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It’s all around us, despite its adverse effects on the planet. In a 24-hour experiment, one journalist tried to go plastic free.

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Featuring Ann McNeil, professor of chemistry and macromolecular science and engineering, University of Michigan

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Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) is one of the most commonly used plastics. It's found in everything from construction materials, to medical equipment, to clothing. Researchers at the University of Michigan have found a way to repurpose this previously unrecyclable material. They joined us to share their findings, and what it could mean for plastic consumers and manufacturers.

GUESTS:

Anne McNeil, professor of chemistry and macromolecular science and engineering, University of Michigan

Danielle Fagnani, synthetic polymer chemist
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Looking for more conversations from Stateside? Right this way.

If you like what you hear on the pod, consider supporting our work.

Music in this episode by Blue Dot Sessions.

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Stateside Podcast: Researchers recycle problematic plastic

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Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) is one of the most commonly used plastics. It's found in everything from construction materials, to medical equipment, to clothing. Researchers at the University of Michigan have found a way to repurpose this previously unrecyclable material. They joined us to share their findings, and what it could mean for plastic consumers and manufacturers.

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The Detroit River Coalition is a binational environmental resource hub leveraging collective partnerships to reduce litter pollution in the Detroit River through education, coordination, and clean-up services, all while celebrating its natural and cultural significance for communities throughout the Great Lakes Region.

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The Detroit River Coalition is a binational environmental resource hub leveraging collective partnerships to reduce litter pollution in the Detroit River through education, coordination, and clean-up services, all while celebrating its natural and cultural significance for communities throughout the Great Lakes Region.

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Learn about Transforming Trash Detroit, an educational design program where young Detroiters grow their design skills and transform community plastic waste into art.

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When we throw something away, the waste we see is just a small piece of the puzzle. The real problem is that for each pound of waste we create 7 pounds are created upstream of us. That's because each new thing requires all kinds of extraction, shipping, refining, and packaging before it even lands in the store.

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Start Living Zero Waste - livezerowaste.org

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When we throw something away, the waste we see is just a small piece of the puzzle. The real problem is that for each pound of waste we create 7 pounds are created upstream of us. That's because each new thing requires all kinds of extraction, shipping, refining, and packaging before it even lands in the store.

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Today's MI Environment story is courtesy of the Recycling Raccoons .
ANN ARBOR - Michigan is now one of the nation's three best states for recycling plastics, according to a recent Wise Voter study.

SamurAI recycling sorting robot in Ann Arbor.

And in Ann Arbor, recycling plastics is about to get easier thanks to the pending arrival of a state-of-the-art SamurAI sorting robot that will enable the city's recycling agency to process and sell more plastic than ever before. "This is a big, exciting deal - our new robot is a technological marvel that's going to be a game-changer for how we can more safely recycle certain types of plastics in greater amounts and with more efficiency than we've ever previously experienced," said Ukena, the CEO of Recycle Ann Arbor (RAA), a nationally acclaimed nonprofit credited with creating Michigan's first curbside recycling program in 1978.

"At the same time, as more and more communities begin utilizing these SamurAI Sorting Robots moving forward, we can help address our nation's plastics pollution crisis," Ukena said.
Flying With EGLE
RAA is already revitalizing recycling in Southeast Michigan with a new materials recovery facility (MRF) that ensures recyclable materials are sorted and sold to manufacturers for use in new products.

The MRF opened Dec. 1, 2021, at 4150 Platt Road in Ann Arbor, after 12 months of construction to complete a $7.25 million overhaul of the facility, which had been defunct since 2016. Its physical redesign and operating strategy are both driven by a zero-waste ethic with the aim of supporting an effective, sustainable recycling system.

The MRF construction project was supported by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) with an $800,000 grant. It aligns with the goals of EGLE's national award-winning Know It Before You Throw It recycling education campaign featuring the Recycling Raccoons that adorn street corner recycling bins throughout Ann Arbor.

As a regional hub designed to process 34,000 tons annually with a single shift, the MRF provides much-needed recycling infrastructure in Southeast Michigan.
Problem Plastics
In addition to serving the city of Ann Arbor under a 10-year contract, RAA is processing materials from the city of Ypsilanti and the surrounding area. These cities had previously shipped recyclables out of state for sorting. Ann Arbor is saving $640,000 annually compared with the previous contract, under which materials were shipped long distances for processing. The RAA team anticipates the savings from processing materials on-site will continue to grow as the market for recyclables improves.

Despite the overwhelming success of the new MRF, determining how to improve its plastics recycling performance remained a major obstacle that confronted RAA and continues to vex recyclers across the nation.

Plastic is a synthetic material that is cheap, strong and resistant. While its characteristics make it an appealing material for production and consumption, those same characteristics are problematic for the environment - mainly because it does not easily decompose and ends up in the ocean, landfills or littering streets.

At the Ann Arbor MRF, plastics are sorted into separate piles based on their melting temperatures. Historically, RAA staff has manually sorted certain plastics for recycling but because they are hard to identify as they speed by on a conveyor belt, too much of their plastics ended up going to a landfill.

Enter the SamurAI sorting robot manufactured by Machinex Technologies.

The SamurAI Solution

The machine is an adaptive robot powered by artificial intelligence to more accurately and efficiently identify specific types of plastics and other materials for safe, fast and effective sorting, especially in identifying and selecting polypropylene (PP) plastics. PP is the type of plastic labeled No. 5 on packaging for such grocery items as yogurt, cottage cheese, sour cream and butter containers.

Now, with the introduction of its SamurAI robot, RAA is looking to increase its recycling capacity of PP to at least 360 tons annually and divert it from landfills.

Recycled PP is commonly used by manufacturers to make caps, cups, automotive parts, paint cans, transport packaging, housewares and other products. PP has been collected for recycling for less than a decade. But collection and sorting is growing, with MRFs across Michigan making major investments, some fueled by support from EGLE, national nonprofit The Recycling Partnership and other entities.
SamurAI's Safety ROI
RAA's SamurAI acquisition was funded through a $200,000 grant from EGLE and an additional $186,000 from the Polypropylene Recycling Coalition, an initiative of The Recycling Partnership.

Benefits of RAA's SamurAI solution include its capabilities to:

Identify distinguishing features on recyclables in the same way as the human eye.

Recognize recyclable material in dirty, tangled and constantly changing conditions, including the introduction of new packaging and designs.

Continually improve and learn from operating experience.

Reach up to 70 processing "picks" per minute, which nearly doubles the average speed of a person who separates items by hand at a recycling processing center.

Remove small and light materials using a unique integrated suction system which reduces RAA's daily operation costs.

Protect workers from handling dangerous items, such as batteries, needles, and household chemicals.

The importance of improved employee safety and better working conditions at the Ann Arbor MRF is especially significant, Ukena noted.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics' 2020 Employer-Reported Workplace Injuries and Illness report showed the rate of injuries and illnesses per 100 full-time workers at materials recovery facilities rose from 3.6 in 2019 to 5.1in 2020.
Profit Potential
"Processing recycled materials by hand is a dangerous profession for humans - you can get hepatitis from a needle stick, abrasions and cuts are common, hands get caught in the baling process and on conveyer belts. In many ways, it's more dangerous work than being a firefighter," Ukena said.

"It's also important to know our SamurAI robot won't replace workers. It just improves quality control and reduces safety risk in the workplace," he added.

Approximately 3.5 billion pounds of rigid polypropylene packaging is sold every year nationally, but only a very small fraction is recycled. RAA hopes to improve the recycling of PP at its new facility when the SamurAI robot becomes operable this fall.

"There is strong national growth in the sale and use of polypropylene, because it is a polymer

of choice for food service and packaging due to its positive health profile and potential for

recycling collection and recycled content," said Matt Flechter, an EGLE recycling market development specialist.

Major retailers, dairy brands and quick-service restaurants are shifting from polystyrene - commonly referred to as Styrofoam - to PP, particularly in food and food service applications, because they seek a material that can be sorted by local MRFs.
How and what you can recycle depends on where you live and what you are trying to recycle. To learn more about recycling in Michigan, visit RecyclingRaccoons.org.
RAA projects the SamurAI's faster sorting speed will result in increased revenue from RAA's sale of its recycled plastics. As a result, it expects to provide an average of $72,000 annually to city of Ann Arbor coffers and generate a new funding source for all its Washtenaw County municipality partners.

"We are confident there is going to be a high demand for recycled polypropylene for the foreseeable future, because being able to put that on a product label signals a commitment by name-brand companies that they're using recycled materials in their product lines," Ukena said.

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Ann Arbor's new 'samurai sorting robot' is a plastics recycling game-changer

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Today's MI Environment story is courtesy of the Recycling Raccoons . ANN ARBOR - Michigan is now one of the nation's three best states for recycling plastics, according to a recent Wise Voter study. SamurAI recycling sorting robot in Ann Arbor.

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Are robots part of the solution?

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How a fleet of robots could help solve the Great Lakes plastic pollution problem

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“It’s basically like a floating trash can.”

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Senate Bill 358, introduced by Senator Jeff Irwin, intends to repeal the ban on plastic bag bans but has been stuck in the Environmental Quality Committee since its introduction.

Currently, calling your legislators and expressing support for the repealing of Michigan’s ban on plastic bag bans is the best thing you can do to help.

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Irwin Proposes Repeal of Michigan's Ban on Plastic Bag Bans - Senator Jeff Irwin

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New bill to allow Michigan committees to regulate litter from single-use plastic bags LANSING, Mich. (April 22, 2021) - Sen. Jeff Irwin (D-Ann Arbor) has introduced a bill to restore local control and aid community efforts to control litter and waste. Senate Bill 358 would repeal the law banning the implementation of plastic bag bans or any motion [...]

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U-M team recycles previously unrecyclable plastic

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PVC, or polyvinyl chloride, is one of the most produced plastics in the United States and the third highest by volume in the world. Study: Using waste poly(vinyl chloride) to synthesize chloroarenes by plasticizer-mediated electro(de)chlorination PVC makes up a vast amount of plastics we use

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The British government is poised to ban certain single-use plastic products, a long-awaited step towards reducing pollution that environmentalists hope will be just one of many.

The ban will cover plastic plates, trays, bowls, cutlery, balloon sticks and certain kinds of polystyrene cups and food containers, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) told The Mail on Sunday.

A department spokesperson confirmed to NPR that the full announcement is coming on Saturday.

"A plastic fork can take 200 years to decompose - that is two centuries in landfill or polluting our oceans," Environment Secretary Therese Coffey told The Mail. "This new ban will have a huge impact to stop the pollution of billions of pieces of plastic and help to protect the natural environment for future generations."

It aims to cut down on plastic pollution

England banned single-use plastic straws, stirrers and plastic-stemmed cotton buds in 2020.

This new ban applies specifically to plastic packaging of food and drinks from restaurants and cafes, not in supermarkets and stores. The government plans to address those in a separate scheme that would have manufacturers cover disposal costs starting in 2024.

And it doesn't come as a complete surprise. Environmentalists have long campaigned for this kind of ban in England - Scotland's took effect last summer and Wales approved one in December - and the British government had been soliciting public input on potential plastic bans for some time. Officials indicated last month that restrictions were on the horizon.

(Meanwhile, in the U.S.: Several states and localities have banned certain plastic products, namely bags, and California set the country's strictest rules for plastic reduction in legislation passed last summer. The federal government is planning to phase out single-use plastics at national parks by 2032).

Environmental advocates are applauding England's ban as an important step towards tackling the pervasive problem of plastic pollution, even if it's not enough on its own.

Each person in England uses an average of 18 single-use plastic plates and 37 items of plastic cutlery every year - yet only 10% of that waste is recycled into new things, according to Defra statistics reported by the BBC. Overall, the department says, England uses 1.1 billion single-use plates and 4.3 billion single-use pieces of cutlery annually.

That's both dangerous for the environment and "completely unnecessary," says Steve Hyndside, the policy manager at British nonprofit City to Sea.

He stressed in a Monday interview with radio station LBC that all of the items covered by this ban already have potential replacements on the market, whether that's cardboard boxes, wooden utensils or even one's fingers.

"What we're talking about here is, I think, a really positive vision," Hyndside said. "So as much as we all like the convenience of single-use plastic, and I think there's no point pretending that's not there ... we just can't carry on going as we are."

There is public support for the ban ...

England's 25 Year Environment Plan - established in 2018 - calls for eliminating avoidable plastic waste by 2042.

Defra said in Nov. 2021 that while it had already proposed and enacted measures to work towards that goal, those measures did not sufficiently address the issue of single-use plastic items. It sought public input on potential bans in a consultation period that ran through February 2022, which appears to have informed its decision.

"I am determined to drive forward action to tackle this issue head on," Coffey told The Mail. "We know there is more to do, and we have again listened to the public's calls."

Greenpeace UK says the "vast majority" of the more than 51,000 people who self-reported their views on the consultation support a ban on all of the items up for consideration (like cutlery and plates), with support at 96% or above "across the board."

Separately, environmental groups submitted a petition to ban those items, with more than 117,000 signatures, to the prime minister's office when the comment period closed in February.

After reports of the new ban surfaced, environmental groups applauded it as an important move but one of many the government needs to take to make a meaningful difference.

"We need to wean ourselves off single-use items," tweeted environmental organization Keep Britain Tidy. "[Defra's] plans to ban single-use plastic plates and cutlery in England are a step in the right direction."

... and calls for further action

Many would like to see more, and more systemic, changes.

As part of their "Cut the Cutlery" campaign, Greenpeace, City to Sea and 38 Degrees called on the government to work faster to meet the European Union single-use plastic restrictions, which it agreed to before Brexit. They also want it to set its own legally binding targets for 2025, specifically to reduce single-use plastics by 50% and for 25% of plastic to be reusable.

Advocates are also calling for a " deposit return scheme," which would incentivize recycling by charging customers a deposit on beverage containers and refunding it when they return the empty container to a collection point. U.K. officials have said that such a program won't take effect in England, Wales and Northern Ireland until at least late 2024, six years after it was first announced.

Megan Randles, a political campaigner for Greenpeace UK, said in a tweet that "the removal of billions of commonly littered items is never a bad thing" but called the new ban an overdue move and "still a drop in the ocean compared to the action that's needed to stem the plastic tide."

"We need system change at the source - reduction and reuse/refill targets, meaningful extended producer responsibility (so the polluters actually pay) and a deposit return scheme like so many European countries have already," she said.

Hyndside, of City to Sea, described the partial plastics ban as "minimum standards" and called on the government to go further by publishing a full strategy for tackling plastic pollution as a whole.

"We have to move away from all single-use kind of throwaway items," he said, "and try to encourage a more circular economy."

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England will ban single-use plastic plates and cutlery for environmental reasons

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The British government is poised to ban certain single-use plastic products, a long-awaited step towards reducing pollution that environmentalists hope will be just one of many. The ban will cover plastic plates, trays, bowls, cutlery, balloon sticks and certain kinds of polystyrene cups and food containers, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) told The Mail on Sunday .

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It's finally time to share the fruit of my post-doc research on plastics upcycling: a method for repurposing PVC waste in chlorination reactions. Check it out! Thanks to @AnneJMcNeil, Han, Sofia, and Jose, and @McNeilGroup! https://t.co/6ezfRkbMlj

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How to Break Your Single-Use Plastics Habit (Published 2019)

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Ditch your one-and-done straws, spoons, and containers with this kit of affordable, reusable stand-ins.

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New techniques for welding very different materials could enable better cars

FACULTY Q&A

Study: Joining of Metal and Non-Polar Polypropylene Composite through a Simple Functional Group Seeding Layer (DOI: 10.1016/j.jmapro.2022.11.022)

Study: Enabling interfacial amorphous microstructure and high bonding strength in Al-Fe bimetallic components by a large-area solid-state additive manufacturing (DOI: 10.1016/j.jmatprotec.2022.117721)

Making vehicle structures out of a combination of metals and plastics could make them dramatically lighter, stronger, safer and more environmentally friendly than the all-steel or all-aluminum approaches that dominate today.

But how to quickly and cheaply join all those materials together has been a sticky problem. A University of Michigan lab is developing solutions.

The first viable method for welding plastic and metal directly together was recently developed under the leadership of Pingsha Dong, the Robert F. Beck Collegiate Professor of Engineering, and is now reported in Journal of Manufacturing Processes.

Dong details how his team achieved a feat that was thought impossible for decades. He also discusses an aluminum-steel process that could enable 3D printing of aluminum onto steel.
How could the ability to weld very different materials together improve cars?

Computer models show us we can make the structures of cars and light trucks as much as 40% lighter by building them with a combination of metals and plastics. Lighter weight brings a variety of advantages, chiefly better efficiency. Gas-powered vehicles could see better fuel economy, while electric vehicles can get more range. Vehicles with multimaterial structures can also handle better and offer improved safety.

The problem is traditionally, the only way to join metal and plastic has been with adhesives or mechanical fasteners, which is too slow and expensive for anything but low-volume specialty vehicles. The processes we're developing could change that and bring multimaterial vehicle structures and components from the realm of exotics into the mainstream.

Our new welding techniques could also improve EV battery packs and enclosures. Today, they're multilayer structures that are usually held together with adhesives and mechanical fasteners. They're very difficult to take apart for repair or recycling. Welded battery packs could be taken apart and reassembled much more easily, and they could also be lighter, cheaper to manufacture and easier to keep cool.
Let's talk about metal and plastic. Why is it so difficult to weld them together? How does your process work?

Welding is about creating bonds between two materials at the molecular level. The conventional wisdom for decades has been that plastic and metal are fundamentally incompatible, and there's no reason to try welding them together. However, we discovered that the right combination of heat and pressure in the right areas can cause the carbon and oxygen in plastic to bond with metal.

We used an off-the-shelf machine that looks similar to a drill press with a cylindrical spinning head. The metal is placed on top of the plastic and the head is lowered onto the two materials. This creates heat and pressure, bonding the two materials together in either a spot weld or a linear weld.
What materials can be bonded with this process? And when might manufacturers be using it?

Any metal can be bonded directly with any plastic that contains an adequate amount of oxygen-carbon compounds. The key is to calculate the "sweet spot" of heat and pressure that will weld a given combination of materials, and we can work with manufacturers to determine that. For plastics that don't have enough oxygen-carbon compounds, like polypropylene, we can put an inexpensive plastic film between the two materials to "seed" the bond with oxygen and carbon.

We've patented the process and we're already working with equipment makers to develop commercial equipment that can be licensed to automakers and other manufacturers. I'd say we'll see this technology in industry within the next two years.
What about your research into steel and aluminum?
The ability to combine steel and aluminum could enable not just welding, but also inexpensive new ways to 3D-print aluminum alloys onto steel. Previous attempts have led to the formation of brittle compounds at the interface between the two metals, reducing the strength of the alloy.

Our process uses a precise combination of heat and pressure to prevent those compounds from forming, and it could offer new ways to combine the light weight of aluminum with the high strength of steel.

Dong is also a professor of Integrative Systems and Design, Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering and Mechanical Engineering. The research was supported by the National Science Foundation and by the University of Michigan College of Engineering.

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Plastic to metal, steel to aluminum-the future of welding and lightweight vehicles

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New techniques for welding very different materials could enable better cars Professor Pingsha Dong (center), the Robert F. Beck Collegiate Professor of Engineering, surrounded by Abdul Khan (left), and Yuning Zhang, both PhD students in naval architecture and marine engineering, at the Herbert H

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Recycling Raccoon Squad helping fans recycle at Michigan Stadium in Ann Arbor this season

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Some familiar faces have been posted around Michigan Stadium to teach fans the do’s and don’ts of recycling.

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Home " Departments " " Parks and Recreation " Upcoming Volunteer Opportunities GIVE 365

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For more information or to register, please contact us at [email protected] or call 734.794.6445.​

If you have are looking to schedule a customized volunteer event for a group, v isit the group volunteer page for more information on how to set that up.

Love a Park Days are open for individuals and small groups. We bring the tools, music, and work plan while volunteers bring the energy and the desire to make a difference and this is what we call a beautiful parknership!

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​Feel free to review our COVID precautions here if you have questions. Or contact us at [email protected] or 734.794.6445.​

​​If you are interested in independent volunteering, let us know. Trash trailblazing is available spring, summer and fall! ​

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Home " Departments " " Parks and Recreation " Upcoming Volunteer Opportunities GIVE 365 ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ If you are an individual looking to volunteer, we invite you to join us at any of our events below. Some events may also accommodate​ small groups.

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A bus tour of Michigan renewable energy projects for volunteer planning commissioners and professional planners this summer planted seeds that continue to bear fruit. About 30 planners visited Assembly Solar Park in Shiawassee County and the Isabella Wind Project in Clare in a tour coordinated by the Ann Arbor-based Michigan Association of Planning (MAP) and funded by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) as part of its Catalyst Communities program.

Planners visit Assembly Solar Park in Shiawassee County. (Photo courtesy of Kathleen J. Kline-Hudson)

Rob Stanford, principal planner at the Livingston County Department of Planning, found the experience so informative that he was inspired to replicate it just two months later, with help from planning colleagues Kathleen Kline-Hudson and Scott Barb. The trio invited more than 25 township board members and planning commissioners from mostly rural Livingston County communities that have been contacted recently by solar companies seeking private lease agreements.

"I thought it would be a unique opportunity if we at Livingston County Planning could organize the planning commissioners and trustees from Conway, Cohoctah, and other western-tier communities to visit the facility in a similar fashion," Stanford said. "This trip had taught me so much about this technology, I wanted to be able to share it with as many of our local community leaders as possible."

Dr. Sarah Mills, professor and senior project manager at the University of Michigan's Graham Sustainability Institute, organized the June tour. For seven years, Mills has helped communities across the state consider energy in their land use planning, zoning, and other policymaking. The tour was the final piece of a larger collaborative project Mills and her team led along with colleagues at Michigan State University Extension (MSU-E), completed in partnership with MAP and supported by EGLE.

First, MSU-E and U-M Graham staff developed "Planning & Zoning for Solar Energy Systems," a guidebook to help Michigan communities become solar-ready by addressing solar energy systems within their policies and regulations. Next, the project team trained local government officials and planning commissioners through webinars and in-person workshops in May and June 2022. Finally, the team invited webinar and workshop attendees to the tour. The goal was to demystify renewables for those involved in their siting.

The overarching project exemplifies the ripple effect of small efforts borne out of big intentions. For EGLE, helping communities with siting considerations is a key part of achieving the MI Healthy Climate Plan goal of a prosperous carbon-neutral future for Michigan. Plans are in the works to provide targeted training in at least two other regions in Michigan that participated in the same training that inspired Stanford and his colleagues. Mills plans to produce an instruction manual for other organizations and municipalities seeking a train-the-trainer renewable energy curriculum, and neighboring states like Indiana have already expressed interest.

"Sarah Mills is a tremendous educator," Stanford said. "I think the whole experience opened a lot of eyes and alleviated some possible previously held biases and concerns with our locals. It helped them see that with good regulations and sound planning and zoning techniques and tools, the undesirable aspects of a solar development can be greatly minimized, and it shouldn't be detrimental to you or your community."

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Planners' tour of renewable energy projects spurs further learning

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A bus tour of Michigan renewable energy projects for volunteer planning commissioners and professional planners this summer planted seeds that continue to bear fruit. About 30 planners visited Assembly Solar Park in Shiawassee County and the Isabella Wind Project in Clare in a tour coordinated by the Ann Arbor-based Michigan Association of Planning (MAP) and funded by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) as part of its Catalyst Communities program.

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An Ann Arbor teenager earned a national honor while trying to positively impact her community.

13-year-old Isabelle Sutton received the Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes. Founded in 2001 by author T.A. Barron, the Barron Prize selects 25 honorees out of 500 applicants in the United States and Canada. The focus is to honor young people who are making positive impacts on their communities and the environment.

Sutton began her mission in the fifth grade when she learned about recycling and the pollution of plastic and the harm it contributes to humans, animals and the planet itself.

"I'm really honored," says Sutton. "I'm so excited. It's a great opportunity to meet and learn about other kids my own age or similar to my age, who are also making a difference with the environment or just making a difference in general."

Sutton raised awareness by creating her own brand called JustIZZY. She makes products like biodegradable bracelets, greeting cards and ornaments. The proceeds go to animal rescues like The Detroit Dog Rescue and The Bird Center of Washtenaw County. So far, she has raised $8,000.

"There's so many small nonprofits and I think sometimes they get overlooked when people are making decisions on where to donate to," Sutton says. "So, I really wanted to shine a light on some special nonprofits that I think are important and interesting."

Sutton says right now, the focus of the JustIZZY project is to have the Ann Arbor School Board limit the use of plastic single-use water bottles in the cafeteria and at school events. She has even reached out to Governor Gretchen Whitmer in hopes to reduce plastic usage statewide.

To support Sutton's project, you can purchase items on her Etsy store called JustIZZYs.

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Russ McNamara is the host of All Things Considered for 101.9 WDET, presenting local news to the station's loyal listeners. He's been an avid listener of WDET since he moved to metro Detroit in 2002.

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Ann Arbor teen wins prestigious environmental prize - WDET 101.9 FM

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Your browser does not support the audio element. An Ann Arbor teenager earned a national honor while trying to positively impact her community. 13-year-old Isabelle Sutton received the Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes. Founded in 2001 by author T.A. Barron, the Barron Prize selects 25 honorees out of 500 applicants in the United States and Canada.

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This custom-built public art installation and immersive film experience uses humor, craft, and a critical lens to question our culture of consumption and convenience - specifically, the enduring effects of our single-use plastics.

Shelves are stocked with thousands of original grocery items meticulously sculpted by hand, all made from discarded single-use plastics organically harvested from streets and garbage dumps. Several times a day, the store transforms into an immersive, dynamic stage for a film in which inventive puppetry, shadow play, and intricate handmade sets tell the darkly comedic and sometimes tender story of how the overabundance of plastic waste we leave behind might be misinterpreted by future generations - and how what we value least may become our most lasting cultural legacy.

The Plastic Bag Store is commissioned by Times Square Arts with generous support provided by the Rockefeller Brothers Fund; The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Arts; the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature; the National Endowment for the Arts; public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council. Additional commissioning support has been provided by Carolina Performing Arts, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. It was developed with support from: MANA Contemporary, The Made in NY Women's Film, TV & Theatre Fund by the City of New York Mayor's Office of Media and Entertainment in association with The New York Foundation for the Arts; Olson Kundig; The Jim Henson Foundation; and is sponsored, in part, by the Greater New York Arts Development Fund of the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, administered by Brooklyn Arts Council (BAC). The Plastic Bag Store is a project of Creative Capital. The Plastic Bag Store film segments were commissioned by the Center for the Art of Performance at UCLA with additional support by the Adelaide Festival.

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Robin Frohardt
The Plastic Bag Store
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$30 general admission; $12 for students
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This custom-built public art installation and immersive film experience uses humor, craft, and a critical lens to question our culture of consumption and convenience - specifically, the enduring effects of our single-use plastics.

Shelves are stocked with thousands of original grocery items meticulously sculpted by hand, all made from discarded single-use plastics organically harvested from streets and garbage dumps. Several times a day, the store transforms into an immersive, dynamic stage for a film in which inventive puppetry, shadow play, and intricate handmade sets tell the darkly comedic and sometimes tender story of how the overabundance of plastic waste we leave behind might be misinterpreted by future generations - and how what we value least may become our most lasting cultural legacy.

The Plastic Bag Store is commissioned by Times Square Arts with generous support provided by the Rockefeller Brothers Fund; The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Arts; the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature; the National Endowment for the Arts; public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council. Additional commissioning support has been provided by Carolina Performing Arts, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. It was developed with support from: MANA Contemporary, The Made in NY Women's Film, TV & Theatre Fund by the City of New York Mayor's Office of Media and Entertainment in association with The New York Foundation for the Arts; Olson Kundig; The Jim Henson Foundation; and is sponsored, in part, by the Greater New York Arts Development Fund of the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, administered by Brooklyn Arts Council (BAC). The Plastic Bag Store is a project of Creative Capital. The Plastic Bag Store film segments were commissioned by the Center for the Art of Performance at UCLA with additional support by the Adelaide Festival.

Buy Tickets

Robin Frohardt
The Plastic Bag Store
The 777 Building
$30 general admission; $12 for students
(+ fees)

CHOOSE A PERFORMANCE:

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Or call the ticket office at 734-764-2538

* Student, Senior and Group Discounts may be available

Meet the Artist

Thanks! We'll keep you updated.

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Shelves are stocked with thousands of original grocery items meticulously sculpted by hand, all made from discarded single-use plastics organically harvested from streets and garbage dumps.

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Recycle Ann Arbor is a community non-profit dedicated to developing and promoting effective services and programs that improve environmental quality through recovery, reuse, and recycling effort...

Take Action to Help Donate

Recycle Ann Arbor is a community non-profit dedicated to developing and promoting effective services and programs that improve environmental quality through recovery, reuse, and recycling efforts.

Recycle Ann Arbor (RAA) is a non-profit recycling organization that operates the Drop-Off Station (DOS), the ReUse Center, Zero Waste Special Events, the Recovery Yard Facilityand the Curbside Recycling program for Ann Arbor residents and businesses.

Several different volunteer opportunities exist (in many of these divisions) depending upon your skills, interest, and schedule.

2420 South Industrial, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 48104, USA

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Recycle Ann Arbor is a community non-profit dedicated to developing and promoting effective services and programs that improve environmental quality through recovery, reuse, and recycling effort... Take Action to Help Donate Recycle Ann Arbor is a community non-profit dedicated to developing and promoting effective services and programs that improve environmental quality through recovery, reuse, and recycling efforts.

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Featuring Dr. Melissa Duhaime - Assistant Professor in the U-M Ecology and Evolutionary Biology (EEB) department

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Headlines decrying tiny particles in our drinking water and swirling masses like the Great Pacific Garbage Patch have centered plastic waste as the modern scourge of marine ecosystems. But Michiganders may be surprised to learn that this threat hits particularly close to home: recent studies show that at times, the Great Lakes contain the highest concentration of plastics anywhere on the planet.

Plastics were initially pioneered to preserve natural resources during the mid-century production boom. But unlike lumber, glass, and other naturally-derived materials, plastics do not biodegrade, which means that much of the plastic ever produced is still with us in some form. Among the most insidious relics of this history are "microplastics" less than five millimeters long, often formed when larger plastic objects break down. The Ghost of Plastics Past is visiting us now - and its warnings include the corrupted bodies of animals who mistook colorful bits for food, hazardous chemicals leached from plastic shrapnel, and the potential for frightening metabolic, neurotoxic, and carcinogenic human health effects. Still, the trajectory and long-term consequences of plastic waste remain relatively unknown.

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Revenge of the Michigan microplastics | U-M LSA University of Michigan Biological Station (UMBS)

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Headlines decrying tiny particles in our drinking water and swirling masses like the Great Pacific Garbage Patch have centered plastic waste as the modern scourge of marine ecosystems. But Michiganders may be surprised to learn that this threat hits particularly close to home: recent studies show that at times, the Great Lakes contain the highest concentration of plastics anywhere on the planet.

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Long Table Discussion: Art / Environment / Sustainability

UMMA and the Ann Arbor Summer Festival (A2SF) welcome artist Mary Mattingly to Ann Arbor for a three-day residency, June 27-30. Mattingly, whose photograph, Life of Objects, is featured in UMMA's exhibition The World to Come: Art in the Age of the Anthropocene, is deeply concerned with our relationships to objects-where they come from, where they go, their implications for humans, and their impact on the environment. The centerpiece of the residency is a large-scale public art project titled Objects in the Round, in the Annex tent at Top of the Park on Ingalls Mall where festivalgoers will build a miniature landscape with Mattingly that explores relationships with objects, built landscapes, and habits of consumption.

To kick off her residency, Mattingly will be joined by thought leaders from U-M and beyond-A2SF's James Carter, UMMA curator Jennifer Friess, arts curator of the U-M Institute for the Humanities Amanda Krugliak, watershed planner of the Huron River Watershed Council Daniel Brown, Detroit-based interdisciplinary artist Sacramento Knoxx, independent film director and producer Diane Cheklich, and Christy Bieber, co-director of The Aadizookaan-for a discussion on the possibilities and challenges for artists and arts organizations creating and presenting artwork that explores sustainability and the environment. The Long Table format was born from director and scholar Lois Weaver's exercise on participation and public engagement. Its aim is to foster civic-minded discussions on ideas and questions surrounding the city's creative culture. It's a dinner table atmosphere encouraging participants to ask questions, make statements, leave comments, or openly sit, listen, and watch.

For more information about additional programs for Mattingly's residency and related to The World to Come exhibition, click here.

Mary Mattingly's residency is presented in partnership with the Ann Arbor Summer Festival's Festival Footprint Initiative established with generous support from Toyota.

The World to Come: Art in the Age of the Anthropocene is organized by the Harn Museum of Art at the University of Florida and curated by Kerry Oliver-Smith, Harn Museum of Art Curator of Contemporary Art. Support for the exhibition is provided by the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, UF Office of the Provost, National Endowment for the Arts, C. Frederick and Aase B. Thompson Foundation, Ken and Laura Berns, Daniel and Kathleen Hayman, Ken and Linda McGurn, Susan Milbrath, an anonymous foundation, UF Center for Humanities and the Public Sphere, UF Office of Research and Robert and Carolyn Thoburn, with additional support from a group of environmentally-minded supporters, the Robert C. and Nancy Magoon Contemporary Exhibition and Publication Endowment, Harn Program Endowment, and the Harn Annual Fund.

Lead support for the local presentation of this exhibition is provided by Lizzie and Jonathan Tisch, the University of Michigan Office of the Provost, Michigan Medicine, Tom Porter in honor of the Michigan Climate Action Network, the Herbert W. and Susan L. Johe Endowment, and the University of Michigan Penny W. Stamps School of Art and Design and School for Environment and Sustainability.

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Long Table Discussion: Art / Environment / Sustainability | University of Michigan Museum of Art

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UMMA and the Ann Arbor Summer Festival (A2SF) welcome artist Mary Mattingly to Ann Arbor for a three-day residency, June 27-30.

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University of Michigan - Office of Campus Sustainability

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Sustainability Tips - University of Michigan - Office of Campus Sustainability

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Sustainability Tips Check out these ideas for how to live, learn and work sustainably on campus. Big or small, your actions add up-so try one of these tips today! Energy Conservation Turn off the lights. So basic-yet so effective! Set your thermostat between 68-76°F. Close the windows when you leave.

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The first session of this Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC), known as INC-1, comes nine months after representatives from 175 countries endorsed a landmark resolution on plastic pollution at the United Nations Environment Assembly. Countries tasked the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) with convening and managing the INC process.

The resolution comes amid a mounting plastic crisis that experts say threatens the environment, human health and the economy. Research shows that humanity produces around 460 million metric tonnes of plastic a year, and without urgent action, this will triple by 2060. According to one UNEP study, over 14 million metric tonnes of plastic enters and damages aquatic ecosystems annually, and greenhouse gas emissions associated with plastics are expected to account for 15 per cent of the total emissions allowable by 2050 if humanity is to limit global warming to 1.5°C.

"The science is clear: we need rapid, ambitious and meaningful global action to curb plastic pollution," says Jyoti Mathur-Filipp, Executive Secretary of the INC Secretariat on Plastic Pollution. "At INC-1, we can lay the groundwork needed to implement a life-cycle approach to plastic pollution, which would significantly contribute to ending the triple planetary crisis of climate change, nature and biodiversity loss, and pollution and waste."
Towards a life-cycle approach
Experts say that recycling alone can't end plastic pollution and that humanity needs to consume and produce less of the material. That has led to what's known as the life-cycle approach. Along with managing plastic waste and promoting reuse, it examines how products are designed, produced and distributed and attempts to reduce the amount of plastic used along the way.

"We are not going to recycle or ban our way out of the plastic pollution crisis," says Sheila Aggarwal-Khan, Director of UNEP's Economy Division. "Waste collection and recycling are extremely important, but they must be part of an integrated approach."

According to a UNEP report, a life-cycle approach can reduce the volume of plastics entering the ocean by over 80 per cent and save governments US$70 billion by 2040. It can also reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 25 per cent and create 700,000 jobs.
What to expect at INC-1
Negotiators at INC-1 are tasked with preparing measures and obligations related to the development of the legally binding treaty.

The INC secretariat has prepared an analysis of issues that revolve around four main areas needed to transition to a circular economy: eliminating and substituting unnecessary plastic and hazardous additives, designing plastic products to be reused and recycled, ensuring products are reused and recycled, and managing plastic pollution in an environmentally responsible manner.

Research shows that humanity produces around 460 million metric tonnes of plastic a year, and without urgent action, this will triple by 2060. Photo: UNEP/Florian Fussstetter

Given the unanimous endorsement of the resolution at the UN Environment Assembly, experts are hopeful that Member States will discuss the objectives and scopes of the instrument at INC-1. This could involve agreeing to ambitious targets, legal obligations and regular monitoring and reporting. Examples of possible measures include extended producer responsibility legislation; subsidies, taxes and tariffs; and bans or restrictions on specific substances, polymers or products.

"Negotiators have the opportunity to foster innovation at this early stage in the process - looking to the future, learning from the past," says Mathur-Filipp. "The UN Environment Assembly resolution guides the work. It's really important to not renegotiate things that have already been agreed to."

In conjunction with the INC-1 meeting, UNEP hosted an open multi-stakeholder forum on 26 November, where around 1,800 participants, including many stakeholders active along the plastic value chain, identified key opportunities and challenges.

"Among all stakeholders, we aimed to identify the most effective actions that Member States may wish to consider to enable their decisions to be most effective," says Aggarwal-Khan. "This is important so that we can continue leveraging and scaling up the actions to end plastic pollution, including while the negotiations take place."
Beyond INC-1
The proposed timetable involves four more INC meetings through November 2024, and UNEP will report on the INC's progress during the sixth session of the United Nations Environment Assembly in February 2024. Once INC negotiations are completed, UNEP will convene a diplomatic conference to adopt the instrument and open it for signatures.

"We are optimistic we can come up with an agreement, but there will need to be flexibility. We have a short time frame," says Mathur-Filipp. "The different needs and circumstances of Member States is recognized in the resolution, so solutions will have to reflect that."

As negotiations ramp up over the coming months, governments, businesses and citizens must continue to shift away from single-use plastic products and integrate a life-cycle approach to the plastic value chain, say experts.

"There is massive public attention on this treaty, and we must build on this momentum," says Mathur-Filipp. "With collaboration and urgent action, INC-1 can signal the official start of a really meaningful and impactful movement - now and into the future."
To learn more, please contact Llorenç Milà i Canals, UNEP's Head of the Secretariat of the Life Cycle Initiative: Pollution and Waste To fight the pervasive impact of pollution on society, UNEP launched #BeatPollution, a strategy for rapid, large-scale and coordinated action against air, land and water pollution. The strategy highlights the impact of pollution on climate change, nature and biodiversity loss, and human health. Through science-based messaging, the campaign showcases how transitioning to a pollution-free planet is vital for future generations. llorenc.milaicanals@un.org.

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What to expect as negotiations to end plastic pollution kick off

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The first session of this Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC), known as INC-1, comes nine months after representatives from 175 countries endorsed a landmark resolution on plastic pollution at the United Nations Environment Assembly. Countries tasked the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) with convening and managing the INC process.

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ANN ARBOR - Pioneer High School freshman Isabel "Izzy" Sutton is one of 25 young leaders across the United States and Canada to receive a 2022 Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes.

Sutton, 13, has raised almost $8,000 for area environmental causes and nonprofits through selling handmade biodegradable bracelets and ornaments through her JustIZZY initiative.

JustIZZY aims to reduce plastic consumption and raise awareness, which Sutton does through recycled, informational cards attached to her eco-friendly products. Each card displays information about the nonprofit that donations will go to.

Sutton started her initiative in fifth grade after learning about the impact of plastic pollution on Albatross populations. Having grown up close to nature, she petitioned her classmates and school to reduce their plastic consumption. Sutton then asked city and school board officials to ban single-use water bottles at school events.

She has even asked Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer to limit the state's plastic consumption.

"I'm grateful for this journey I've been on for three years," said Sutton in a release. "I've discovered a passion for environmental issues and have learned to never give up on things that matter."\

This year, the Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes was given to 15 winners and 10 honorees out of 500 applicants who have made an impact on their communities and the environment.

"Nothing is more inspiring than stories about heroic people who have truly made a difference to the world," said prize founder T. A. Barron in a release. "And we need our heroes today more than ever. Not celebrities, but heroes - people whose character can inspire us all. That is the purpose of the Barron Prize: to shine the spotlight on these amazing young people so that their stories will inspire others."

More than 500 young adults who have demonstrated compassion and focus on their community have been honored with the Barron Prize since it was founded in 2001 by Barron, who named it after his mother.

Learn more about the prize atbarronprize.org.

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Ann Arbor teen honored with young heroes prize for environmental impact

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ANN ARBOR - Pioneer High School freshman Isabel "Izzy" Sutton is one of 25 young leaders across the United States and Canada to receive a 2022 Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes. Sutton, 13, has raised almost $8,000 for area environmental causes and nonprofits through selling handmade biodegradable bracelets and ornaments through her JustIZZY initiative.

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Known for her rich aesthetic and highly detailed constructions, Robin Frohardt is an award-winning theater and film director. Her narrative based film, puppetry and sculpture, use recognizable materials, often trash, to create richly detailed worlds that make magic of the mundane and highlight the trivialities of daily life. Her theatrical work has earned her a Guggenheim Fellowship, a Creative Capital Award and multiple Jim Henson Foundation Grants. Her play THE PIGEONING hailed by the New York Times as "a tender, fantastical symphony of the imagination," debuted in 2013 and continues to tour at home and abroad. Her follow-up project THE PLASTIC BAG STORE premiered in Times Square in 2020 and has since toured to Los Angeles, Chicago, Adelaide and Austin. Her films have been official selections at The Telluride Film Festival, Aspen Shortsfest, The One Earth Film Festival and BAM.

Awards and Honors

2020. Aspen Shortsfest Ellen Award

2019 Made In NY Woman's Fund Grant Award

2018 Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship

2018 UNIMA Award of Excellence for The Pigeoning

2016 DisTill Fellowship at UNC

2016 Olson Kundig Artist in Residence

2016 Creative Capital Award

2016 Jim Henson Foundation Project Grant

2016 Residency at The MacDowell Colony

2016 Jim Henson Foundation Seed Grant "The Plastic Bag Store"

2013 Aryln Award for For Puppet Design for "The Pigeoning"

2013 Peggy Irvine Foundation Award for Artistic Excellence

2014 Mid-Atlantic Arts Fund USArtists International Grant Award

2012 Jim Henson Foundation Project Grant for "The Pigeoning"

2012 Artist in Residence at HERE Arts "Dream Music Puppetry" Program

2011 Artist in Residence St. Anne's Warehouse's Puppet Lab

2013 Artist in Residence St. Anne's Warehouse's Puppet Lab

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Known for her rich aesthetic and highly detailed constructions, Robin Frohardt is an award-winning theater and film director. Her narrative based film, puppetry and sculpture, use recognizable materials, often trash, to create richly detailed worlds that make magic of the mundane and highlight the trivialities of daily life.

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Featuring Shelie Miller, Professor, Director, Program in the Environment; Jonathan W. Bulkley Collegiate Professor of Sustainable Systems; U-M Distinguished Faculty Fellow in Sustainability, SEAS

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The Full Transcript

Daniel Raimi: Hello, and welcome to Resources Radio, a weekly podcast from Resources for the Future. I'm your host, Daniel Raimi. Today we talk with Shelie Miller, the Jonathan W. Bulkley Collegiate Professor of Sustainable Systems at the University of Michigan School for the Environment and Sustainability. Shelie works on a wide range of topics, but today she's going to help us understand whether reusable products like straws and coffee cups are really more sustainable than their single-use counterparts.

Today's episode is really, really fun, and it's very much news you can use, whether you're trying to decide if you should buy that reusable sandwich wrapper, straw, or take home that latest canvas bag from the latest conference you've attended. Stay with us.

Shelie Miller from the great University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, welcome to Resources Radio.

Shelie Miller: It's great to be here.

Daniel Raimi: Shelie, we are going to talk today about your work on reusable alternatives to single-use plastics, which is going to be really fun and interesting. But first, we always ask our guests about how they got interested in working on environmental issues, maybe as a kid or through other means. So, what drew you into working on this stuff?

Shelie Miller: I think I've always really been connected to the outdoors. I've always been a very dirty kid, playing in the mud, going on hikes, and so I've always loved being outdoors. I think where it really got me in a career mode was during high school or early college when I learned about the concept of hermaphroditic frogs; it was the first time I'd really understood this idea that pollution coming from people could actually affect the sex organs of animals in our ecosystems. It was this fascination with this idea that the chemicals that we're producing for different things can come in and really affect the reproductive capacity of species in a totally fundamental way. That just really got me, and so I decided to continue in an environmental career.

Daniel Raimi: That's so interesting. Were the frogs hermaphroditic because of the chemicals that they were ingesting? Or were they naturally hermaphroditic? What's the story there?

Shelie Miller: Well, there is a certain kind of pollution called endocrine disruptors. What it ends up doing is it interferes with the biological systems of frogs and other sensitive species-so, generally, amphibians-and it changes the biology in a very fundamental way. I thought that I was going to be going into the organic chemistry of all of that, but my path took a slightly different route. I can't tell you the exact mechanism, but it's truly fascinating to see just how much interference we cause.

Daniel Raimi: Wow, that's fascinating. I wouldn't understand it even if you could. I got a C in high school biology, and that was the end of my biology career. So, let's dive in now to our main topic of conversation. I think maybe we'll come back to hermaphroditic frogs later.

Shelie Miller: Sure.

Daniel Raimi: You've worked on tons of fascinating topics over the years. We're just going to really focus on one recent paper called "Environmental payback periods of reusable alternatives to single-use plastic kitchenware products." It's a really fun paper. It's very much news you can use. Can you tell us the motivation behind doing the study and what types of questions you were trying to answer?

Shelie Miller: There's this fascination in the public eye right now about single-use plastics and the need to reduce our reliance on them. A lot of my work recently has been exploring this topic, trying to make sure that if we get rid of single-use plastics, we're doing it in the right ways. Part of the motivation for this work is really highlighting that, yes, we should be working on reducing single-use plastics, but in reducing single-use plastics as an end goal, there are potential tradeoffs there. The big motivation for this work is to say, "Yes, reusables, which we generally think of as incredibly environmentally friendly, do tend to have environmental benefits, but only if we reuse them responsibly."

The purpose of this work is to highlight some of those tradeoffs and to investigate the comparative environmental impacts of single-use products and multi-use products through this idea of an environmental payback period. What we call the environmental payback period is basically the idea that any sort of reusable product tends to be more durable than a single-use product. That requires a lot more material and energy to go into it, and so it needs to be reused a sufficient number of times to pay back the embedded material costs of the more durable item.

Daniel Raimi: That's so great. Can you now tell us what are some of the metrics that you use to estimate that environmental payback period? And then tell us what types of products you're looking at, trying to answer the question of whether the environmental payback period is one use or 50 uses or 100 uses, and so on and so forth.

Shelie Miller: Yeah, sure. When we say environmental impacts, there's not a single environmental impact; there are lots of different ways of measuring what is impactful. Our study looked at three different metrics: global warming potential, so, climate change emissions; the amount of water that gets consumed throughout the entire life of a product; and then the amount of energy that gets used and consumed. We used those three metrics-every product is different on each of those environmental impacts-and we looked at some fairly broad categories of reusable items that people use every day. We looked at reusable straws-which seem to be very popular these days as we're getting rid of single-use plastic-and also soft straws, sandwich wrappings, coffee cups, and forks. We chose those because they're all fairly simple products; there are not lots of different types of materials that go into those. For each of those categories, we had at least one single-use item, compared to multiple reusables that are available.

Daniel Raimi: Great, and we're going to talk about each one of those products in a couple of minutes. But first, one quick follow-up question on one of the environmental metrics that you mentioned, which is water consumption: I'm just curious how you measure it. Sometimes we use water to, let's say, wash something, but then the water gets recycled, it goes back into the sewer system, and it gets treated and reused, and that has energy implications. And so, I'm just curious, when you say water consumption, can you define that term a little bit more?

Shelie Miller: Sure. It's basically how much water is used through the process. It's absolutely true that the water cycle reuses and recycles water. But it's basically any time we're taking water from a pretty high standard to a degraded standard in some way that it's going to have to be treated again. So, any water that ends up going to water treatment that has to be treated again would be considered water consumption.

Daniel Raimi: Got it. Okay. Thank you. That's really helpful. As I said, we're going to go item-by-item in a moment to talk about what you found. But first, are there any kind of high-level takeaways that you want us to keep in mind as we talk through the specific findings for each product?

Shelie Miller: Absolutely. The big idea with reusables is in order for reusables to have environmental benefits, we actually need to reuse them. It sounds so simple, right? But it's often a larger number of times than people realize. I think whenever we're thinking about reusable alternatives to single-use products, it's really important to say, "All right, if I'm buying this reusable bag or this reusable coffee cup, I'm actually committing to reusing it." Because if we're just constantly buying reusable items and treating them more or less like single-use items, we're increasing our environmental impact. That's why it becomes really important to make sure that if you buy reusable straws, for example, that you're actually going to use those reusable straws.

Daniel Raimi: Yeah, for sure. I have to confess to being guilty of losing many mugs and reusable water bottles over the course of my life, so I am definitely guilty on some of these fronts.

Let's talk about what you found. First, number one in our round of reusables, let's talk about straws. What did you find? What was the driver of the variations in what you find?

Shelie Miller: Plastic straws are at the forefront of these single-use plastic bans. A lot of people are looking at reusable alternatives or other single-use alternatives. What we looked at were bamboo straws that are reusable, glass straws, metal straws, and silicone straws. One of the interesting findings we had is that the bamboo straws never broke even in any category.

Daniel Raimi: Wow.

Shelie Miller: That's partially due to the lifetime of the bamboo straw, so it would actually degrade to the point where you wouldn't be able to use it after a certain number of uses, so it doesn't ever really break even. The other three materials do break even but after a pretty large number of uses. For example, for a glass straw, or a metal straw, you have to use those at least 150 times to break even on all three impact categories.

Daniel Raimi: Wow.

Shelie Miller: You have to be really dedicated to that metal straw as far as reusing that straw. Certainly, there are people who need straws in our society. But again, if you're really thinking through this plastic straw versus a metal straw, you're going to have to carry that metal straw with you for quite some time and be drinking a lot out of it.

Daniel Raimi: Yeah. And you account for things like washing the straw and cleaning the straw and things like that, right? Can you talk about that a little more?

Shelie Miller: Yeah. Dishwashing emissions actually end up being a big part of the reusable environmental impact. The field we're talking about is lifecycle assessment. What we're doing is we're measuring things throughout the entire life of these materials, from when they're extracted from the ground or grown in a forest, to when they're produced and manufactured, to when we interact with them and we wash them, and then also when we dispose or recycle of them.

What our group does-and I should say, Hannah Fetner is actually what I mean when I say "our group." She's really the one who did all the work. Hannah Fetner is a master's student who just graduated-she's responsible for all of these data. What she did is go through and measure the environmental impacts through various databases of each of these materials throughout their entire lives. This idea of what we're measuring here-what often ends up being one of the big items-is dishwashing. So, heating water, soap, the electricity of washing the dish, whatever it happens to be. It's both the amount of material that goes in-and metals are very environmentally intensive to produce-but you also have to wash reusable items and single-use items. And so, the dishwashing emissions actually tend to be fairly significant in these products.

Daniel Raimi: Yeah. That's fascinating. Of course, we're scratching the surface here for people who really want to dig into the details. They can check out the paper and the methods where everything is described. Of course, we'll have a link to that in the show notes, so people can do that.

Okay, so that's straws. Let's go to our next round of reusables, which is sandwich storage. Tell us about sandwich storage.

Shelie Mille r: This is one that breaks a lot of people's hearts, I will say. So, sandwich storage: we looked at the very classic zip-top plastic bag. We compared them to the very durable silicone bags that you're seeing. I won't mention any brand names, but there are some very popular ones in the market. So, there's the silicone ones and then also beeswax wrap, which is incredibly popular. This is one that actually surprised us.

It turns out that on most impact categories for both of these products, there is never a point that they break even with the single-use product. Silicone does break even on water consumption after 100 uses. But basically, if you're talking about greenhouse gases or energy use, you never have a point at which beeswax wrap or silicone storage bags are going to be able to have environmental benefits over the plastic bag. That is highly disheartening to lots of folks.

But the reason for it-and if you back away from it, it makes sense-is just that there's so little material in those thin-film plastic bags that the amount of material and energy that go into producing those plastic bags are so very small that it tends to be that the dishwashing of these alternatives is greater than the actual manufacturing of the plastic bag itself. It's not by any stretch of the imagination saying that these products are bad or harmful environmentally, it's just saying that there is so little material in these thin-film plastic bags that even dishwashing these other alternatives is more impactful.

Daniel Raimi: Yeah. That's so interesting. It's funny: at my house, we got some of these beeswax wrappers a couple of years ago. I've always wondered whether it's actually doing any good. I'm just curious to learn a little bit more about the beeswax, maybe partly for selfish reasons. But I have no idea how those things are manufactured, what goes into them, or what the different environmental impacts are. Can you just talk us through the beeswax story a little bit more?

Shelie Miller: Sure. As I said, there's not much environmental impact there. You are taking from honey production the comb of beehives, and you're making that into wax. I will admit I don't know the exact processing of how to take honeycomb into beeswax, but there are some processing steps there. They tend to be pretty minimal from an environmental standpoint. And then there's some sort of fiber. Depending on the company, there's some sort of fabric associated, and you basically end up having a coated fiber material with this wax wrap. One of the things that we saw is that beeswax wrap doesn't do well in the dishwasher, so it tends to have to be hand washed. Also interesting from the dishwashing perspective is that mechanical washing of dishes in a dishwasher-as long as you're doing it efficiently and effectively-tends to have fewer environmental impacts than when you hand wash. One of the reasons that beeswax wrap does tend to be a bit higher than the plastic bag emissions is the difference in these dishwasher emissions.

Daniel Raimi: That makes sense. And yeah, we definitely wash ours by hand because they seem like they're going to get torn up if they go on the dishwasher, which will again, defeat the purpose of reusing them.

Shelie Miller: Yes. I think it also goes to the lifetime of the beeswax wraps; they just don't stay around long enough to break even. I will say, as far as dishwashing goes, individual results vary. There're a lot of variances in these data, and as you said, we're just breaking the surface in the podcast. There's lots of data that goes into these, but if you have a highly efficient dishwasher and you're in a grid where you have a high percentage of renewable energy, you very well could see a breakeven point with these. So individual results vary.

Daniel Raimi: Right. For sure. And of course, this will change over time too: in 20 years, hopefully, we'll have a much cleaner grid and maybe more heating water with electricity and homes rather than natural gas, and so of course, this stuff could change over time.

Shelie Miller: Yes, absolutely. We do expect that these payback periods will reduce, as you say, as our grid becomes more efficient, as our houses become more efficient. Overall, we do expect these payback periods to be reduced.

Daniel Raimi: Yeah, great. So very important to keep in mind, even as we're having fun with our sort of current results and some of their unintuitive results, which are so much fun. Okay. Let's do two more. Next up, is coffee cups. Tell us about coffee cups.

Shelie Miller: We looked at coffee cups, and so, our single-use product is the very iconic paper cup with a plastic lid attached to it. We compared three major reusables here: the very classic, very popular metal travel mug; reusable plastic travel mugs; and then your very typical ceramic mug. What we found here, is that again, reuses varied. If you have a classic ceramic mug, you need to reuse that about 30 times for it to break even in all impact categories. Meanwhile, for the reusable plastic in the metals, you have to use upwards of 200 times to break even in all of them.

Again, if you love your metal coffee mug, make sure you commit to it, and, to your point earlier, to not leave it anywhere. You don't want to take a metal coffee mug, which-let's face it, you don't want to lose them because they tend to be a little pricey sometimes-you don't want to leave them anywhere.

You also don't want to think, "Oh, changing with the seasons, let's get a new reusable mug." It really is like, "I have a great metal coffee mug that I bought years ago, and it is near and dear to my heart. I feel very confident that it is well past its payback period. I have reused that mug for pretty much every workday of my working life, five days a week for the past five years, and so that has paid itself back. I know very clearly that that is more environmentally beneficial than if I were to use single-use coffee containers."

Daniel Raimi: That's great. Plus, you have the added benefit of if someone sees your coffee mug around the office, or around campus, they'll be like, "Oh, that's Shelie's mug. I've seen that mug every day for five years."

Shelie Miller: I know. It's getting beat up by now, but it's well worn and well-loved.

Daniel Raimi: Yeah. That's great. Can you tell us a little bit more about what's driving the need for that large number of reuses, for example, with the metal mugs? Is it dishwashing again, or kind of what are some of the big factors there?

Shelie Miller: With these products, there's a couple of things going on. One is just the total amount of material. In order to have the insulated sleeves so that you can have a comfortable holding experience, you use a pretty hefty amount of metal compared to what is, essentially, a very flimsy single-use product. One is the difference in overall materials used. Also, we're talking about manufacturing metal. When you actually look at the processing of, say, aluminum, from the mineral box site where it's coming from, you basically have to take rock and turn it into metal. As it turns out, that's pretty energy-intensive. You have to use a lot of energy to make metal. But the good news is that once you make it, you can recycle it very easily, and it ends up being a very durable product. But all of those manufacturing emissions have to be paid back over time. And it has to stay in consumption for a fairly long lifetime.

Daniel Raimi: Great. Okay. I will make sure not to buy a new pumpkin spice coffee mug every time pumpkin spice season rolls around. Mostly because that stuff is gross.

Shelie Miller: You look great with one though.

Daniel Raimi: Okay. So let's do one more. Tell us about forks.

Shelie Miller: Yeah. Forks are one of those that actually have pretty reasonable payback periods. Compared to your standard plastic fork, we looked at bamboo forks, reusable plastic forks, and metal forks. For the most part, these are all under 10 uses in order to pay back. There's a couple of variations. Bamboo has a bit higher water consumption because it takes a lot of water to grow bamboo. But overall, reusable plastic forks pay back all of the environmental impact categories in five uses. When you think about it, this makes sense. When you think about your standard plastic fork, it's actually pretty durable because they have to make it structurally sound. Otherwise, as you're eating your salad or whatever, it just bends and breaks. They actually have to use a good bit of plastic for the disposable item. So, it doesn't actually take that much more for things like reusable forks to be able to be competitive in that space.

Daniel Raimi: That's really interesting. So I'm curious, is it common for people to bring their cutlery to restaurants? Do you bring your own cutlery when you go out to eat? I've never thought about doing that, but now maybe I will.

Shelie Miller: I don't do it at restaurants because they generally have their own cutlery, so they're reusing them. Whether or not I bring a reusable one or I reuse theirs, that doesn't necessarily matter all that much. I'm in a school for environmental sustainability, and I can tell you that we promote bringing your own cutlery to any sort of eating event. We promote a culture in our school that says, "By all means, bring your own cutlery so we don't have to go through plastic forks." Or even compostable disposables are fine, but certainly, reusables would be better.

Daniel Raimi: Right. Yeah. There're lots of events on campus that are zero-waste events. And I imagine this is definitely part of that story.

Shelie Miller: Oh, absolutely. I feel like cutlery is one where you can feel very confident promoting reusable items, and they'll pay themselves back pretty quickly.

Daniel Raimi: Great. Okay. So Shelie, we've gone through the four items that you focus on in the study that you recently published with your colleague, a student coauthor. But let's talk just for a minute about another topic that people are really interested in. I know you're generally aware of the literature on these topics. Can you tell us about reusable bags? Many of us use reusable bags when we go shopping, and we feel good about not using plastic bags. But what are some of the environmental tradeoffs associated with using reusable bags?

Shelie Miller: Yeah. I think this one has popped up a number of times in the news. There's this very famous study out of Europe that looked at shopping bags and said, "Alright. Compared to single-use plastic shopping bags, what's this payback period?" When you think about a canvas tote or the reusable bags that you see in the grocery stores that you can purchase, those have to be better, right? This study came out and said, "Well, they can be, but again, they have to be reused a surprisingly large number of times."

I think where people get really surprised is how long it takes cotton bags to break even. As it turns out, from a lifecycle perspective, cotton is a pretty intensive material: it requires a lot of water, and it requires a lot of energy to produce. Because of that, the number of reuses for cotton bags is really high-in the hundreds. Again, if you're going to have a cotton tote and try to replace your single-use plastics, you have to really commit to that cotton tote and not say, "Oh, after 25 or 30 uses, it's getting a little raggedy, we'll replace it with something else." If you actually want to achieve the environmental benefit, you have to really commit to really reusing that bag a long number of times.

It's the same thing with the less durable items, the ones that are often sold in grocery stores, the plastic kinds of ones that are slightly more durable plastics. Those do have a slightly lower payback period, but again, they have to be reused.

If you're finding yourself in the situation where you're saying, "Hey, I want to do the right thing for the environment, but it turns out I can never remember to bring these bags," and so you basically end up buying these reusable bags nearly every time you're going to the grocery store, you're not actually accruing an environmental benefit, you're actually better off with a single-use item on the basis of things like greenhouse gases and energy use. What you're essentially doing is taking a reusable item and turning it into not a single-use item, but a very-few-use item. If you're someone that finds yourself with a closet full of reusable bags, maybe just stick with the ones that you have.

Daniel Raimi: Oh, that's totally me.

Shelie Miller: It's all of us. Yes.

Daniel Raimi: We have this cabinet near the door where we keep our reusable bags to take them out. It seems like the number of bags just keeps growing over time. A lot of it isn't because we buy them, but people give them to you as swag when you go to a conference or when you go to an event or something like that. When you're at conferences or events, and you're offered a bag, do you take it?

Shelie Miller: I generally don't. We've got some other work that's exploring consumer perceptions of single-use items. We did a paper called, "Five Misperceptions for Single-Use Plastic." You can imagine that a lot of people were not very happy about it because it does explore some of these misperceptions. One of the misperceptions we talked about is that zero-waste events are not always lower impact because of these ideas.

If you're planning a zero-waste event, you could have the greatest of intentions, but you really have to think through some potential unintended consequences of what you're are doing. If you are, for example, giving away freebies that are intended to be reusable but are not actually of a very high quality, your participants are likely not going to reuse those a large number of times.

What you want to be very careful of is that if you do choose to do some free giveaways, or say, put out reusable mugs with the intention that people will reuse them, that you are fairly certain that they actually will be reused. I think it's a great idea to have sort of these reusable items in there, but what we don't want to have is just people accruing reusable items in replacement of single-use products. Because that actually doesn't result in environmental benefit if every time we go to a conference, we get more reusable items that have more embodied environmental impact.

Daniel Raimi: Yeah, absolutely. Well, Shelie, this has been so much fun and edifying-and in some ways, disheartening as you say-but the purpose here is to educate us as consumers and make sure we have the best information when we're making decisions and really being mindful about what we use and when we use it.

Shelie Miller: Absolutely. Just one thing I will say, I know that this is one of those things where people get really caught up in some of these comparisons, but all of these things are so small in terms of our environmental impact. There are lots of things we can do as consumers that have much more of an impact on our environmental footprint. Yes, while it's certainly great to pay attention to reusing your reusables, there are lots of other things that you can do. Don't get too caught up in these details if you're doing other things as far as trying to reduce your environmental impact. These are things that you can think about on sort of the margin. Overall, there are plenty of things that you can do beyond just the reusables.

Daniel Raimi: Right. We only have a couple of minutes left, but can you highlight some really important ones that you think of, that rise to the top of the list, whether it's vehicle purchases, decisions about flying, decisions about what you eat. What are some of the things that come to the top of the list for you?

Shelie Miller: Well, you got them all right there. I always say there are three big bins: there's thinking about our transportation miles, so, how much we transport ourselves and by what mode; thinking about our houses, in terms of how we power our houses, if we are able to participate in any renewable energy purchasing programs, or not, and how much energy we use in our houses; and then of course, our diets and what we eat and how both environmentally-intensive our food choices are, and certainly, meat and dairy tend to be much more environmentally-intensive than vegetables and grains, but also how much food we waste. Thinking through those things tends to have a much larger contribution to our environmental footprint than something like a straw.

Daniel Raimi: Yeah, absolutely. But talking about straws is fun too.

Shelie Miller: Straws are a lot of fun.

Daniel Raimi: This has been really fun, Shelie. Thank you so much for coming on the show. Shelie Miller from the University of Michigan School for the Environment and Sustainability.

Let's close it out with our last question that we ask everybody: what's at the top of your literal or metaphorical reading stack?

Shelie Miller: Yes. There are lots of really great books out there right now that range from inspiring to depressing. I will say that one of the things that I go back to-and they're fairly classic at this point, if you've never seen them-there are these short pieces by Isabella Rossellini. She has a number of them that are out that are live-action where she acts out various mating and nurturing rituals of various species. She has a number of them: Mammas, Seduce Me-which, you can imagine what that's all about-and then my personal favorite is Green Porno. These go through the various mating habits and various oddities of different species in a really fun and exciting way. I love them. If you've never seen them, a couple of them have been around for a while. I highly recommend them. They're great procrastination devices, where I will say, "All right, if I can just get through this stack of papers, I can watch a Green Porno afterward." They're a ton of fun.

Daniel Raimi: That is amazing. Okay. We started with hermaphrodite frogs, now we're ending with Green Porno. I think this has been one of the most successful episodes we've had to date. This has been so much fun.

Shelie Miller: I don't know what that says about me actually, because ... Well, anyway.

Daniel Raimi: It says you have a wide range of interests, and we appreciate that.

Shelie Miller: We'll go with it.

Daniel Raim i: Great. So Shelie Miller from the University of Michigan. Thank you so much for coming on to the show today and sharing all of this really fascinating information. We really appreciate it.

Shelie Miller: Thanks so much, Daniel.

Daniel Raimi: You've been listening to Resources Radio. Learn how to support Resources for the Future at rff.org/support. If you have a minute, we'd really appreciate you leaving us a rating or a comment on your podcast platform of choice. Also, feel free to send us your suggestions for future episodes. Resources Radio is a podcast from Resources for the Future.

RFF is an independent, nonprofit research institution in Washington, DC. Our mission is to improve environmental, energy, and natural resource decisions through impartial economic research and policy engagement. The views expressed on this podcast are solely those of the podcast guests and may differ from those of RFF experts, its officers, or its directors. RFF does not take positions on specific legislative proposals. Resources Radio is produced by Elizabeth Wason, with music by me, Daniel Raimi. Join us next week for another episode.

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The Last Straw: Assessing Alternatives to Single-Use Plastics, with Shelie Miller

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Daniel Raimi: Hello, and welcome to Resources Radio, a weekly podcast from Resources for the Future. I'm your host, Daniel Raimi. Today we talk with Shelie Miller, the Jonathan W. Bulkley Collegiate Professor of Sustainable Systems at the University of Michigan School for the Environment and Sustainability.

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ANN ARBOR, MI - The City of Ann Arbor has been participating in the "Feet on the Street" campaign, an initiative to improve recycling quality for residents.

The campaign, which runs through Aug. 5, provides Ann Arbor residents with real-time curbside recycling education and feedback. Single-family homes received postcards in June indicating what to recycle and what not to recycle.

Currently, cart-tagging staff, wearing high visibility vests lift lids of the designated residential homes who signed up for the program and look inside bins prior to it being emptied into the recycling truck. They then provide individual specific feedback as needed.

If a cart-tagger sees something that doesn't belong, an orange "oops" tag is placed on the cart with feedback on how to fix the issue. If that same non-recyclable material is found in a future visit, the cart is tagged with a red flag and will not be serviced until the item is removed.

When the program ends, residents will get a postcard indicating what items were prevalent and problematic.

The initiative is funded by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy and The Recycling Partnership. The Recycling Partnership has implemented "Feet on the Street" in 70 U.S. communities, with some communities seeing a 57% decrease in non-recyclables and an average of 27% increase in quality recyclables.

Residents with questions should refer to City of Ann Arbor Customer Service at 734-994-7336 or customerservice@a2gov.org. For more information on the campaign visit www.a2gov.org/recycle.
More From the Ann Arbor News: Iconic Ypsilanti drive-in may soon be demolished to make way for marijuana dispensary A look inside Ann Arbor's Free Little Art Gallery where art is free for the taking Our favorite photos from the first day of the Ann Arbor Art Fair 2022 This year's Ann Arbor mayoral race now includes one more candidate

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Initiative helps residents identify, break bad recycling habits

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ANN ARBOR, MI - The City of Ann Arbor has been participating in the "Feet on the Street" campaign, an initiative to improve recycling quality for residents. The campaign, which runs through Aug. 5, provides Ann Arbor residents with real-time curbside recycling education and feedback.

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TRANSCRIPT:

00:01 Amy: Hi, thanks for listening to my podcast. For the next couple minutes, I am gonna tell you something about plastic wastes around us.

00:14 How to deal with our massive plastic wastes has been a problem for everyone on this planet in nowadays society.

00:21 U.S. and Canada together discard 22 million pounds of plastic into the waters of the Great Lakes each year. According to a new Rochester Institute of Technology study, most of it washes up along the shores, accounting for 80 percent of the litter found there.

00:38 Before we go on to the bigger picture, let's start viewing this problem on a daily basis.

00:44 Today, I have Pam with me. Welcome, Pam!

00:48 Pam: Hi, I'm Pam. I am a junior here at the University of Michigan, and I am in the environment major.

00:57 Amy: Thanks for coming, Pam! My first question for you is really simple. Do you consume plastic a lot in your daily life and about what percentage?

01:07 Pam: Yeah, I try not to. But it can be very hard, because individual packaging is often plastic, and Tupperware is plastic, and to-go containers are often plastic. So I try not to, but yeah.

01:26 Amy: So, do you recycle them at school?

01:31 Pam: Yeah, I check the number, cuz I think the school doesn't take 1 and 7, and it also doesn't take glass. So when I am on campus, I don't recycle them. But if I am in Ann Arbor, or in my apartment, then I do recycle as much as I can.

01:54 Amy: Cool. And on campus, do you find people recycling plastics a lot, or do you think the school has emphasized a lot on recycling.

02:02 Pam: I think the school's pretty good at emphasizing it, because any time you see a landfill trash can, you also see a recycling next to it; and they have pictures about what goes where. So I think people generally know what is recyclable and what's not. So it's somewhat easy for them, but some people are lazy and don't want to figure everything out. So they just put in the landfill, cuz it's easier.

02:34 Amy: So after the recycling process, do you believe that our recyclable plastic wastes are taken care of properly?

02:44 Pam: I think a lot of room for mistakes. Because things that we think are recyclable are cardboard boxes that have oil stains on them, or like sometimes plastic have bunch of food all over it. The recycling plant doesn't sort that through, so they end up in the landfill anyway. So I think that a lot of it ends up in lakes and streams.

03:14 Amy: How do you think we can improve on both the individual's side and the government's side?

03:21 Pam: I think the university can be more transparent about, or more educational about what the numbers mean and which numbers they take. Because they don't take everything. And then being more, explaining more about how to recycle effectively. So like cleaning out your containers and put them in the right bins. That way, when it gets to the plant, less error is made. And also, I think the government could've expanded the bottle bills and ban certain plastics, like plastic bags. I always use paper bags when I go to grocery store. I think carbonated drinks fall under the bottle bills, but bottles water and things like that don't. So just expanding that, making all plastic to have some kind of incentives for people to care more, could be a lot better.

04:24 Amy: From Pam's words we can see that she really cares about the environment and she is trying her best to protect it. However, the problem she encounters can also be the problem you are facing. There are limits as we are trying to recycle our plastic wastes. I hope that after this podcast, you can think more about your personal plastic wastes and also if you have the ability, call for more people to do so! If we don't want plastic everywhere in our living area, nor do these ocean animals, nor do our future generations.

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Plastic Waste Around Us | U-M LSA Sustainable Living Experience

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TRANSCRIPT: 00:01 Amy: Hi, thanks for listening to my podcast. For the next couple minutes, I am gonna tell you something about plastic wastes around us. 00:14 How to deal with our massive plastic wastes has been a problem for everyone on this planet in nowadays society. 00:21 U.S.

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What to do with plastic tubs, bottles and containers in Ann Arbor

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What to do with plastic tubs, bottles and containers in Ann Arbor

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Plastic Tubs, Bottles, & Containers #1,2,5 | Recycle Ann Arbor

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Ann Arbor Curbside Recycling accepts #1 (PET), #2 (HDPE), and #5 (PP) plastic bottles, containers, and tubs in the curbside recycling bins. Screw on lids are allowed and should be secured on bottles. Flat snap on lids are not allowed in the curbside recycling bin. All containers, bottles, and tubs s…

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A Philadelphia environmental group has filed an appeal to block a proposed $1.1 billion "advanced" plastics recycling plant in rural Pennsylvania after the administration of Gov. Tom Wolf, a Democrat, exempted the facility from having to obtain a solid waste permit.

The Clean Air Council believes its challenge may be the first after a 2020 law passed by Pennsylvania's Republican legislature that classified "advanced recycling" as a manufacturing process, as opposed to waste management or waste incineration.

The state's Department of Environmental Protection used the 2020 law this past summer to determine that the proposal from a Houston-based company, Encina, did not need a waste permit to gather huge volumes of plastic waste and, through a heating and chemical process, turn it into benzene, toluene and xylene. The fuels are used as solvents and feedstocks for the chemical industry, and, according to Encina's plans, plastic production.

Pennsylvania is among 20 states that have adopted such laws, which seek to boost what the chemical and plastics industries call "advanced," or "chemical" recycling.

Advanced recycling is a big part of what the chemical industry claims is an answer to a global plastics problem that the United Nations has described as a "triple planetary crisis of climate change, nature loss and pollution." But many environmental advocates view advanced recycling of plastics as little more than another form of pollution-causing incineration and a way to perpetuate fossil fuels and single-use plastic packaging.

The appeal is also the first formal challenge to the Encina project in Point Township along the Susquehanna River in north-central Pennsylvania. Alex Bomstein, the Clean Air Council's legal director, said the company's plans are of such a significant scale that they deserve close scrutiny.

"They are proposing what they are projecting to be a billion-dollar facility," Bomstein said. "No matter how you slice it, that is a big facility. It's hard to imagine that much (plastic) processing not having a large environmental impact."

DEP spokesman Jamar Thrasher said the environmental group's appeal was under review by DEP staff and would go before the Pennsylvania Environmental Hearing Board, which conducts trial-like proceedings to resolve conflicts over state-issued permits.

An Encina official said the regulators acted appropriately and urged environmental advocates to join the company in supporting the plant.

"We believe in the benefits we are bringing to the community and the path we are paving for the future of our environment," said Sheida Sahandy, Encina's chief sustainability officer and counsel. "We hope that with more information, organizations that care about the future of our environment join us to act with the urgency that is needed for innovation and solutions."

Business as usual, she said, "is not adequately protecting our ecosystem and we are proposing a solution-one that helps reduce waste, allows us to keep using plastics for critical uses, reduces reliance on petroleum and also brings well-paying jobs and tax revenue to the community."

Very Little Plastic Is Recycled

The battle over the Encina plant comes amid an intensifying national and global fight over plastic pollution. With the United Nations working on a potential treaty to curb plastic pollution, a new report from Greenpeace finds the state of recycling in the United States is worse than ever.

An update of a 2020 report by Greenpeace made public Oct. 24 again finds that only two kinds of plastic are widely accepted by the 375 U.S. material recovery facilities where recyclable materials are collected and sorted: bottles made of PET (Polyethylene Terephthalate) number 1, and containers such as milk jugs made of HDPE (High-Density Polyethylene) number 2.

Still, they are being recycled at low rates, less than 21 percent for PET number one and less than 11 percent for HDPE number two, according to the report.

Overall, less than 6 percent of plastics in the United States are recycled, according to a separate report from the groups Beyond Plastics and The Last Beach Cleanup.

"The sooner we respect the hard scientific facts that plastics are fundamentally not safely recyclable, the sooner the world can make serious progress on reducing unnecessary single-use plastics and harmful plastic production, waste, and pollution," said Jan Dell, a chemical engineer who has worked as a consultant to the oil and gas industry and now runs The Last Beach Cleanup. Dell worked on both reports.

Chemical recycling of plastics, particularly mixed plastics from municipal and commercial sources, has struggled to take off commercially, even as the chemical industry has worked to tip public policy in its favor in Pennsylvania and across the country.

The American Chemistry Council, a national trade lobby for the chemical industry, counts 20 states including Pennsylvania that have, since 2017, passed legislation aimed at regulating chemical recycling as manufacturing, not waste management or waste incineration.

In 2020, the ACC applauded Gov. Wolf in Pennsylvania for signing a revamped recycling law, saying it would "help Pennsylvania attract new recycling businesses and support job creation while keeping more plastic out of landfills."

Inside Climate News reported in September that the 2020 legislation, with its new definition of advanced recycling, made it so the Encina plant would not need a waste management permit and would not need to meet other waste-handling requirements from the state Department of Environmental Protection.

Meanwhile, environmental, health and consumer groups, and the ACC have all been trying to bring Congress around to their respective positions on chemical recycling.

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On Sept. 30, the ACC sent all members of Congress an invitation to participate in a tour of an undisclosed advanced recycling facility to showcase "a game-changing technology." The ACC sent the invitations in response to a Sept. 19 letter that 200 environmental health and consumer groups sent to Congress urging them to not sponsor any industry-backed advanced recycling legislation, said Matthew Kastner, an ACC spokesman.

"For chemical industry lobbyists, the concept of 'advanced recycling' is a dream come true," the groups wrote. "Having an eco-sounding way to make plastic waste vanish from sight helps the industry justify exponential growth in plastics production, which is expected to triple over the next 40 years."

What Is Pyrolysis?

In a bucolic corner of Pennsylvania, Encina is working to develop its first plant in Point Township, a small community of suburban homes and farms about 60 miles north of the state capital of Harrisburg. The company has said it plans to gather up 450,000 tons of plastic waste annually-something like 150 truckloads a day-from urban centers like Pittsburgh, New York and Philadelphia, according to company and local officials.

Benzene, one of the fuels the plant would create from plastic waste, is a known human carcinogen; toluene affects the central nervous system, and xylene exposure can cause dizziness and confusion, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

Encina announced in October it had signed an agreement with AmSty, a producer of polystyrene and styrene monomer, to purchase chemical feedstock from the Encina plant, according to Encina's website. AmSty has committed to a 2030 goal that all its polystyrene products designed for food packaging applications will contain at least 30 percent recycled content, according to an announcement on the AmSty website.

Encina has told state officials it intends to build the plant in two phases-the first opening next year, and the second toward the end of 2024.

In a March 10 meeting between the company and state representatives, the company representatives said phase one would accept post-consumer scrap plastics, sort and bale them, and ship them out, according to minutes provided to Inside Climate News from DEP under the state's open records law. "Phase one has been sized and modeled to be a financially viable, stand-alone phase," company representatives said.

In an email, Sahandy said the company's plan is that any plastics shipped out from its phase one facility would go to other, unspecified plastic recycling facilities until the second phase starts up.

The second phase would include the part of the plant that breaks down plastic through a catalytic pyrolysis process.

Pyrolysis is among the chemical recycling technologies getting the most attention, with industry representatives saying pyrolysis can turn mixtures of plastic waste into new plastic, fuel or chemicals for making everything from detergents to cars to clothing.

The industry claims that pyrolysis heats plastic waste such as grocery bags, cups, lids, containers and films at high temperatures in a vessel, with little or no oxygen and sometimes with a chemical catalyst, to create synthetic gases, a synthetic fuel called pyrolysis oil, and a carbon char waste product.

Since Encina's first phase is to be operated as a stand-alone facility, both receiving and shipping out waste plastic, independent of future advanced recycling operations at the plant, it should not have been exempted from needing a solid waste permit, Bomstein said.

He said it is possible that the waste permit exemption might apply for the company's future chemical recycling operations, but that there's no telling when and if that part of the project will ever be built or operated.

"We have no idea whether phase one will be for one year or 20 years or forever," he said. "Now is the only time we have to challenge it. The first phase of the project looks very much like what falls into the category of a solid waste processing facility and that type of facility needs to get a permit."

What's the Definition of 'Advanced Recycling?'

In the appeal, the Clean Air Council wrote that DEP "acted unreasonably, abused its discretion, and committed legal error in determining that both phases" would meet the definition of an "Advanced Recycling Facility."

The company has identified a full range of plastic waste, numbers one through seven, that would come through their facility.

In an Aug. 1 letter to Encina representatives, state officials detailed the kinds of waste that would and would not fall under the advanced recycling definition. Acceptable plastic waste must come from residential, municipal, or commercial sources, and cannot include hazardous waste, electronic waste, waste tires or construction or demolition waste.

State officials warned the company that some of its planned sources of plastic waste could include some prohibited materials and said if they do, they would need to get a solid waste permit.

Bomstein said one of the motivations behind filing the appeal is to prompt the company to reveal more information about its plans.

Many of the plant's details have been shrouded in claims of confidentiality surrounding what the company has described as a first-of-its-kind proprietary recycling process.

"Public information is so scant, so lacking," Bomstein said. "The fact that Encina won't reveal the details of its chemical process raises a lot of red flags."

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An Environmental Group Challenges a Proposed Plastics 'Advanced Recycling' Plant in Pennsylvania - Inside Climate News

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A Philadelphia environmental group has filed an appeal to block a proposed $1.1 billion "advanced" plastics recycling plant in rural Pennsylvania after the administration of Gov. Tom Wolf, a Democrat, exempted the facility from having to obtain a solid waste permit. The Clean Air Council believes its challenge may be the first after a 2020 [...]

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ANN ARBOR, MI - It admittedly freaked Isabel Sutton out when she did a fifth-grade school project on recycling and how much single-use plastic items are ingested by sea creatures and birds.

But the project motivated Sutton to begin environmental advocacy and volunteer work at a young age, raising nearly $8,000 for a variety of nonprofits through the making of eco-friendly greeting cards and ornaments.

"I knew I had to do something," said Isabel, who is an Ann Arbor Pioneer High School freshman. "I don't see a lot of young voices and I want people to know that you can be speak up for what you believe in and you can have your own voice."

For her efforts, Isabel, now 13, recently was named one of 25 honorees for the 2022 Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes, which honors inspiring young leaders who have made a significant positive impact on people, their communities and the environment.

Much of that work has come in Sutton's JustIZZY initiative, where she has designed biodegradable bracelets and ornaments, with proceeds donated to nonprofits including the Gumbo Limbo Nature Center, a turtle rescue in Florida; the Starry Skies Equine Rescue and Sanctuary in Ann Arbor; the Humane Society of Huron Valley and the Bird Center of Washtenaw County.

Through JustIZZY, Sutton affixes each handmade piece to a recycled card printed with information about the benefitting organization and a reminder to use less plastic.

Sutton's mother, Caroline, said Isabel has always had a passion for nature, becoming interested in ornithology when she was in second grade while monitoring nesting boxes in a Washtenaw County preserve. She also has spent time helping conduct spring "frog counts" with Ann Arbor's Natural Area Preservation, helping her earn the 2021 Humane Youth Award for her dedication and love for animals.

Most recently, Isabel earned an offer to be an artist-in-residence for six months with Maker Works in Ann Arbor, where she learned how to make the eco-friendly products sold in her JustIZZY store.

"I can't say enough about how wonderful Maker Works has been," Izzy's mother said. "They really wrapped her up in so many different classes and got her so motivated."

Much like her daughter, Caroline points to Isabel's fifth-grade recycling project as a watershed moment.

"We were kind of both blown away that so much of the plastic that goes into recycling does not actually get recycled, it just goes into landfills," Caroline said. "That really impacted her, and that was what made her want to do something. I think that's kind of what was a stepping stone for her to suddenly see that she could be taken seriously."

While her daughter's efforts to help the environment and those in need are vast, Caroline said the initiative she takes is continually inspiring.

Her most recent volunteer efforts have focused on the environment, but her philanthropy has extended into other areas.

Isabel has partnered with a friend to create a Kids4Kids group that has raised more than $3,900 for Ann Arbor Public Schools' homeless families and collected more than 35 blankets for the Michigan Foster Care Closet in Ann Arbor.

She's also has urged Ann Arbor Public Schools to ban single-use plastic water bottles at school functions, while calling on Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to place limits on Michigan's overall plastic consumption.

"Izzy keeps us very busy in this house," Caroline joked.

Regardless of the cause, Isabel said it's heartening to see that her efforts are making a difference, serving as a motivator to continue doing good work in her community and beyond.

"I'm standing up for what I believe in and speaking out against what I don't believe in, which I think is important," she said.
READ MORE: Youth volunteers awarded for devotion, hard work at Humane Society of Huron Valley Here's why AAPS is the only Michigan district denied a count day waiver for Yom Kippur Ann Arbor 'super pair' schools prepare for new curriculum program this fall

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Ann Arbor student keeps racking up awards for positive impact on environment

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ANN ARBOR, MI - It admittedly freaked Isabel Sutton out when she did a fifth-grade school project on recycling and how much single-use plastic items are ingested by sea creatures and birds. But the project motivated Sutton to begin environmental advocacy and volunteer work at a young age, raising nearly $8,000 for a variety of nonprofits through the making of eco-friendly greeting cards and ornaments.

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Co-presented by UMMA, University Musical Society, and the U-M Graham Sustainability Institute. In partnership with the U-M Arts Initiative.

January 17 - February 5, 2022
Location To Be Announced

Part Installation. Part Film. All Bags.

The Plastic Bag Store is a custom-built public art installation and immersive film experience that uses humor, craft, and a critical lens to question our culture of consumption and convenience - specifically, the enduring effects of our single use plastics.

Shelves are stocked with thousands of original items meticulously sculpted by hand - produce and meat, dry goods and toiletries, cakes and sushi rolls - all made from discarded single-use plastics literally collected from streets and garbage dumps. Several times a day, the store transforms into an immersive, dynamic stage for a film in which inventive puppetry, shadow play, and intricate handmade sets tell the darkly comedic and sometimes tender story of how the overabundance of plastic waste we leave behind might be misinterpreted by future generations - and how what we value least may become our most lasting cultural legacy.

Tickets and Schedule

Timed tickets are required to attend The Plastic Bag Store. There will be several activations each day, which all include an immersive film experience.

Click below to visit the ticketing website and secure your spot!
Buy Tickets!

About the Artist

Known for her rich aesthetic and highly detailed constructions, Robin Frohardt is an award-winning theater and film director. Her narrative- based film, puppetry and sculpture, use recognizable materials, often trash, to create richly detailed worlds that make magic of the mundane and highlight the trivialities of daily life. Her theatrical work has earned her a Guggenheim Fellowship, a Creative Capital Award and multiple Jim Henson Foundation Grants. The Plastic Bag Store premiered in Times Square in 2020 and has since toured to Los Angeles, Chicago, Adelaide and Austin. Her films have been the official selections at The Telluride Film Festival, Aspen Shortsfest, The One Earth Film Festival and BAM.

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Part Installation. Part Film. All Bags. The Plastic Bag Store is a custom-built public art installation and immersive film experience that uses humor, craft, and a critical lens to question our culture of consumption and convenience - specifically, the enduring effects of our single use plastics.

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Do we really want to pass on an Earth that is covered in plastic? by Melissa Cooper Sargent It is our responsibility to step up our game. Ugh, I know...we are all doing the best we can in so many areas of our lives. You might say, don’t push me to do better, please! But, I am going to do just that b…

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Featuring Ann McNeil, professor of chemistry and
and macromolecular science and engineering, University of Michigan

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As American consumers are well aware, plastics are everywhere. And the process of recycling them is more complex than you might think.

"When we do throw our plastics in the recycle bin, we don't quite get the same materials back out," said University of Michigan chemistry professor Anne McNeil. "The process of mechanical recycling that we've developed over the last 50 years is really a downcycling process that takes the high quality materials we're putting in the recycle bin and downgrades them into lower quality products."

She explained that, when mixing together all the colors and additives used in plastics, the recycled product doesn't retain all the properties of the original product. McNeil's research involves finding ways to break down recycled plastic into chemical components that can be more easily reused.

Last year, McNeil collaborated with Procter & Gamble, a leading manufacturer of diapers, to find a second life for the materials used in diapers. Her team puts polymers used in diapers through a chemical transformation, tweaking the purpose of the material while maintaining its original chemical structure.

"And so at the end of the day, the thing that used to be a super absorbent material is now actually a really good adhesive."

McNeil has taken her quest to reduce waste outside of the lab, too. Last year on Earth Day, her team picked up about 6,000 pieces of trash around Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti, with the help of some 50 volunteers.

"We put together a bunch of teams with four or five individuals going to different parks picking up plastics, and it was just such a fun event for everyone. We got such great feedback from it, and it made such a huge impact," McNeil said.

They ended up doing a second event in the fall, and McNeil has 80 volunteers lined up for this year's Earth Day cleanup.

Despite her work both in and out of the lab to create a greener world, McNeil said she wonders whether those efforts will be enough to make a significant impact on the climate crisis. On one hand, she recognizes a real push toward action among younger generations-along with some corporations.

"The question is, are we going to get there, you know, in my lifetime or in my children's lifetime? And that one, I don't know. I really hope it's my lifetime, though."

Looking for more conversations from Stateside?Right this way.

If you like what you hear on the pod, considersupporting our work.

Additional music by Blue Dot Sessions.

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Stateside Podcast: Rethinking Plastic Recycling

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As American consumers are well aware, plastics are everywhere. And the process of recycling them is more complex than you might think. "When we do throw our plastics in the recycle bin, we don't quite get the same materials back out," said University of Michigan chemistry professor Anne McNeil.

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Bottles, bottle caps, straws, lighters, beach toys, bags and dental floss picks. All of these items have one thing in common - plastic bits and pieces washed ashore on the beaches of the Great Lakes.

In collaboration with SEA LIFE Michigan Aquarium inside Great Lakes Crossing in Auburn Hills, Royal Oak artist Hannah Tizedes spent over a year collecting trash from the Great Lakes to create a six-foot-long mosaic of repurposed plastic.

The piece is now on display as part of the newly renovated Conservation Cove exhibit, which showcases different ways to help protect Michigan's natural habitats.

Tizedes, 27, spent 30 hours over ten days assembling 917 pieces of plastic collected from Lake Erie, Lake Michigan and Lake Superior to create her mosaic, "The Great Lakes."

"This mosaic is a celebration of Michigan's Great Lakes and a reminder of the effects our everyday activities can have on them" said Tizedes. "We've all heard about plastic pollution in our oceans, but not nearly enough about the plastic ending up right here in our Great Lakes."

Tizedes' parents live near Lake Erie, which is where she noticed an increase of trash buildup. In 2019 she started getting serious about cleaning up the beaches and tries to make weekly visits to the different Great Lakes picking up discarded plastic washed ashore.

Her collection holds around 50,000 pieces of rescued plastic. Each colorful piece is cleaned and sorted into jars and bins.

Graduating from Michigan State University in 2017 with a B.A. in Creative Advertising and Environmental and Sustainability Studies, Tizedes has always been conscious of plastic use and methods of recycling.

Over the last several years, Tizedes has noticed an increase of washed up plastic with a theory that it's mostly being piped in through sewers. What gets washed ashore also changes with the seasons.

"It's estimated that around 22 million pounds of plastic pollution ends up in the Great Lakes each year," said Lauren Grauer, lead marine biologist at SEA LIFE Michigan Aquarium. "It typically gets into the Great Lakes through wastewater systems, illegal dumping, storm drains and litterbugs."

Tizedes strongly encourages reduction and reuse of plastic along with practicing smart recycling habits.

"When throwing things away, make sure bags are tied properly so items don't overflow and run into the sewer system," she said. "Don't flush things down the toilet. I find a lot of tampon applicators being flushed down the toilet and it's the number one way they end up in the lakes."

A rule of thumb Tizedes adheres to is not recycling anything smaller than a tennis ball in size. Small objects - dental floss picks or bottle caps - likely don't end up at recycling facilities or are too small for the machinery to pick up.

"Many people 'wishcycle' at the end of the day," she said. "Be smart about recycling and check with your city or municipality about what they accept."

Starting at home, simple measures can be implemented to reduce plastic on a daily basis - filling a reusable water bottle, using reusable grocery bags, switching from a plastic to bamboo toothbrush or using bar soap that comes in cardboard packaging.

"Start learning about recycling and small ways to make swaps in your home that can make an impact," she said. "I think there's a lack of education about plastic and what can and can't be recycled. That's why I'm doing this, to bring awareness."

In addition to the Conservation Cove, SEA LIFE Aquarium has an ongoing conservation program, SEA LIFE Trust that works globally to protect oceans and marine life.

One of their main focuses is to champion the need for plastic-free waters and over-exploitation of marine life.

For more information about SEA LIFE Aquarium visit, visitsealife.com/michigan. To check out more of Tizedes' work, visit instagram.com/thetrashycollection.

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Royal Oak artist turns beach trash into treasure at SEA LIFE

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Bottles, bottle caps, straws, lighters, beach toys, bags and dental floss picks. All of these items have one thing in common - plastic bits and pieces washed ashore on the beaches of the Great Lakes.

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U-M Chemistry Lab's Focus on Plastics Inspires Earth Day Cleanup

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U-M Chemistry Lab's Focus on Plastics Inspires Earth Day Cleanup

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U-M chemistry lab's focus on plastics inspires Earth Day cleanup

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Your Local Refill Station & Zero Waste Shop

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Your Local Refill Station & Zero Waste Shop

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BYOC Co. (Bring Your Own Container) aims to reduce single-use plastic consumption by allowing you to refill your own containers from home with eco-friendly, ethically-produced household cleaning and personal care products.

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BYOC Co. (Bring Your Own Container) aims to reduce single-use plastic consumption by allowing you to refill your own containers from home with eco-friendly, ethically-produced household cleaning and personal care products.

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ANN ARBOR - Tree Town has once again been named a global leader in environmental action and transparency on CDP's Cities A List.

The international non-profit organization recognized Ann Arbor as one of 122 cities and counties worldwide taking progressive steps toward tackling climate change.

To get on the Cities A List, counties and cities have published a climate action plan, have an emissions inventory and have registered and reported environmental activities and data to the CDP-ICLEI Track.

A-List cities have high-level climate goals and practices, including a science-based target to limit the impacts of climate change. In 2022, leading cities must have a climate action plan with either a 2050 net-zero goal or a mid-term goal helping to limit global warming to 1.5˚C, according to CDP methodology.

CDP collected data from 1,0002 cities, some of which included environmental commitments from local governmental officials.

Ann Arbor was first named on the list in 2021. Its carbon neutrality plan, A2ZERO, aims to achieve community-wide carbon neutrality by 2030 and was introduced in June 2020.

The plan includes actions for increases in public transportation use, decarbonizing buildings, utilizing 100% renewable energy, changing how materials are used and disposed of, and improving energy efficiency.

Other A-List cities are Cape Town, Montreal, Paris, Florence, Quito, Mumbai, Seoul, Rio de Janeiro and Madrid.

See the full A2ZERO plan hereand find CDP's full Cities A List here.

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CDP: Ann Arbor is a top city for environmental leadership

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ANN ARBOR - Tree Town has once again been named a global leader in environmental action and transparency on CDP's Cities A List. The international non-profit organization recognized Ann Arbor as one of 122 cities and counties worldwide taking progressive steps toward tackling climate change.