[GreenYes] Re: Can you feed the stuff to the fish?

["Eric Lombardi" <eric@no.address>]

Hi Justin,

Of course your position is correct, but it's incomplete.  There are things happening on this topic that you wouldn't know about.  Not to say the good guys will win on the GMO issue, but thre are folks trying over the last 18 months in a separate "stakeholder" discussion with NatureWorks.  Some very smart progressive people who's mission is related to sustainable farming are pushing this issue in the Midwest... and I'm not sure how public they are or want to be at this point.

As you know, my thing related to this topic is recycling and composting.  The Eco-Cycle staff wrestled internally with this issue over 6 years ago as we were busy creating ZW Events for the public that have proven to be one of the most powerful citizen awareness activities we've ever done. We decided to "share" the bioplastic world and teach our community that life is possible without a trash can over doing nothing because of the GMO issue.  At the time, we had to buy NatureWorks products since they were the first on the market. If you check out the Eco-Cycle video on ZW on our website you'll see that "non-GMO" bioplastics is clearly presented as the future we want. 

Change takes time, and I am hopeful that the non-GMO producers in the EU and in the US can compete... but it's going to be tough.  NatureWorks told us that 70% of the feedcorn they grow is now GMO, and they don't keep the two separated in their processing mills.  I don't know what to believe out of them anymore...

This email is a long way to say that many of us that are engaged in the bioplastics future are well aware of your point,  and I would encourage you to join the effort to move away from petro-plastics in a sustainable way.  We're making it up as we go... but the point is we are on the move and part of the dialogue.

Eric

Eric Lombardi
Executive Director
Eco-Cycle
Boulder, CO
303-444-6634
www.ecocycle.org


---------- Original Message ----------------------------------
From: "Justin Stockdale" <jstockdale@no.address>
Date:  Fri, 3 Nov 2006 10:00:17 -0700

>I feel like I am missing something in the ongoing debate about the virtues
>of PLA and other bio-plastics.is no one concerned that these plastics stand
>to sanctify the production of gmo's as environmentally preferable simply
>because they fit nicely into the zero waste framework? To read recently that
>the Boulder farmers market is not only proud, but touting their zero waste
>status though the use of gmo products seems to me to be as contrary to the
>virtues of a farmers market as possible.
>
>I am struck that the zero waste movement is getting lost striving for the
>magic zero.that they have divorced their movement from all other aspects of
>environmental responsibility? Just because it is compostable does not make a
>starlink knife a good thing. 
>
> 
>
>And please do not forget that recycling, composting and the lot is still
>waste, if you have it to be recycled you have still generated waste....
>
> 
>
>Justin Stockdale
>
>Buckman Road Recycling & Transfer Station
>
>149 Wildlife Way
>
>Santa Fe, NM 87506
>
>505-424-1850
>
>jstockdale@no.address
>
>Save your local landfill...Recycle
>
> 
>
>  _____  
>
>From: GreenYes@no.address [mailto:GreenYes@no.address] On Behalf
>Of Matthew Cotton
>Sent: Thursday, November 02, 2006 2:06 PM
>To: Pete Pasterz
>Cc: RicAnthony@no.address; stevew@no.address; gary@no.address;
>crra_members@no.address; GreenYes@no.address; zwia@no.address;
>ZERI_Practitioners@no.address; ZERI-US@no.address;
>sustainablebusiness@no.address; marc.gunther@no.address;
>cmoore@no.address; mgordon@no.address; stephanie@no.address
>Subject: [GreenYes] Can you feed the stuff to the fish?
>
> 
>
>Rick (et al) - 
>
> 
>
>I agree that the introduction of biodegradable "stuff" brings up issues,
>both new and existing. I guess the question is: Does the introduction of PLA
>(or other compostable stuff) necessarily lead to more litter or more plastic
>in the environment? We have a massive litter problem now, but I don't see
>how the introduction of compostable stuff increases this problem.
>
> 
>
>Yes, we have a lot of education to do. I just had a quick lunch of an Annie
>Chun "instant" noodle bowl. It came in a "biodegradable" container, which is
>cool. But there is no information on the package or on their website about
>what to do with this. Should I put it in my home composting bin? (probably).
>Should I try to get it to a composting facility that takes food scraps and
>biod egradable stuff? How is a consumer supposed to know what to do with it?
>Is this just furthering the myth that eventually all things will decompose
>in the landfill?
>
> 
>
>As you know, I was on the panel at NRC that discussed some of these issues.
>I wish I had had a chance to bring up the concept of MOOP (Matter Out of
>Place). Probably a good concept to think about. Along the road to zero waste
>we've got to focus on the MOOP. All of the plastic in the environment is
>MOOP. The way to fix this is to provide the education and the infrastructure
>to get the Matter into the right place (as for example, Eco-Cycle is doing
>with their Center for Hard to Recycle Materials, why aren't there more of
>these?).
>
> 
>
>Replacing some or all of the food service containers and utensils with a
>biodegradable alternative may ensure that at least some of it gets recovered
>via composting.  I ag ree wholeheartedly with Stephen's point that it would
>seem that most non-bottle plastics (and I think nationally we're recycling
>about 25% of those?), in most places, don't get recycled, so either end up
>in a landfill, in an incinerator, or in the environment. So to the extent
>that we can replace these non-recyclable items with compostable ones, we can
>hope to recover at least some of them and hopefully recover some of the
>wasted food that is also landfilled along with them.
>
> 
>
>Matthew Cotton
>
>Integrated Waste Management Consulting, LLC
>
>19375 Lake City Road
>
>Nevada City, CA  95959
>
>530-265-4560
>
>mattcotton@no.address
>
> 
>
>
>
>
>
> 
>
>On Nov 2, 2006, at 12:29 PM, Pete Pasterz wrote:
>
>
>
>
>
>Especially after the NRC presentation during which the NatureWorks rep.
>stated that PLA will NOT decompose as litter on the roadside or in water;
>only in a compost pile of 150 degrees!
>
> 
>
>Pete Pasterz
>
> 
>
>  _____  
>
>From: GreenYes@no.address [mailto:GreenYes@no.address] On Behalf
>Of RicAnthony@no.address
>Sent: Thursday, November 02, 2006 3:12 PM
>To: stevew@no.address; gary@no.address; crra
>_members@no.address; GreenYes@no.address; zwia@no.address;
>ZERI_Practitioners@no.address; ZERI-US@no.address;
>sustainablebusiness@no.address
>Cc: marc.gunther@no.address; cmoore@no.address; mgordon@no.address;
>stephanie@no.address
>Subject: [heur] [GreenYes] Can you feed the stuff to the fish?
>Importance: Low
>
>In a message dated 11/2/2006 12:06:44 P.M. Pacific Standard Time,
>stevew@no.address writes:think bio-plastic bottles are a great idea
>except the "recycling problem" is definitely a concern.....shoul d
>definitely support other bio-plastic products such as cups, and foodservice
>containers.  
>
> 
>
>I worry about all the food service containers and utensils that are dumped
>into the environment  becoming fish and bird food before totally decomposed.
>
>Rick
>
>
>DISCLAIMER:
>E-mail correspondence to and from this address may be subject to the North
>Carolina Public Records Law and may be disclosed to third parties.
>
> 
>
>
>
>
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>>
>
 




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