But it's everywhere!?! January 24, 2008

Plastics seem to be everywhere in the news these days, from plastic water bottle guilt to the nastiness of PVC to China's recent nationwide ban on plastic bags.

As part of our office's ongoing research, Michelle Pribyl re-presented a session from last year's AIA convention on toxins in the environment, originally given by Dr. David Wallinga. Dr. Wallinga is a staff member at the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, a Minnesota based research and resource center focused on issues of agriculture and commodity across scales of government and sides of the globe. Among their "observatories" is a collection of topics collected as a "Health Observatory."

Dr. W's presentation is available on their website, listed below, and includes all sorts of depressing statistics and photos on the devastating impact of exposure to toxins, many of which are found in plastics. Surprisingly, minimal exposure has been found to be just as harmful as extreme exposure, due primarily to the slight hormone changes that can affect metabolism and reproduction.

Dr. Wallinga's report is available here under the heading Plastics and the Environment
Also worth checking out is their Smart Plastics Guide

NY Times on plastic bottles:
The (Possible) Perils of Being Thirsty While Being Green, Jan. 5, 2008
Canadian retailer bans some plastic bottles, Dec. 8, 2007
Turn on the Tap, Aug. 22, 2007
Water, Water Everywhere, but Guilt by the Bottleful, Aug. 12, 2007