April 2008 Archives

Plastic pervades many areas of our modern lives and is incredibly useful, durable, cheap and easy for manufacturers to make into 'stuff' for consumers. I am not a particular 'fan' of plastic, as it is mostly made from oil, a non-renewable resource, but I have a balanced opinion as I do (we all do!) have a lot of useful objects made from it. I demonstrated my ambivalence in a recent letter to the York Press commenting on a petition to 'ban plastic bags', which I don't understand nor agree with... I think that taxing them would be better, as in Ireland where a 15 tax to the consumer had reduced use by 80%. The issues are that we use millions of them, mostly only once, and throw them away where they add to landfill, or if we throw them around, they may become a litter-item, caught in a tree or hedge (the Irish call them 'Witches Knickers'!) or get swept out to sea where they look uncannily like jellyfish to unfortunate jellyfish-eating turtles and birds. So it would be better if we used fewer of them, reused them many times and disposed of them properly. My friend in America says she can take her old ones to a recycling point... why can't we do that here?

Some plastic is made from renewable materials, the compost caddy liners I put on my home compost heaps are made from corn starch, although the issues surrounding the use of food materials (in this case sweetcorn) to make non-food items (including biofuels) are helping to put up the price of food... Other plastic has an additive called d2w which makes it 'degradable' in air after a set length of time, so refuse sacks may be designed to last for 18 months but bread bags start to fall apart in just a few weeks.

However, there is another side to plastic which is less well known which is also to do with some of the additives. Some plastic has phthalates in it, which soften it or make it flexible. Some reports link these chemicals with cancer and possible hormone disruption. Then there's DEHA and BPA which may also be less than healthy if ingested.... and these chemicals may leach out of plastics if they are chewed, heated, or re-used repeatedly. Unfortunately, the internet is awash with conflicting reports... some research indicates that there are potential problems, other industry-supported information tells readers that the 'myths are bunk' and there is no problem whatsoever. So I don't know the truth, and I'm not a chemist, but I will keep my 'ear to the ground', and will report on any new findings.

A good way to eat at least your 'five a day' portions of fruit and vegetables is to have some of them dried... it's also an excellent way to preserve certain vegetables and fruit if you have a glut or manage to get a job-lot of cheap items or 'buy one get one free' deals. Dried food doesn't have as much 'goodness' as fresh, as some vitamins are lost, so I am not suggesting substituting dried fruit for fresh, but having some can be an enjoyable change or an addition. I mainly eat my dried fruit in my home-made muesli, but my children, who haven't graduated to muesli, have dried fruit instead of sweets (they have some sweeties too!)

We spend much of our time at work, whether it's in our paid job or managing house and family matters, but many of us live for our hobbies and pastimes. These activities have an impact on our health, well-being and environment, and our choices are important if we wish to be greener.

Many people now understand the concept of embodied energy, ie the amout of fuel resources it has taken to make or grow something and to get it to the consumer. However, the concept of embodied water is just becoming known. This may be called 'virtual' or 'embedded' water and it is the amount of fresh water used to grow or manufacture something. Water is just as important to us as fuel and energy, if not more so, and to understand our true use of this much under-rated resource can help us behave more ethically.

Like so many people, I experimented with drugs when I was younger. I was 18 and had left home for the first time and had seen Cannabis being used in the West Indies quite openly, and I was attracted to the relaxed bonhomie which emanated from the groups of people using it. It seemed far more attractive than the alcohol-fuelled behaviour that was so prevalent in my community back in the UK.