New plant-based plastics can be chemically recycled with near-perfect efficiency

Re:New plant-based plastics can be chemically recycled with ... by ramraj07 on Saturday February 20, 2021 @05:52PM (#26208781)

Also not everything can be paper. A coffee cup can never be fully paper, it needs a plastic lining and can thus never be recyclable. Not without it being extremely crappy. No food item can be enclosed in a fully paper enclosure and expected to have a shelf life.

And for all the Portlanders saving a plastic bag there's a Texan buying all their drinking water as pallets of disposable single use plastic bottles.

I think we should just take the japan route - use plastic, try your best to be judicious and then just incinerate it.

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Re:New plant-based plastics can be chemically recycled with ... by astrange on Saturday February 20, 2021 @06:35PM (#26209166)

I'm not sure Japan is good at plastic use. Practically everything is wrapped in 3 different layers for style points.

Japan's electricity is also so coal-based that using Japanese factories is starting to violate US companies' clean energy rules.

https://www.ft.com/content/bbd59494-ac64-4dda-8da5-a2990d893...

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Re:New plant-based plastics can be chemically recycled with ... by mssundaram on Saturday February 20, 2021 @07:38PM (#26209629)

> Also not everything can be paper. A coffee cup can never be fully paper, it needs a plastic lining and can thus never be recyclable

There are bioplatic liners for paper coffee cups that allow them to be fully compostable, though. I have sitting next to me one made from the World Centric brand that uses the "Ingeo PLA" for the liner, and I compost these cups in my backyard. I only use them when it's inconvenient to not use a regular mug.

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Re:New plant-based plastics can be chemically recycled with ... by nicoburns on Sunday February 21, 2021 @06:03AM (#26212531)

Coffee cups should just be reusable. Forgotten to bring your reusable cup? Then tough, don't get a coffee (or drink it at the cafe).

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