If you’re eating with a shiny plastic fork, don’t call it silverware; call it plasticware. However, if you’re eating with a stainless steel fork, you can get away with calling it silverware.
Environmentally Friendly Disposable Cutlery
Cutlery which can be composted either at home or at a commercial facility will leave a smaller footprint on the earth and is considered more environmentally friendly.
More environmentally friendly disposable cutlery options include: CPLA (Crystallized Polylactic Acid), Bamboo, Molded Fiber, and Wood.
The final stage of the life cycle of plastic cutlery is the stage that causes the most impact to the environment. After the distribution of plastic cutlery, they are used by consumers and are shortly discarded afterwards. Although plastic cutlery are considered to be plastic products, they cannot be recycled as will more likely end up in landfills or incineration. With the complex intermolecular bonds of plastic cutlery, the product degrades slowly and may take about a thousand years to degrade, meaning that the product is a danger for the environment and exceeds the life span of many living things. A detrimental factor that affects the surrounding, specifically environments with humans, as plastic cutlery stays in the landfills is the emission of bisphenol-a, or BPA. BPA has been known for its cancer-causing properties, and is a carcinogen contained in plastic products’ resin such as plastic cutlery. The chemical may leak from the landfills that can contaminate humans, but can also ooze into the environment that damages wildlife (Lewis). Once the plastic utensils somehow breakdown, the chemicals and the additives that creates the product forms a substance (containing BPA) that contaminate the surrounding soils or water. According to the journal Waste Management, it is approximated that two thirds of plastic products would end up in the landfills, but the rest might end end somewhere else such as in the environments that is a potential harm to the animals or its ecosystems (Razza, Francesco, Maurizio Fieschi, Francesco Degli Innocenti, & Catia Bastiolo). Plastic cutlery that end up in the environment plays the role of endangering animals. Since the product is able to float in water, once plastic cutlery ends up in the water, marine life, such as fish may wound up eating the product, causing physical and chemical harm that is attributed to its plastic properties (Kadekar). In the ocean, there is known to be a body of plastic waste that is double the size of Texas and is still growing as of today (Bernier). Where the product after its usage plays the biggest role in the waste and emissions that is created because it is the most destructive. The prior stages in the cycles slowly contributes to greenhouse gases buildup, but when plastic cutlery reaches the stage where the product’s chemicals leaks from the landfills into human populated sites or pollutes habitats of animals, the effects are immediate. The aftermath of the pollution of plastic products, such as plastic cutlery, in the environment take a toll on the wildlife, where many instances have been presented in the mass media of the dangers it places on the lives of the living creatures and the destruction of habitats.
Many other materials are used in the production of plastic cutlery that aren’t necessarily seen obviously in the final product, specifically oil-based materials, are also unsustainable materials. Plasticizers are used in the production process of plastic cutlery to attain a better final product. Paraffinic oils are specifically used- also known as kerosene. Paraffinic oils are made of crude oil that has been processed- meaning that just like the fossil fuels that are used in creating the plastics that the cutlery is made of, it is a limited source that is being consumed at a rate much too high in comparison to the time it takes to be produced. Stabilizers used in the creation of plastic cutlery also are oil based- meaning they too are unsustainable. The removal compounds are made of silicon, which is the most relatively abundant and least finite source used in the creation of plastic cutlery (Kadekar). Asides from the silicon-based removal compound, all of the other production materials are unsustainable, especially at the rate that they are being used. Alongside production material, it is easy to forget the impact of other ‘unseen’ materials that aid in the overall production process.
Plastic cutlery has become a staple amongst both the fast food industry and in everyday life, due to its ease of use and accessibility. Due to the fact that plastic cutlery is so easy to use and dispose, the environmental impact of the materials that go into creating the product are rarely thought about. The waste that plastic spoons, forks, and knives produce contributes to the around 300 million annual tons of plastic waste that litters our environment (Li). There are many products on the market that cater towards a more environmentally friendly disposable form of cutlery, some even attempt to disregard the concept of disposability entirely and focus on an easy and portable reusable option. However, plastic cutlery is still a largely used and largely disposed product. While a variety of raw materials go into creating plastic cutlery, a large portion of the primary materials are non-renewable or are being consumed at a rate at which they cannot be renewed quickly enough, meaning that plastic cutlery is ultimately a wasteful and unsustainable product.
From its production to its distribution, plastic cutlery calls for attention that the energy required to create it is wasteful. The initial stage of plastic cutlery starts off with the extraction of two important raw material: oil and natural gas, which are fossil fuels. First, the crew has to find a site with plenty of water nearby since it is the primary source of energy (kinetic energy) for drilling. Multiple holes have to be drilled, including one central hole, by using both a small drill truck and the main drilling rig. Rather than using the main rig to drill all the holes, the drilling vehicle is used to be more efficient with its use of energy. In this case, chemical energy is used since the main rig requires an extensive amount of fossil fuels to run. The main rig uses two sources of power: the primary energy source diesel and secondary energy source electricity. The large diesel engines in the rig burn the diesel to use as the primary source of power while the electric generators use the energy from the diesel engines to provide electricity for the drillings equipment. Once the drill reaches the final depth, all the oil is ready to be pumped out by an electric motor, requiring the use of electrical energy. The next step is transporting the oil from the extraction site to the plastic utensil making factories. This occurs in all modes of transportation: air, water, and road. In the US, “the major types of energy used for transportation are petroleum products: gasoline, distillate fuels (mostly diesel fuel), jet fuel, residual fuel oil, and propane, Biofuels: ethanol and biodiesel, Natural gas, and Electricity” (“Energy Use for Transportation”, 2018). It is evident that most modes of transportation run on chemical energy since most of them require some form of fossil fuels to work. Recently, the demand for oil has increased so much that it is being traded to and from other countries. For example, if the oil has to be shipped from the US to China, road-freight vehicles would transport it from the extraction site to the airport or seaport. Then, the oil would be transported by either air or water to China. Once it reaches China, they have to load all the oil into trucks which can then transport it to the factories. Just in the US alone during 2017, “petroleum products accounted for about 92% of the total U.S. transportation sector energy use” (“Energy Use for Transportation”, 2018). When thinking about the amount of fuel used in the world, the total amount of energy used would be overwhelming. Using large amounts of oil is bad for the environment because greenhouse gasses are emitted when fossil fuels are burned. These greenhouse gasses, such as carbon dioxide and methane, become stronger and are in the atmosphere for a longer time if more fossil fuels are burned. As a result, climate change occurs with the global mean temperature constantly rising, affecting the sustainability of the environment. The amount of potential that oil has is above the charts, yet we do not take advantage of it. We turn the blind eye towards its benefits and efficiency compared to plastic, which seems to be a problem that we are yet to solve.
As an overall product, there is not much opportunity for reuse in plastic cutlery, meaning the product often ends up as waste. During production, the molds used to cast the plastic forks are reused, and the plastic used in this process that does not end up as the final product is also melted and reused. However, once the cutlery leaves the factory, there is little more opportunity for reuse at all. After the product is used, normally this is only once as plastic cutlery is designed for single use, it is thrown away. There is no opportunity for recycling, as the product is often spoiled by food remnants. Plastic cutlery commonly ends up in a landfill, where it degrades extremely slowly and releases harmful chemicals into the environment. The other option is incineration, where the plastic cutlery, along with other waste is burned, releasing harmful toxins and emissions into the atmosphere (Kadekar). Plastic cutlery and the industry involved in producing it is heavily reliant on fossil fuels, which is an industry that both destroys natural landscapes and ecosystems, and often results in extremely harmful spills. The fossil fuels burned in transportation and production also end up as emissions that pollute the air and earth’s atmosphere. There is no opportunity for recycling, little opportunity for reuse, and humongous and harmful environmental effect yielded by the life cycle of plastic cutlery (MacNulty). Not only does the product itself yield high amounts of waste, but the processes by which plastic cutlery is produced also yield similarly high amounts of waste, especially as emissions, pollution, and destruction of the earth’s environment. Obvious or not, almost every material that is input into the process of creating plastic cutlery quickly ends up as waste that pollutes our environment- whether in a landfill or as emissions in the earth’s atmosphere.
Man shot, killed by LAPD was holding plastic fork, video shows
FAQ
What is a plastic fork?
What are the types of plastic cutlery?
What is a plastic cutlery?
What material is disposable fork?
What is a disposable fork?
Disposable forks are typically made from plastic, and they are useful if you buy a takeout meal to eat on-the-go. They are commonly found in pre-prepared salad boxes in grocery stores or cafes, but many retailers are phasing them out in an attempt to reduce the amount of single-use plastic being made.
What can you do with plastic forks?
To do so, start by washing the plastic forks with soap and water and drying them off. Once they’re clean, you can use the forks to create new objects like a coat rack, wall art, or wind chimes. You can also use them to spruce up existing items, like painting them and adding them as embellishments to a planter or vase.
What are the different types of table forks?
Table forks come in a variety of materials, including stainless steel, silver, and plastic. They can also come in different sizes, from small to large, depending on the type of food being eaten. For instance, a small table fork would be used for eating a salad, while a larger one would be used for a main course.
How do I get rid of plastic forks?
Getting rid of plastic forks is a great way to be more environmentally conscious. The easiest way to get rid of plastic forks is to recycle them. Plastic forks can be recycled at most local recycling centers, or you can take them to a specialized recycling drop-off location.