend :)
- I've got a few bits of packaging/excess ready to return to the seller which I'll try returning on weekend. Wish me luck.
- I don't expect producers/retailers to be open to accepting product packaging in return. I know somebody working at making producers responsible for their waste ... I'll have to see what she has to suggest or comments on the current state of political action.
- I'm applying zero-waste to my time away from home as well - eating out, office. And this means not using throw away paper towels in washrooms, bring home my apple cores to compost at home, avoiding fast food (disposable containers)
- I'm getting comments from people about reusing grocery bags or even little baggies for self-serve muffin at the cafeteria. I'm using bags from so far back, they aren't used anymore, so they stand out at the cashier ... it's an opportunity to spread the word of my goal of reducing waste.
- I've stopped buying milk because the 1L containers aren't recyclable. I tried making my own rice milk to add to my home-made granola, but it wasn't that great. But I shall try again ... maybe add some honey to sweeten the taste.
- I realize my rules of "zero waste" do not allow for piling up waste in a box in my closet (instead of putting in the garbage) That means as I do my spring cleaning, I have to find appropriate ways to dispose of them as well. I've got a list of material recycling places from City of Vancouver
- I started with an empty garbage bag on Dec 30 and at the moment there is only six small items in it ... some from the dark deep bottom of my backpack.
Daryl
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Hi!I just wanted to thank
Hi!I just wanted to thank you for mentioning our BYOB bags and thank you for buying them and educating your family about reducing plastic bag waste. I just wanted to correct the website you have listed for us, the correct website is: www.bringyourownbag.ca Thanks!! Elizabeth
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Cut out the plastic and your
Cut out the plastic and your bin gets so much emptier. I have sourced loads of biodegradable, safely burnable alternatives (www.plasticisrubbish.wordpress.com) to plastic products which I can dispose of myself - on the bonfire or in the compost heap. Good luck with it xx pam
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I did a quick bit of
I did a quick bit of research on this matter and the quick answer seems to be 'no, it is not safe to burn plastics'
There are some air quality related resources on SPEC's site (Society Promoting Environmental Conservation)
And the following excerpt is from this site:
Burning plastics can be especially problematic, with PVC plastic in particular contributing to high emissions of dioxin. Dioxin is a persistent, bioaccumulative toxin which means it isn't broken down into safer chemicals, and it is concentrated in the food chain. As dioxin in burn barrel smoke drifts away to eventually settle on nearby fields, it can be eaten by cows where it is concentrated in their fat. Some is then excreted with the milk while the rest remains in the animal's fat. When humans consume dairy products and meat they end up with the long-lived dioxin in their own bodies. The US EPA now considers burn barrels a major source of dioxin. They also consider that current dioxin levels in Americans, due to consumption of dairy and meat, are high enough to add a significant cancer risk, as well as other serious health risks.