Will bioplastic bags, takeaway containers, utensils, drinking cups and lids be addressed in all of this?
Yes, they are plant-based and are less harmful than petroleum-based plastics, but when disposed of improperly, they have a similar negative effect on our terrestrial and marine environment as regular plastics do. And it turns out most of us don’t know how to dispose of them properly.
I used to bring my own containers when picking up takeout but you-know-what put an end to that in 2020. Then I was introduced to a new kind of container I was not familiar with: , also known as starch or cellulose plastic.
It was only after engaging in waste reduction activities in our community that I finally figured out that after we got home with our dinner, the bioplastic containers’ appropriate destination was to be returned to the restaurant it came from: how many people do that? Now that I know, I started collecting them in our extensive recycling station in our garage, so I can return them the next time I go to that restaurant — when I do remember.
To my knowledge, it’s the only option unless you live in one of the multi-family complexes that send its compost to the type of industrial facility required to break down bioplastics fully. All residential compost is sent to a facility that can’t produce the right conditions to process it. That’s also one of the reasons why we have so many plastic pieces in the bulk compost we buy for our gardens. On that note, please remove produce stickers before you put peels or rinds in your compost.
Healthy and balanced land use, to support food security and biodiversity, needs to be seriously considered too. Crops grown for bioplastics are just another deforested monoculture sprayed with chemicals (think corn). There is no silver bullet to live a life of convenience as we know it.
I hope to bring awareness so that more people can demand that our government, and other countries’ powers, do the right thing: help industries transition their packaging (and products) to allow us to consume (because we still need to) and dispose of wisely without having to jump through all the confusing and often inefficient recycling hoops.
Marie-ève Trigg
Squamish
