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Paper and PlasticPaper Plates, Plastic Utensils, and Paper Napkins"As with disposable cups, it all comes down to quantity. It is of course best to avoid wasting materials, but you should consider how much waste is involved. If you ate all your meals using one-time-use plastic utensils and paper plates, it would not only be unnecessarily wasteful but would cost more money than washing dishes. (However, we must remember that dishwashing also requires resources--water for cleaning and fossil fuels or some other energy source for heating the water.) On the other hand, an occasional picnic or purchase from a fast-food restaurant will have little environmental impact and should not be a cause for concern. You do not need to make a fetish about always avoiding paper goods and plastic." Michael Brower, Ph. D and Warren Leon, Ph. D. and the Union of Concerned Scientists. "The Consumer's Guide to Effective Environmental Choices: Practical Advice from the Union of Concerned Scientists." Three Rivers Press, New York, 1999, pp. 134-135. Paper is bad, but it's not the worst. Try again. |
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