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Articles on Zero waste

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Peter Endig via Getty Images

How life-cycle assessments can be (mis)used to justify more single-use plastic packaging

Life-cycle assessments of food packaging often omit the impact and possible toxicity of plastics leaking into the environment. Excluding these factors gives plastics an unjustified advantage.
The Wheelabrator Waste to Energy Plant in Saugus, Massachusetts, has been burning trash to generate electricity since 1975. Fletcher6/Wikimedia

Is burning trash a good way to handle it? Waste incineration in 5 charts

Every year the US burns more than 34 million tons of garbage in incinerators. These plants are major pollution sources, and most are clustered in disadvantaged communities.
Single-use biodegradable plastics include claims that they break down quickly into benign end products, but the reality is more complex. from www.shutterstock.com

Why compostable plastics may be no better for the environment

New types of biodegradable or compostable plastic products seem to offer an alternative to conventional plastics. But they may be no better for the environment.

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