Plastic bags are everywhere – whether we want them to be or not. And while many states and countries are trying to enforce plastic bag & single use plastic bans, there’s no denying that these materials are all over the place. But where do plastic bags come from? How are they made? Why is there such a negative perception of them? Can plastic bags be recycled – if so, how? In this episode we discuss the life of a plastic bag from fossil fuels to all the way to your grocery store and then we look their end of life story. While many plastic bags do end up in landfills or the ocean, there are ways to recycle them and recycled plastic bags can be turned into things like decking material. We discuss all the steps of this process and also go into the government policies around bags – are these bans effective or are they causing us to generate more waste somehow? Listen below to find out!
Hosts: Manali Banerjee and Nasreen Khan
Editors: Manali Banerjee and Nasreen Khan
Music: Shang Young
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Sources:
http://www.sciencing.com/how-does-4963354-plastic-manufacturing-process.html
https://cambrianpackaging.co.uk/what-are-resin-identification-codes
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https://www.trex.com/why-trex/eco-friendly-decking
Tim Osswald. Polymer Processing Fundamentals, 2001. Hanser Publishers.
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