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| Have you been bamboozled by Bamboo Fabrics? | |||
| (Thursday, 03 June 2010) Written by greeniac11809 | |||
| It’s Bamboo, right… sustainable and green as a gourd. True, unless of course you soak your gourds in carbon disulfide, sodium hydroxide and bleach. The rush to crush disposable packaging has allowed what seemed to be a green solution actually become more greenwashing. That’s also what the Federal Trade Commission thinks and they have a bit more influence than we do. Bamboo cloth is Rayon in disguise Bamboo is a very fast-growing, sturdy and sustainable tropical forest product. It actually grows in Tennessee and in many of the southern states but not to the degree it does in Asia. It makes great furniture and hardwood floors, but is it a good green material for clothing and reusable bags? Bamboo can supply cellulose through a process of pulping, processing, extruding, bleaching and dying that ultimately makes a fine silk-like thread also known as Viscose in Europe and Rayon in America. It was originally developed as a substitute for silk. Many similar products are also made from plant cellulose, such as Satin Acetate for ribbons. So what started out as Bamboo is actually now “Rayon”, and not the same material anymore because of the severity of the processing required to produce it. Rayon is a man-made fiber created from the cellulose found in plants and trees and dissolved with a harsh chemical that releases hazardous air pollution. Any plant or tree could be used as a cellulose source - including bamboo - but the fiber that is created is rayon. Federal Trade Comission August, 2009 If you sell clothing, linens, or other textile products, you’re responsible for making truthful disclosures about the fiber content. If your product isn’t made directly of bamboo fiber - but is a manufactured fiber for which bamboo was the plant source - it should be labeled and advertised using the proper generic name for the fiber, such as rayon, or “rayon made from bamboo.” It is biodegradable? In a recent action the FTC busted claims of biodegradable bamboo cloth products because the claims are unqualified. The Commission charged that rayon products are not biodegradable because they will not break down in a reasonably short time after customary disposal. Most clothing and textiles are disposed of either by recycling or in a landfill, where such biodegradation does not occur. So is Rayon from Bamboo a “green” product? It may as well be made from any plant cellulose source; and in our judgment, if you apply the three-part model of sustainability which includes environmental, social and economical factors, it fails the test. It is not produced in an environmentally friendly manner, it is expensive, and on the social platform it is blatantly misleading. Honestly, we all mean well. Even Nashville Wraps initially thought this to be a green product, but when we did the homework, we found out differently. Visit www.nashvillewraps.com for eco friendly packaging options. |
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| Plastic Bags no longer banned by California Court | |||
| (Wednesday, 02 June 2010) Written by greeniac11809 | |||
| A controversial ordinance in Manhattan Beach, California banning the use of plastic bags by retailers at the point of sale was struck down in the California Court of Appeals. The court decided that the government (Manhattan Beach in this case) cannot arbitrarily “ban” plastic bags without an environmental impact report proving that a ban is warranted. It sets a precedent for truth and fairness to rule as we tackle a key environmental issues in retail packaging. The court found substantial evidence to support the argument that the ordinance may cause increased use of paper bags, which (the court stated) may have a significant negative impact on the environment, therefore an environmental impact report was required. According to court documents: “We do not resolve the question of the ultimate merits of whether the plastic bag distribution ban should be implemented. All we are saying is that an environmental impact report must be prepared given that it can be fairly argued based on substantial evidence in the record that the ordinance may have a significant environmental impact.” Paper or Plastic? Our customers frequently ask us which is better for the environment. The environmental impact of either is small, but it is a good place for the retail community to demonstrate concern and to encourage sustainable practices such as recycling. If recycling is involved, then neither paper nor plastic bags constitute a huge negative impact, but with plastic coming out ahead in the measure of carbon footprint. Paper bags are made from “trees”. In North America, companies like Weyerhaeuser, Georgia Pacific, and Bowater are in the business of growing trees for paper and construction products. These companies do not “slash and burn” like we have seen in the news from Asia, but instead practice sustainable forestry; not only because of the environment, but because it is a sustainable economic model. Pine trees grow quickly and are harvested from managed forests. Plastic bags which are produced in the US are made from domestic natural gas, not foreign oil. Before natural gas can be used as a fuel, waste products must be removed. One key by-product is known as “Ethane”. The “Ethane” is converted into polyethylene which is then made into many products including plastic bags. US plastic bags are made from a by-product of processing natural gas. Most foreign resins are still made from Middle-Eastern oil, including those “eco-friendly” reusable bags. Remember seeing pictures of oil wells in Iraq and Saudi Arabia with those plumes of flame on top? That is the gas they have been burning off for years. Ever see one of those plumes on a US well? Our infrastructure allows for the collection and processing of natural gas into plastic resin and other products such as fertilizers, while the infrastructure in Asia and the Middle East doesn’t (although they are working on it in Saudi Arabia). Even when the Saudis do make polyethylene available, it comes back to a dependence on foreign trade and not on domestic production. Bottom line…Buy paper and plastics made in North America. All of the Paper Bags that Nashville Wraps sells which are made in the US and Canada are sourced from North American forests and domestic recycled paper sources. All of the plastic bags we sell which are made in the US are sourced from either domestic natural gas and/or recycled plastics collected in the US. Next blog article: Recycling Paper and Plastic Bags. Robby Meadows Director of Marketing Nashville Wraps |
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| Environ Mentality at Disney Corp | |||
| (Thursday, 15 May 2008) Written by greeniac13 | |||
| I stumbled onto the Disney Environmentality site today and thought it was worth sharing with you. Hope you find it interesting! You might really love Disney or know kids that love Disney shows and toys. I really hope that all that plastic Disney merchandise that's obviously made in an overseas factory is not contributing to the environmental pollution which Walt Disney clearly opposed. At least the company is showing interest in real change now. That's the spirit! by Gina Forsyth link: http://corporate.disney.go.com/environmentality/index.html |
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