Re:Researchers invent 100% biodegradable 'barley plastic'
by maccard on Tuesday June 25, 2024 @08:48AM
(#40787933)
Have you a source for this? Because all the published info I’ve seen says that it is great and it works as intended.
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Re:Researchers invent 100% biodegradable 'barley plastic'
by alistairSH on Tuesday June 25, 2024 @09:59AM
(#40788729)
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11367-021-01946-6
I've seen several studies that dispute the efficacy of reusable plastic items (bags, cups, etc). The energy costs of producing the "sturdy" alternative are often high enough to offset the gain in reuse.
IIRC, one study showed that reusing the single-use grocery bag one time (as a trash bin liner) was enough to put it back ahead of the typical $1 reusable bags available at the check-out counter at most grocers.
Re:Researchers invent 100% biodegradable 'barley plastic'
by Tagbert on Tuesday June 25, 2024 @12:39PM
(#40790607)
Since reusable bags have so little mass, I am not so concerned about the energy use to produce. More about the amount of bags and micro-plastics that escape into the environment.
Re:Researchers invent 100% biodegradable 'barley plastic'
by alistairSH on Tuesday June 25, 2024 @01:38PM
(#40791250)
That's fair. And I'm definitely in favor of doing whatever's best for the environment. Just pointing out that it's not as simple as "reusable is better" - depending on the set of metrics being measured, it might not be.
Re:Researchers invent 100% biodegradable 'barley plastic'
by maccard on Wednesday June 26, 2024 @07:15AM
(#40798670)
That doesnt back up your claim of these reusable bags piling up in landfills, it says it’s not as clean cut as it being better.
Re:Researchers invent 100% biodegradable 'barley plastic'
by alistairSH on Wednesday June 26, 2024 @08:51AM
(#40799421)
I never claimed they're filling up landfills, that was somebody else. I was just providing some more context, which as you note, indicates it's not as simple as "reusable good, one-use bad".