3. Alternatively, palm leaf or bamboo pulp plates. Chopsticks are also a great alternative to have in your bag if you’re planning on getting takeaway. Silicon Storage Bags – The closest alternative to actual plastic storage bags. You can also shop at bulk food stores and bring your own containers to fill. "Uses Of Plastics. " There have been instances where sea turtles have had plastic straws lodged painfully in their nostrils. About 40 percent of the waste is discarded packaging [source: Parker]. Recycling machines often can’t sort them due to their shape, so many end up in landfills and take centuries to degrade. But although it's ideal for jewelry that even Queen Mary admired, casein-based plastic is too brittle for much more than adornment. Scientists have found a way make the protein less susceptible to cracking, thanks to a silicate clay called sodium montmorillonite. When added to polyethylene (the standard plastic bag material) at levels of 3 percent, PDCs can promote nearly complete degradation; 95 percent of the plastic is in bacteria-friendly fragments within four weeks [source: Nolan-ITU Pty]. Plastic free alternatives: Reusable glass or bamboo stirrers, or spoons! Next time you order takeaway, choose cuisines like pizza or Mexican that don’t often come in plastic containers and avoid pre-packaged meals. Australians sure love coffee! At WWF, we work in Australia and in our Asia-Pacific backyard to protect endangered species and habitats, meet the challenge of climate change, and build a world where people live in harmony with nature. Bring your own reusable cup or a mason jar if you’re planning a trip to your favourite juice or smoothie shop. Earth Institute. Your one stop shop to find EcoEnclose non-plastic packaging options. What one of the hottest trends in biodegradable plastic development can do is make polymer composites more biodegradable. Well, the consequences are potentially catastrophic— recycled polyethylene irrigation pumps that are contaminated with PDC additives aren't likely to last very long. Or try a stick of celery, carrot or cucumber. July 19, 2017. Yep, researchers are revitalizing the idea of converting casein, the principal protein found in milk, into a biodegradable material that matches the stiffness and compressibility of polystyrene. 1. Updated 3:43 PM ET, Mon October 19, 2020 . Plastic free alternatives: Choose Nature-friendly takeaway! Learn More. Glass Storage with Stainless Lids – Another great storage option that is plastic free, has a stainless lid and can be used to re-heat food in the oven. Sunflower Hulls. Shockingly, only 12% of plastics used in Australia ends up recycled. For your convenience we will send you one receipt at the end of the financial year, for the total amount of your tax deductible donations. Times have changed. (Nov. 11, 2018) http://www.scribd.com/doc/62303281/SAPRO-Report-14, Woodruff, Maria A. and Hutmacher, Dietmar W. "The return of a forgotten polymer: Polycaprolactone in the 21st century." "Degradable & Biodegradable Plastic Bags." This company thinks its plastic alternative can help solve climate change. (Nov. 11, 2018) https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/07/plastic-produced-recycling-waste-ocean-trash-debris-environment/, Royte, Elizabeth. People have used various... Laser Treatments as an Alternative to a Neck Lift. An old idea may help solve the problem of plastic waste.Oct. (And like my granny used to say - “Stick nothing in your ears smaller than your elbow!”). Click here to sign the petition today. In 2018, Bioplastics News reported that Christopher Johnson, a researcher at the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory, had developed a promising process for improve the conversion of lignin into a substitute material for plastics, as well as nylon. These biodegradable plastics closely resemble man-made polypropylene. Bioplasticnews.com. Biodegradable single-use water bottles. | We wear clothes fashioned from plastic fibers, sit on plastic chairs, and travel in automobiles, trains and airplanes that contain plastic parts. The result? They're used to manufacture single-use plastics such as thin plastic shopping bags, disposable diapers, trash bags, landfill covers and food containers (including fast-food containers). Today, plastics are one of the cornerstones of modern technological civilization — tough, flexible durable, impervious to corrosion, and seemingly endlessly versatile. Plastic free alternatives: Fluid ear washes, bamboo cotton buds, organic cotton makeup pads or a reusable silicon swab like The Last Swab. Starch is usually blended with aliphatic polyesters, such as PLA and PCL, and polyvinyl alcohol to make completely biodegradable plastics. In this video, Penn and Teller meet a microbiologist turned fashion designer who's making milk into clothing. Plastic is everywhere and it doesn't disappear. A man collects plastic to recycle at an import plastic waste dump in Mojokerto, East Java, Indonesia on Dec. 4, 2018. The U.S. produced an astonishing 4.13 million tons (3.75 million metric tons) of plastic bags in 2015, the most recent year for which data is available, and only 530,000 tons (481,000 metric tons) of those were recycled [source: EPA]. The amount of time, energy and effort that goes into producing, exporting and importing these products just doesn’t add up - especially if they’re made to last forever. (Nov. 11, 2018) https://bioplasticsnews.com/2018/07/11/enzymes-convert-lignin-bioplastics/, Cho, Renee. Once in our oceans, they’re extremely dangerous for our marine wildlife. (Nov. 11, 2018) https://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2017/12/13/the-truth-about-bioplastics/, Creative Mechanisms Staff. That includes ‘reusing’ plastic bags, because unfortunately they end up in landfill as well. Not only are the balloons themselves deadly, but so are the plastic sticks that often come with them. You can get them festooned with patterns or printed with the name or your bank/gym/frozen yogurt shop. WWF is one of Australia’s most trusted conservation organisations. (Nov. 11, 2018) https://plastics.americanchemistry.com/Building-and-Construction/, Barrett, Axel. " Something needs to change. 3: PHA Polyesters. They’re lightweight, so once they’re dropped or discarded, plastic straws easily blow into waterways and enter our oceans. This is important says founder Duygu Yilmaz, since starch-based bioplastics made from corn are often more expensive than petroleum-based plastics are therefore not a viable alternative. Progress in Polymer Science. Right, kitty? For one, since it's made from plants that absorb carbon dioxide as they grow, there's no net increase in carbon dioxide from its raw materials. Plastic plates might be cheap and handy when hosting parties or at picnics or food courts, but once they’re thrown away, they often end up as trash in landfills. Bee's Wrap as a reusable alternative to plastic wrap and cling wrap. I use mine daily for lemon water in the morning, smoothies and herbal tea throughout the day, and water. My friend Debbie has a beautiful, lush, happy growing garden. I'm excited to share with you 22 simple plastic-free alternatives for the bathroom, which have saved me money and prevented the production of primary waste . Nearly half a trillion plastic water bottles are purchased and consumed each year, and ... 2. You consent to our cookies if you continue to use our website. Today, it's all plastic. Now scientists say it could help to produce a biodegradable plastic for furniture cushions, insulation, packaging and other products. 2: PLA Polyesters. "Keep Plastic out of the Pacific." Bamboo straws. Photos and graphics © WWF or used with permission. The rest end up as litter in cities and towns—and too many find their way to the ocean, where they kill millions of sea turtles, birds and ocean mammals each year [source: Environment California]. The rest ends up in landfills and in the world's oceans, where plastic pollution is ravaging wildlife and washing up on beaches. They end up in the trash, on our beaches and in our oceans. In the past, alternatives to plastic packaging have most definitely included foam. July 17, 2018. Did you know that 1.5 billion cotton buds are produced every day, with the average person disposing of 415 a year? (Nov. 11, 2018) https://www.epa.gov/facts-and-figures-about-materials-waste-and-recycling/glass-material-specific-data, Environment California. "The History and Future of Plastics. " Most food outlets will happily put the food directly into your own reusable container if you ask. Today’s gardening tip comes from both mine and my friends’ garden. Sciencehistory.org. Reusable grocery bags, for starters. While balloons are a nice decorative item for celebrations, they’re one of the highest-risk plastic debris items for seabirds. Image: Choose Water. You can also shop at bulk food stores and bring your own containers to fill. . Freezing sodium montmorillonite into a spongelike material called an aerogel, they infused the porous network of clay with casein plastic. It is overall much healthier, and you won’t have to worry about any toxic chemicals coming from the plastic or the potential harm that aluminum parts may cause. Liquid wood is made from a byproduct of paper mills, like the one pictured. (Nov. 11, 2018) https://www.thoughtco.com/uses-of-plastics-820359, Nakazawa, Liz. Plastic objects are all around us, from the food containers and bottles of milk and soda that we buy at the supermarket, to the countertops in our kitchens and the linings of our cooking pans. However, foam traditionally is either non-biodegradable or takes hundreds of years to biodegrade. These days, our recyclable waste often ends up stockpiled in landfill, littered by the sides of roads, in our parks, nature and oceans.