Plastic Bottles Holding 2.3 Litres Are Least Harmful To the Planet (newscientist.com) 5
Using plastic bottles that contain the most liquid for the lowest packaging weight could help reduce plastic waste. From a report: Plastic pollution is a huge problem for the world, with much plastic waste reaching the oceans where it can affect marine life. In recognition of this, many researchers are developing strategies to tackle the plastic waste problem. Now, Rafael Becerril-Arreola at the University of South Carolina and his colleagues have come up with a relatively simple method to make a difference: change the packaging size to maximise its capacity for a given weight of plastic. "We realised we could establish a relationship between supermarket beverage sales and plastic waste," says Becerril-Arreola. "I saw the opportunity to create an impact, and I took it."
Becerril-Arreola and his team focused on polyethylene terephthalate (PET), the most common material in plastic bottles. They weighed 187 empty bottles of different sizes from bestselling drink brands to determine the weight of plastic required to produce a bottle of a given capacity. They also compared this against PET waste and drink sales in Minnesota between 2009 and 2013, as the state government there reliably collects waste statistics and its bottled drink consumption is close to the US national average. The researchers found that the most efficient bottles -- those with the greatest capacity relative to the weight of plastic used to make the bottle -- had a volume between 0.5 and 2.9 litres. Bottles of this size are typically bought for on-the-go use or social gatherings. Bottles that were smaller (under 0.4 litres) or larger (over 3 litres) used more plastic in relation to each bottle's capacity.
Becerril-Arreola and his team focused on polyethylene terephthalate (PET), the most common material in plastic bottles. They weighed 187 empty bottles of different sizes from bestselling drink brands to determine the weight of plastic required to produce a bottle of a given capacity. They also compared this against PET waste and drink sales in Minnesota between 2009 and 2013, as the state government there reliably collects waste statistics and its bottled drink consumption is close to the US national average. The researchers found that the most efficient bottles -- those with the greatest capacity relative to the weight of plastic used to make the bottle -- had a volume between 0.5 and 2.9 litres. Bottles of this size are typically bought for on-the-go use or social gatherings. Bottles that were smaller (under 0.4 litres) or larger (over 3 litres) used more plastic in relation to each bottle's capacity.
Surprise, that's my preferred beer container size (Score:1)
Or... (Score:1)
glass? (Score:2)
I mean it is heavy and all but 100% recyclable, so why not use glass if it is actually that important? Also, seems like there are other good choices , maybe corn based bio-degradable plastic?
Second what percentage of plastic pollutants are actually bottles. I'd think candy wrappers, food wrappers.. straws all probably contributes as much or more, so many more sources. How much would this change actually mean.
3rd, seems like a lot of waste for all the people who open 2.3 liters of soda and then it goes fl
Hey there it is! (Score:2)
I was wondering what the stupidest, least useful thing I would read all day - there it is!
The "best" container size is irrelevant if you are already recycling your used containers...
Personally I have re-used some plastic water bottles hundreds of times, because they were a size (much smaller than 2.3 liters) that worked well for a constant use I had. The rest get recycled. So that size was the "best" one.
55 gallon drum (Score:2)
It uses very little plastic for the amount it holds and it's reusable. Image going to the grocery store with your drum caddie and rolling away with a hundred pounds of chicken noodle soup.
Another and more practical way to be environmentally more friendly is to not buy containers of liquid (I'm assuming predominately soda and water). You generally don't need water in a disposable package, and you don't need soda at all. For milk, anyone that has spent time in Ontario knows that milk comes in a bag and your g