Question - Do Plastics Meet The Criteria Of Resource Conservation; - Do We Get "more For Less" While Using Plastics Packaging?
Answer -
YES, Let us take the example of the humble plastic grocery bag whcih has been denigrated so extensively in the media. A stack of 2000 plastic grocery bags will be seven-and-half INCHES high; a stack of 2000 paper grocery bags will have a height of seven-and-half feet. Imagine what this means in terms of transportation, and the increase in exhaust emissions.
A study conducted by the "German Society for Reasearch in the Packaging Market", shows that if plastics packaging were replaced with other materials, the weight and volume of disposables would increase by a factor of 4 and 2.5 respectively, along with twice the level of energy consumption and double the cost of packaging.
Another good example is the transport of mineral water in light weight PET bottles. A truck can carry 60% more water with 80% less packaging, as compared to glass bottles; this results in fuel savings of almost 40%.
The ratio of product weight packed to the weight of package is the highest for plastics packaging; for example 500 gms of coffee can be packed in a glass jar weighing 500 gms, or a tin plate container weighing 130 gms, or a plastic laminated pouch weighing only 12 gms. Still better, one kg of salt is packed in a pouch weighing 5 gms where the ratio of product weight to package weight is 200:1. These are some examples of getting "more from less" through plastics packaging.