plastics are toxic to all forms of life

by **usman sattar** Thu Apr 10, 2008 2:26 am

Plastics are not very meta-efficient. They are toxic to all forms of life, they don’t biodegrade, and they are difficult to recycle. Bioplastics have none of these issues. Also there are other materials that can
substitute for plastic such as ceramics or rubber.
In terms of toxicity and environmental damage, plastics can be arranged
in a pyramid, starting from the worst at the top:

1. Polyvinyl chloride
(PVC) and other halogenated plastics
2. Polyurethane (PU),
Polystyrene (PS), Acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS), Polycarbonate
(PC)
3. Polyethylene-terephthalate
(PET)
4. Polyolefins (PE,
PP, etc.)
5. Biobased Polymers
(Bioplastics)

PVC plastic (vinyl) is the worst plastic for our health and for the environment because it is produced using chlorine, and it releases dioxins throughout its lifetime. Dioxin is one of the most toxic chemical ever produced. The EPA suggests that there is no safe level of dioxin exposure.Also, because PVC is a hard and unusable material, chemicals must be added during manufacture — such as phthalates (pronounced “thay-lates”). Unfortunately these chemicals leak out of the plastic easily. When children suck or chew PVC toys,they can end up ingesting these chemicals.

Polycarbonate (#7 plastic) can also be quite toxic. It can release bisphenol A, a suspected hormone disruptor, into liquids and foods. In 1998, the Japanese government ordered manufacturers there to recall and destroy polycarbonate tableware meant for use by children because it contained excessive amounts of bisphenol A.

Polystyrene (#6 plastic) may leach styreneinto food it comes into contact with. A recent study in nvironmental
Health Perspectives concluded that some styrene compounds leaching from food containers are estrogenic meaning they can disrupt normal hormonalfunctioning). Styrene is also considered a possible human carcinogen
by the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer.