Paper or Plastic?

This article discusses the use of paper or plastic in the packaging industry. In the form of litter and waste, packaging is a critical feature on the physical landscape. About one-third of the gross weight and half of the volume of the United States' municipal solid waste stream is comprised of packaging materials--at least 300 pounds per person per year. Because packaging has rapidly become such an integral part of how people meet their daily needs, it serves as an easy scapegoat for a world bursting at the seams. A study by the organization Grass Roots Recycling Network reported that between 1990 and 1997 plastic packaging grew five times faster by weight than plastic recovered for recycling. One might even say that a tendency toward over-packaging is inextricably ingrained in American culture, psyche and economy. There will be no silver bullet to solve packaging's environmental challenges. Instead one must be open to a great variety of alternatives from a diversity of perspectives, approaches and places along the supply chain.