What is Plastic?
PET Polyethylene Terephthalate
Two-litre drink bottles, mouthwash bottles, boil-in-bag pouches.
HDPE High Density Polyethylene
Milk jugs, rubbish bags, detergent bottles.
PVC Polyvinyl Chloride
Cooking oil bottles, packaging around meat.
LDPE Low Density Polyethylene
Grocery bags, produce bags, food wrap, bread bags.
PP Polypropylene
Yogurt containers, shampoo bottles, straws, margarine tubs, nappies.
PS Polystyrene
Hot drinking cups, take-out boxes, egg cartons, meat trays, cd cases.
OTHER
All other types of plastics or packaging made from more than one type of plastic.
Recycling Plastic
It is not possible to simply recycle a milk container into another milk container without adding a new virgin layer of plastic. Because plastic melts at low temperatures, it retains pollutants and the tainted residue of its former contents. Turn up the heat to sear these off, and some plastics release deadly vapors. So the reclaimed stuff is mostly used to make entirely different products, things that don’t go anywhere near our mouths, such as fleece jackets and carpeting. Therefore, unlike recycling glass, metal, or paper, recycling plastic doesn’t always result in less use of virgin material. It also doesn’t help that fresh-made plastic is far cheaper." (Charles Moore, founder, Algalita Marine Research Foundation)
How is Plastic Made? from PlasticsResource.com
The Life Cycle of a Plastic Product American Plastics Council
Plastic information from Wikipedia
Interview with Charles Moore on the problems of plastic in our lives and in our bodies. Best Life magazine
