SIUSLAW NEWS | SATURDAY, AUGUST 14, 2021 | 9A
Closing The Loop — Clearing Up Confusion About Compostable Packaging
T
polystyrene foam packaging
ending up in the landfill or
our coastal environments.
But we do have to be con-
cerned with other dispos-
able materials that wreck
havoc on our environment:
everything from biode-
gradable plastics and plastic
We couldn’t be
prouder to be your
community partner.
290+ PPP
loan applications funded
in our Florence community
$14.7 Million
funds disbursed to local
Florence businesses
Helping to preserve
over 900 local jobs
(800) 997-7121 | WWW.OPBC.COM
Not Your Ordinary Bank
member
coated cardboard to com-
postables, aka sustainable
packaging.
Wanting to do the right
thing, many local business-
es and food establishments
switched over to using com-
postable or biodegradable
containers instead of
other options, thinking
that it was the more
environmentally
friendly choice. But
as it turns out, not
only are these op-
tions up to three
times more expen-
sive, they aren’t nec-
essarily eco-friendly,
nor are they easy to
compost or dispose of. Let
me explain.
First of all, biodegradable
and compostable are two
different things. It is im-
portant to know the differ-
ences to better understand
how to dispose of them
properly and efficiently.
Here are their definitions:
Biodegradable
1. A substance or object
capable of being decom-
posed by bacteria or other
living organisms
Compostable
1. Something that can be
used as compost when it
decays
Examples of 100% bio-
degradable products are
plastic shopping bags, bin
liners, dog poop bags, and
a variety of food packaging.
They are commonly pro-
duced with renewable new
materials like fermented
cornstarch polymers (poly-
lactic acid — PLA) or from
a mixture of un-recyclable
and harmful bioplastics
(Number 7 plastic) such as
polypropylene, polyethly-
ene, polystyrene and PVC.
The degradation of these
plastic products is aided by
microorganisms, but, in the
end, microplastics and toxic
materials will be left in the
environment to find their
way into our water systems
and food chains.
The PLA packaging can-
not be recycled with the
other plastics since it caus-
es contamination and it
requires commercial com-
posting processing and can-
not be composted at home.
So it ends up in the landfill
regardless of how environ-
mental it may be.
According to research
done by the nonprofit or-
ganization World Centric,
only 13% of commercial
composters accept com-
postable products of the
over 4,700 compost fa-
cilities in the U.S. These
commercial
composting
facilities are hesitant to
take compostable prod-
ucts for various reasons,
including contamination,
disintegration times, lack
of equipment and revenue
structures based on selling
organic compost.
Currently, Oregon does
not have any commercial
composting facilities that
are willing to process any
compostable food service
products. This letter is from
Oregon composters on
this subject: https://www.
oregon.gov/deq/mm/Doc-
uments/MessagefromCom-
poster-En.pdf.
Examples of 100% com-
postable packaging are pa-
per, cardboard, bamboo,
wood or bagasse (sugar-
cane). NOTE: Plastic liners
on some of these containers
are not compostable.
These containers can be
put in a home composting
system and will not degrade
into toxic materials. But the
environmental impacts of
making compostable ma-
terials such as the resource
extraction, manufacturing,
transportation and disposal
of these materials and oxy-
gen depletion of waterways
due to fertilizer run off are
cause for concern.
To truly embrace a ze-
ro-waste lifestyle, we need
to generate less waste,
whether it’s packaging or
food. Recently, some cities
and food establishments
have embraced a more
durable, reusable
solution to the
waste is-
sues. GO
Box,
a
reusable
takeout
c o n -
tainer
service,
offers con-
tainers that
are checked
out from ven-
dors via an app
and then dropped
off at designated locations.
The company, which is
based in Portland, collects,
cleans and sanitizes the
containers, which are then
re-used by other customers.
At the end of their lives, the
plastic reusable containers
are recycled. Similar ser-
vices are popping up in Se-
attle, such as Green Grub-
Box and another, Rogue To
Go, was recently launched
in Ashland, Ore.
There is no quick solution
to our increased use of sin-
gle-use disposables. If you
choose 100% biodegradable
options, unfortunately these
must be put in the garbage.
But there are smarter choic-
es we can make when you
absolutely must make a de-
cision.
First choice is opt for
easy to recycle items, like
glass or metal. If you choose
plastic, look for options like
No. 2 or 5 containers. If you
compost at home, choose
cardboard or paper and of
course the best choice is
bring your own reusable
container.
More information can
be found at www.worldcen
tric.com and www.epa.gov/
recycle.
Got ideas for future ar-
ticles? Need more informa-
tion about closing the loop?
Have questions about your
recycling efforts? Please
contact me at britte.kirsch@
gmail.com or visit Waste
Wise Lane County.
Space #2 in the Old Hospital on 12th Street
Buying or Selling? I can help.
Richard Beaudro
Principal Broker
541 991-6677
2970 Hwy 101 – Commercial property with an
open floor plan and plenty of parking right on Hwy
101. Freshly painted interior and mostly new floor
coverings. Clean and ready to go inside and out.
$475,000. #3242-21600647
1749 Highway 101 • 541-997-1200
9
201
VOTED
F
BEST O
E
By Britte Kirsch
here in Florence, the city
Lane County Master Recycler has implemented an ex-
Special to Siuslaw News
tended polystyrene (EPS/
Styrofoam) ban since 2018
he
pandemic
has thanks to the efforts by the
caused an uptick in Environmental
Manage-
the amount of to-go/take ment Advisory Committee.
away containers being used Here, we don’t have to wor-
worldwide.
Fortunately ry about an abundance of
F LO E N C
R
Jim & Jerry
Neil’s Carpet & Upholstery Cleaning
541-997-3825
Certifi ed – Bonded – Insured
Property Services Contractor #39458 • SAM: #831298500/7E6J9
City License #2578
“Our commitment is to our customers
cleaning needs with honesty and integrity”