Conversations That Matter

Ep 415 - Is paper the right environmental choice? Guest:Dr. Chris DeArmitt By Stuart McNish   On June 22nd of 2022, the Government of Canada introduced its “Single-use Plastics Prohibition Regulations,” legislation that states that plastic checkout grocery bags are considered single-use if the bag breaks or tears if “used to carry 10 kilograms over a distance of 53 metres 100 times.”  A plastic straw is considered single-use if after washing it 100 times in a dishwasher, it changes shape. Does that make the straw or the bag a bad environmental choice? A paper straw that may survive a single use is not considered a bad environmental choice.   Plastic knives and forks are treated the same way if, after 100 washes, they change shape – then they are considered single-use and a bad choice. The day before recording this conversation, two paper catalogues arrived in the mail: unsolicited and unneeded. They won’t be used – is that a bad environmental choice?    “When it comes to banning single-use, we might be better