News Watch: Plastics in the Media

Both regular petro-plastics and so called ‘degradable’ petro-plastics have been in the media recently due to their environmental impact.

Business Day : Mountain of Plastic Rubbish Looms over SA by Ruth Rabinowitz
This article which appeared in Business Day briefly highlights some of the environmental and health issues which South Africa faces with respect to plastic pollution.

Huffington Post: Breaking the Plastic Addiction : TEDx Great Pacific Garbage Patch
Deborah Bassett reports from Los Angeles, California on the recent TEDx:GreatPacificGarbagePatch event . The event which focused on what TEDx calls the ‘Global Plastic Pollution Crisis’ challenges individuals and businesses to REFUSE disposable plastics.

Business Green: Research Casts doubt over green credentials of “degradable” plastics.
New Research into the environmental impact of ‘oxo – degradable’ plastics says they are no better for the environment than regular plastics and could have even greater negative impacts on soil and wildlife. Read the full article here.

Plastics News: Australia claims degradable bag claims are misleading.
Australian Packaging Company, Nupak Autralia Pty. Ltd. , has been penalized by an Australian Court for engaging in deceptive and misleading conduct by claiming its “oxo- degradable” polyethylene plastic bags are biodegrdable. Find out more here.