BISPHENOL A UPDATE

CANADIANS RACE TO GO BPA-FREE:

STORE SHELVES EMPTYING OF ALTERNATIVES

Earlier this month I reported on Canada’s quest to ban bisphenol A from store shelves. Like many of the good news stories I publish here, I had to dig deep to find relevant details, because feel-good environmental stories are not easy to come by in the mainstream press. I was under the impression that the bisphenol A story was buried deep in the “Science and Technology” section of a few scattered newspapers, and that the story hadn’t really reached a mass audience here in Canada. Boy, was I wrong.

This is from Carly Weeks at the Globe and Mail:

Canadian parents have been emptying store shelves and bombarding manufacturers with orders in the past week as they scramble to stock up on baby bottles made without bisphenol A, a potentially harmful and increasingly controversial chemical common in many plastics.

The overwhelming demand has resulted in shortages across the country and backlogs at many distributors, making it difficult for some parents to get their hands on BPA-free bottles.

"There's definitely been a surge in the last week or so throughout Canada," said Ron Vigdor, president of Florida-based Born Free Inc., one of the only major companies that specialize in BPA-free bottles. "We've been told a lot of shelves are empty today."

Read the full article here.

Bisphenol A (BPA) is a hormone disruptor that has been linked to cancer and reproductive problems. BPA can be found in many everyday products including food cans, plastic water containers and baby bottles. Studies have shown that people can be exposed to Bisphenol A when it leaches out of these products.

BPA is currently under review by Health Canada (and other agencies around the world), but I think it’s great to see people taking action without waiting for governments to make the decision for them. In fact, why not help make Health Canada’s decision a whole lot easier: sign Toxic Nation’s petition to ban BPA

¡VIVA LA REVOLUCIÓN!

AUSTRALIA NEXT TO AXE THE PLASTIC BAG

NO LOVE FOR PLASTIC BAGS DOWN UNDER, IS THE PLASTIC SHOPPING BAG AN ENDANGERED SPECIES?

Australia wants to become the next country to rid itself of pesky plastic shopping bags, hoping to phase out plastic bags completely by the end of this year. The nation produces four billion plastic bags annually, with most of them ending up in landfill.

While there is resistance to the plan from Australian industry and retail groups, the government is sticking to its guns – and keeping its options open. Around the globe, countries and municipalities are finding ingenious ways to rid themselves of this plague of plastic, from bag taxes to outright bans. Whatever the government of Australia decides, one thing is certain: plastic shopping bags are quickly becoming a thing of the past.

¡Hasta la Victoria Siempre! takes a look at the anti-plastic bag movement around the world:

CANADA: In April, 2007, Leaf Rapids, Manitoba became the first city in Canada to ban plastic shopping bags. Tofino, British Columbia did the same in May. Huntingdon, Quebec went bag free last month. The province of Quebec is currently considering a 20 cent bag tax.

CHINA: The Chinese government announced last month that plastic shopping bags will be banned nationwide effective June 1. Businesses who defy the ban will face hefty fines and/or the seizure of property. Read our full article here.

INDIA: A number of Indian states have outlawed plastic bags. A cow found dead in the streets of New Delhi recently had some 35,000 plastic bags in its digestive system. Cows are viewed as sacred animals by most Hindus. In Mumbai, storm drains clogged with discarded shopping bags were partially to blame for disastrous floods in 2005 that killed more than 400 people. Plastic bags are now completely illegal in the city of 18 million.

IRELAND: In 2002, Ireland passed a 33 cent tax on plastic bags. Within weeks, plastic bag use dropped 94 percent. The tax is collected by the government, which uses the money to finance environmental enforcement and cleanup programs. The country is now considering a similar tax for debit machine receipts and chewing gum.

U.S.A.: In March 2007, San Francisco became the first city in North America to ban the bags.

Bangladesh, Taiwan, South Africa, Thailand, Papua New Guinea, Nepal and Zanzibar have all banned the bag. In each of these countries, the main concern was unsightly — and ubiquitous — litter. South Africans have long referred to the thin white plastic bags as "national flowers."

While these countries have had success in cleaning up their plastic bags, efforts have failed in many places because of heated opposition from manufacturers and merchants, who have said a tax would be bad for business. In London, Los Angeles, New York and Toronto, proposed taxes have failed to gain political approval. Some countries, like Italy, have settled for voluntary participation.

In January almost 42 billion plastic bags were used worldwide; the figure increases by more than half a million bags every minute. Over 500 billion bags are used annually worldwide. A vast majority are not reused, ending up as waste in landfills or as litter. Because plastic bags are light and compressible, they constitute only 2 percent of landfill, but since most are not biodegradable, they will remain there for hundreds of years. Read Karen Pearce’s excellent article on the life and death of a plastic bag here.

Of course nobody needs to wait for their government to ban plastic bags before they stop using them. Alternatives are readily available, ranging from re-usable bags to biodegradable bags made from tapioca starch. Making the switch from plastic bags is a simple step to help clean up your neighborhood, to help reduce energy from the producing and recycling of bags, and to help reduce the amount of plastic in the environment.

Shoutout to Australia for getting on the global bandwagon, and to every country, province, state, and municipality who has taken measures to rid the earth of the pesky plastic bag.

Sources, resources, and discourses:

1. The Australian – article
2. The Australian - article
3. CBC – article
4. Clean Up Australia – website
5. The Montreal Gazette – article
6. The Montreal Gazette - article
7. The Toronto Star – article
8. The New York Times – article
9. Westcoaster.ca - article
10. ABC – feature article
11. inhabitat - photo

CANADIAN STORES PULL TOXIC BOTTLES

CANUCK RETAIL CHAIN

DUMPS POLYCARBONATE BOTTLES

Canada's largest outdoor-goods chain has pulled water bottles and food containers made of polycarbonate plastic from its shelves over worries about the chemical bisphenol A (BPA), which has been linked to cancer and reproductive problems. Vancouver-based Mountain Equipment Co-op is the first major Canadian retailer to stop selling products that contain BPA. U.S.-based outdoor gear company Patagonia and baby bottle manufacturer Whole Foods Markets have also dropped products containing BPA.

Bisphenol A is a synthetic chemical compound used in a wide range of consumer items, including water bottles, baby bottles, and the linings of food cans, including most major brands of infant formula. BPA is a hormone disruptor, and low-dose BPA exposure has been linked to permanent changes to genital tract, increase prostate weight, decline in testosterone, breast and prostate cells predisposed to cancer, and hyperactivity. Studies show that BPA can leach into food if heated or scrubbed. Manufacturers say the products are not dangerous, citing studies from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration that containers manufactured from polycarbonate do not pose a health risk to humans.

Health Canada is conducting an assessment of bisphenol A and expects to issue a final report in 2009. Norway and the European Union are also reviewing the product. Japanese manufacturers voluntarily stopped making products using polycarbonate plastic six years ago.

There are plenty of alternatives to using polycarbonate plastic. First, avoid food and beverage containers that contain BPA - containers marked with the recycling symbol #7. Or better yet, avoid plastics altogether and switch to glass or stainless steel containers.

Finally, take action: sign Toxic Nation’s petition to ban BPA.

Sources, resources and discourses:

1. The Globe and Mail – article
2. ENN –article
3. ENN – article
4. Wikipedia – “Bisphenol A”
5. Environmental Defence – webpage
6. Toxic Nation – petition to ban bisphenol A

JANUARY MEDALS OF HONOR

TOP VICTORIES OF THE REVOLUTION,

JANUARY 2008

Every day is a good news day here at ¡Hasta La Victoria Siempre!, but it is still worthwhile to stop and reflect on some of the victories that have been fought and won throughout the month. And so, dear reader, I submit my Medals of Honor: the top three good news stories of the month.

January was a particularly good month for the Revolution. I had a hard time picking just three top stories. I admit that this is a completely arbitrary list - how can you rate the worth of hydrogen boats over endangered vultures, for example – but I have made my decision based on the overall impact the story might have on the planet in general. You can click on the headings to read the original story.

As usual, any comments are welcome.
- Nigel

1. ISRAEL GOES ELECTRIC

What do you do when you’re a tiny, oil-poor country surrounded by oil-rich neighbors who don’t like you, and the price of gas is at an all-time high? If you’re Israel, you invest a load of money in electric cars.

This is an important story because of the big-name players involved: Israel and Renault-Nissan. Israel is a technologically advanced country with a population of over 7 million people, an economic powerhouse, and perhaps the most progressive country in the Middle East. Renault-Nissan is an alliance between two of the world’s largest auto manufacturers. In other words, there is a lot at stake – over $200 million dollars in seed money, a cross-country network of 500,000 battery charge stations, and as many as 50,000 new jobs, for starters.

In a world where reducing reliance on oil is more political posturing than reality, Israel and Renault-Nissan have raised the bar by promising an electric alternative to gasoline engines that would eliminate carbon and noise emissions… within three years. Kind of makes all those other greenhouse emissions targets look like a joke, doesn’t it? This story is proof that meaningful change can happen if government and industry work together to find solutions.

2. CHINA BANS PLASTIC SHOPPING BAGS

In the grand scheme of ecological collapse, the plastic shopping bag may seem a trivial player. The entire nation of China with its 1 billion citizens, however, is not. And so when the government of China suddenly announced that it was banning all plastic shopping bags by June 1 due to pollution and energy concerns, the world paid attention.

The lowly plastic shopping bag, it seems, has become a symbol of the environmental apocalypse. More than 500 billion get tossed every year, choking our landfills and clogging our gutters. From San Francisco to Sydney, communities are beginning to shake off their plastic shackles in favor of reusable alternatives. But nowhere has it been done as effectively and as dramatically as in China, where companies still manufacturing plastic bags will face heavy fines or seizure of goods and property.

Keep your eyes peeled for more news about the war on plastic shopping bags over the next couple of weeks, exclusively on ¡Hasta La Victoria Siempre!.

3. TOTAL PAYS FOR FRANCE’S WORST OIL SPILL

Oil companies are so big and so rich and have so much influence that sometimes it seems like they are above the law. In fact, sometimes they are. But the courts of France showed South African oil giant Total who was boss this month when they ordered Total to pay $285 million dollars in compensation for a 1999 oil spill. The spill, France’s worst ever, dumped 230,000 tons of crude oil and polluted 320 kms of French coast, killing tens of thousands of seabirds. The money was ordered to be paid to over a hundred civil parties, mostly associations involved in the cleanup and ecology groups.

Despite the large payout, the victory is largely symbolic. The $285 million dollars will barely make a dent in Total’s bottom line, but the decision sends a clear message that industry will be held accountable for damaging the environment and ignoring safety concerns.

CHINA BANS PLASTIC SHOPPING BAGS

Chinese authorities announced that they're outlawing plastic shopping bags because of pollution and energy concerns. This is from the CBC website:

China's State Council said the ban will start June 1. Firms that continue to sell, make and distribute bags thicker than 0.025 mm thick will be given fines and authorities may seize goods and profits, the State Council said.

"Our country consumes huge amounts of plastic bags every year. While providing convenience to consumers, they have also caused serious pollution, and waste of energy and resources, because of excessive use and inadequate recycling," the government said in a statement, according to Reuters.

"We should encourage people to return to carrying cloth bags, using baskets for their vegetables."

So will it make a difference? According to Worldwatch Institute, consumers worldwide toss about 500 billion plastic bags annually. Furthermore, it takes these bags over 1000 years to dissolve.

It's hard to visualize 500 billion plastic bags, so instead let me break it down for you: here in the Wintergreen house (2 human occupants and 2 feline occupants), we recycle our plastic bags. Each month we use enough plastic bags to fill one large garbage bag. Our household, therefore, produces approximately 12 garbage bags full of plastic bags per year. It's easy to visualize 12 garbage bags full - it's enough to fill my kitchen with plastic bags.

How much energy would it take to recycle 500 billion plastic bags per year? That's a lot of trips to the recycling depot. It occurs to me that recycling these bags does not even begin to solve the problem. The solution, then, is obvious: stop using plastic bags.

This idea seems to be catching on. In March 2007, San Francisco became the first North American city to ban non-recyclable plastic bags. In April 2007, Leaf Rapids, Manitoba, became the first Canadian municipality to ban plastic bags. And here in the Wintergreen house, we have purchased two sturdy reusable bags for our shopping.

A big shoutout to the great nation of China, the beautiful city of San Francisco, and the forward-thinking community of Leaf Rapids for not being afraid to let go of the convenience of these pesky bags.

Here are a few links:

http://www.cbc.ca/consumer/story/2008/01/08/china-bags.html

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/manitoba/story/2007/04/02/manitoba-bags.html

http://www.cbc.ca/news/story/2007/03/28/sanfrancisco-plastic.html