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Living Green
What you should know about plastics
Plastics are divided into 7 categories; there are many types, some relatively harmless but many not; and even the harmless can become dangerous when burned or eaten or cleaned with the wrong chemicals.
Before we discuss in depth various plastics here are some general tips:
DO NOT
- Do not buy children’s toys and teethers made of PVC, they are softened with a plasticizer that will be absorbed by the child.
- Do not buy baby bottles made of plastic; use glass bottles.
- Do not clean plastic food ware and drink ware with sodium hypochlorite bleach cleaners or alkali cleaners; this increases leaching of chemicals from the plastic; use alcohol to remove oil and grease and borax to kill mold; but it is better to substitute ceramics, glass, wood or stainless steel materials for your plastic.
- Do not clean plastic in dishwashers, the heat accelerates the leaching process, even so-called safe PET plastic bottles leach.
- Do not microwave plastic it will accelerate leaching.
- Do not burn plastics ever, and certainly not in an enclosed space; dioxins are released from PVC, and other harmful chemicals from ALL plastics.
- Do not buy a plastic product which does not have label according to type, #1-7, this is a bad sign.
Recycling issues
- Avoid buying and using polystyrene (Styrofoam) products, plastic #6. They cannot be recycled. They do not break down easily. Polystyrene harms animal life.
- Avoid buying and using PVC products, #3. PVC cannot be recycled because the chemicals in them prevent them from being reused. PVC in landfills leaches into the groundwater. The small percentage of PVC that is recycled is filled with toxic heavy metals making the second generation PVC more dangerous than the first.
Avoid if you can
Here is list of PVC products to avoid if you can. (See below in the PVC section a much larger list of products to be aware of)
- Children’s swimming pools
- Children’s toys
- Strollers
- Drinking straws
- Pet care product containers
- Dish drying racks
- Also, new shower curtains off gas for months
- Avoid PVC water pipes in the house
- Avoid PVC flooring, it off gases
The 7 plastic groups
Of all the plastic groupings, #3, 6 and 7 are considered the most dangerous, these are chlorinated plastics. The seven plastics groups are:
- Polyethylene terephthalate (PET or PETE), the clear plastic used for beverage containers
- (HDPE) high-density polyethylene
- PVC plastic, it is used in almost everything, see discussion below
- (LDPE), low-density polyethylene
- Polypropylene (PP), it is used as an alternative to PVC, it has thermo properties and is used in cold gear, can be found in large rolls of sheeting for many uses
- Polystyrene, Styrofoam, Expanded Polystyrene or EPS, this is the light flyaway plastic that disintegrates into nodules, found along roads and beaches and floating in oceans
- Polycarbonate
About #3 PVC
PVC, polyvinyl chloride also called vinyl, it contains many toxic chemicals as well as dioxins, the most dangerous class of chemicals to humans and the environment ever produced. Plasticizers include toxic chemicals called adipates and phthalates which are used to soften brittle PVC into a more flexible form.
PVC is the component of packaging for foods and liquids, it is common in children's toys and teethers, it is used in plumbing and building materials, and many things from cosmetics to shower curtains. When PVC comes in contact with food the danger is that additives can leak out. When burned PVC releases incredibly poisonous dioxins.
The World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) says the chemical used to make PVC, vinyl chloride, is a known human carcinogen. The European Union has banned the use of DEHP (di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate), the most widely used plasticizer in PVC, used in children's toys.
Older and less dangerous materials were used before in products — glass, metal, paper, ceramics, and wood. PVC now replaces them. Also, PVC competes with safer chlorine free plastics in the same markets in the same product categories.
Here is a range of uses for PVC:
- Building materials — cables, window frames, doors, walls, paneling, water and wastewater pipes.
- Home products — PVC flooring, PVC wallpaper, window blinds and shower curtains.
- Consumer articles such as credit cards, records, imitation leather, garden furniture and toys.
- Children’s toys
- In the office for furniture, binders, folders, and pens.
- Underseal for cars
- In hospitals for medical disposables
- Cable and wire insulation in buildings, cars, electronic equipment
Here is a much bigger list from besafenet.com:
Apparel:
- Aprons
- Bags
- Backpacks (PVC coating for waterproofing)
- Bibs
- Boots
- Diaper covers
- Lingerie
- Luggage
- Raincoats
- Rain pants
- Skirts
- Shoes
- T-shirts with PVC prints (shiny)
- Watchbands
Automotive:
- Auto-related product containers
- Car seats for children
- Dashboards
- Door panels
- Traffic cones
- Underbody coating
- Upholstery
- Wire coating
Building Materials:
- Cavity closure insulation
- Door frames
- Door gaskets
- Fencing
- Flooring
- Gutters
- Molding
- Pipes
- Shutters
- Siding
- Tiles
- Wall coverings
- Window frames
- Wire/cable insulation
Household Items:
- Cleaning product containers
- Clothes racks (covers metal to prevent rusting)
- Checkbook covers
- Fake Christmas trees
- Imitation leather furniture
- Mattress covers
- Pet care product containers
- Photo album sheets
- Self-adhesive labels and stickers
- Shelving
- Strollers
- Shower curtains
- Textiles
- Toys
- Waterbeds
Kitchen Items:
- Appliance casings
- Beverage containers
- Dish drying racks (covers metal to prevent rusting)
- Dishwasher, refrigerator and freezer racks
- Drinking straws
- Food containers
- Food wrap
- Plastic utensils
- Tablecloths
Medical Supplies:
- Bed liners
- Blood bags
- Catheters
- Colostomy bags
- Gloves
- Mattress covers
- Tubing
Office Supplies:
- Binders
- Cellular phones
- Clipboards
- Computer keyboards
- Computer monitor housing
- Floppy disks
- Mouse pads
- Paper clips
- Tape
Outdoor Items:
- Balls
- Children’s swimming pools
- Garden hoses
- Greenhouses
- Inflatable furniture
- Outdoor furniture
- Pond liners
- Tarps
Personal Care Items (packaging):
- Aloe Vera Gel
- Baby oil
- Face Wash
- Hair gel
- Liquid soap
- Lotion
- Massage oil
- Mouthwash
- Shampoo
- Suntan lotion
Miscellaneous:
- Credit cards
- Landfill liners and leachate pipes
- Slide holders
Dioxin is a major byproduct of PVC. Dioxin is considered by scientists to be THE MOST toxic chemical to humans ever devised! Dioxins emerge when PVC plastic burns in incinerators, household stoves, open rubbish burning and in low quality recycling processes where electronics are scavenged and then burned. Accidental fires in buildings and vehicles also produce a surprising amount of dioxin. In addition, dioxins are created during the manufacture of PVC.
Not surprisingly of all plastics, PVC plastic is the most environmentally damning. Throughout its lifecycle it requires hazardous chemicals for production, releases harmful additives and creates toxic wastes. And though the dangers of PVC are well known, the disturbing fact is that its production is increasing worldwide. Though more practical alternatives exist for PVC it still persists on the market.
In addition to plasticizers, companies add heavy metals as stabilizers or to give it color, and fungicides to stop fungi from eating the other additives. So the production of PVC also involves a huge secondary toxic manufacturing industry.
Plasticizers leach out of plastic over time, through cleaning and heat. And plasticizers in PVC flooring will evaporate directly into a room. The most common plasticizer, (phthalate DEHP), is a suspected carcinogen. Phthalate softeners are global contaminants and over 90 percent are used solely to make soft PVC plastic.
Recently, many governments have banned soft PVC baby toys and teethers because of the risk of softeners leaking into infants' mouths, when sucked or chewed. Also studies have found high degrees of lead and cadmium in children’s toys.
The disposal of PVC creates more environmental problems. If burned (either in open fires or incinerators), PVC will release an acidic gas along with dioxins, due to its chlorine content. If landfilled, it eventually releases additives, which can then threaten groundwater supplies. Landfill fires involving PVC are a further source of dioxin.
PVC recycling is neither technically nor financially feasible. Currently less than 1 percent of PVC is materially 'recycled'. Post-consumer products or PVC waste products cannot be recycled into the same quality, as PVC requires virgin PVC to make a product of similar quality. The majority of this collected waste is 'downcycled' or used to manufacture 'inferior' products such as garden benches and sound barriers along highways.
Many recycled PVC products have to be restabilized with toxic heavy metal compounds or other stabilizers. This further increases the range of hazardous components in the secondary product.
Dioxins are now present throughout the environment and the food chain. Everyone is exposed to them in their diets, particularly through fatty foods such as dairy, meat, fish and eggs.
TCDD, the most lethal form of the dioxin family, is a known human carcinogen and hormone disrupter and is recognized as the most toxic synthetic compound ever produced. All humans and animals now carry body burdens of TCDD and other dioxins.
ABOUT #6 Polystyrene, Styrofoam
#6, PS, polystyrene and styrofoam is a toxin monitored by the EPA in drinking water. Polystyrene production also releases the substance into the air eroding the ozone layer. Human hormone functions are found to be disrupted by chemicals leaching from styrofoam food and drink containers. Polystyrene is considered by scientists to be a possible human carcinogen.
Benzene, a material used in the production of polystyrene, is a known human carcinogen. In addition butadiene and styrene (in ABS), when combined, become benzene-like in both form and function.
Polystyrene is also classified as a highly flammable material. It is an efficient insulator at low temperatures, but is prohibited from being used in any exposed installations in building construction, if material is not treated with flame retardant. Otherwise, it must be concealed behind drywall, sheet metal or concrete. Foamed plastic materials can ignite and have caused huge fires and losses.
It is also important to note that acetone as in paint sprays and cyanoacrylate glues will dissolve polystyrene.
A major problem with polystyrene is its non-recycable nature. It is has little density and weight and has almost no scrap value. Generally, it is not accepted in curbside programs.
Expanded polystyrene foam takes a very long time to decompose in the environment and has been documented to cause starvation in birds and other marine wildlife. According to the California Coastal Commission, it is a principal component of marine debris. A CIWMB (California Integrated Waste Management Board) Report finds that “in the categories of energy consumption, greenhouse gas effect, and total environmental effect, EPS’s environmental impacts were second highest, behind aluminum.”
Cities around the country are now banning polystyrene food packaging.
ABOUT #7 PC, polycarbonate
# 7 is an “Other” category for plastics. PC, polycarbonate is a catchall group that consists mainly of polycarbonates, whose primary building block is bisphenol A (BPA), a hormone disrupter that releases into food and liquid and acts like estrogen.
BPA (leached from the lining of tin cans, dental sealants and polycarbonate bottles) can increase body weight of lab animals' offspring, as well as impact hormone levels. A more recent animal study suggests that even low-level exposure to BPA results in insulin resistance, which can lead to inflammation and heart disease.
Polycarbonate may be appealing to manufacturers and purchasers of food storage containers due to its clarity and toughness, being described as lightweight and highly break resistant particularly when compared to silica glass. Polycarbonate may be seen in the form of single use and refillable plastic water bottles.
More than 100 studies have explored the bioactivity of bisphenol A leachates from polycarbonates. Bisphenol A appeared to be released from polycarbonate animal cages into water at room temperature and that it may have been responsible for enlargement of the reproductive organs of female mice. Another study often cited says that there is evidence for the hypothesis that environmental exposure to bisphenol A as a fetus can cause breast cancer in adult women. An expert panel of 12 scientists has found that there is "some concern that exposure to the chemical bisphenol A in utero causes neural and behavioral effects," according to the draft report prepared by The National Toxicology Program (NTP) Center for the Evaluation of Risks to Human Reproduction.
One point of agreement among those studying polycarbonate water and food storage containers may be that using sodium hypochlorite bleach and other alkali cleaners to clean polycarbonate is not recommended, as they catalyze the release of the Bisphenol-A. The tendency of polycarbonate to release bisphenol A was discovered after a lab tech used strong cleaners on polycarbonate lab containers. Endocrine disruption later observed on lab rats was traced to exposure from the cleaned containers.
A chemical compatibility chart shows reactivity between chemicals such as polycarbonate and a cleaning agent. Alcohol is one recommended organic solvent for cleaning grease and oils from polycarbonate. For treating mold, Borax:H2O 1:96 to 1:8 may be effective.