By now we should all recognize those numbers that you find on plastics. Usually they're inside those recycling arrows and look something like this:
But beyond being useful to recycling centers, everyone in the US should have a basic knowledge of these numbers. Plastics can be dangerous to your health. Some are not recyclable. And if your city has curb-side recycling pick-up, they may restrict pick up of certain plastics. So it's an all-around good thing to brush up on your numbers.
Currently, plastics are labeled with a number from 1 to 7. Here's a quick run down of what those numbers mean. Credit to Annie B. Bond at Care2.
Number 1 plastics: PET or PETE (polyethylene terephthalate)
Number 1 plastics are found in things like soft drinks, beer and mouthwash bottles, and peanut butter, salad dressing and vegetable oil containers. Number 1 plastics are generally considered safe and are easily recycled in most areas. They are recycled into things like polar fleece, tote bags, furniture, carpets and new containers.
Number 2 Plastics -- HDPE (high density polyethylene)
Number 2 plastics are found in things like milk jugs, juice bottles, bleach, detergent and household cleaner bottles, some trash and shopping bags, butter and yogurt tubs and cereal box liners. Number 2 plasitcs are also generally picked up through most curbside recycling programs, although some only allow those containers with necks. They get recycled into laundry detergent bottles, oil bottles, pens, recycling containers, floor tile, drainage pipe, lumber, benches, doghouses, picnic tables and fencing.
HDPE carries low risk of leaching and is readily recyclable into many goods.
Number 3 Plastics -- V (Vinyl) or PVC
Number 3 plastics are found in window cleaner and detergent bottles, shampoo bottles, cooking oil bottles, clear food packaging, wire jacketing, medical equipment, siding, windows, and piping. They are rarely recycled, though they are accepted by some plastic lumber makers. Number 3 plastics, when recycled, are re-made into decks, paneling, mudflaps, roadway gutters, flooring, cables, speed bumps and mats.
PVC contains chlorine, so its manufacture can release highly dangerous dioxins. If you must cook with PVC, don't let the plastic touch food. Never burn PVC, because it releases toxins.
Number 4 Plastics -- LDPE (low density polyethylene)
Number 4 plastics are used for squeezable bottles, bread, frozen food, dry cleaning and shopping bags, tote bags, clothing, furniture, and carpeting. LDPE is not often recycled through curbside programs, but some communities will accept it. Plastic shopping bags can be returned to many stores for recycling (see my last post for more on this subject). Historically, number 4 plastics have not been accepted through most American curbside recycling programs, but more and more communities are starting to accept it. When recycled, number 4 plastics become trash can liners and cans, compost bins, shipping envelopes, paneling, lumber, landscaping ties and floor tile.
Number 5 Plastics -- PP (polypropylene)
Number 5 plastics are used in some yogurt containers, syrup bottles, ketchup bottles, caps, straws and medicine bottles. Polypropylene has a high melting point, and so is often chosen for containers that must accept hot liquid. It is gradually becoming more accepted by recyclers. Number 5 plastics can be recycled through some curbside programs, and when recycled, become signal lights, battery cables, brooms, brushes, auto battery cases, ice scrapers, landscape borders, bicycle racks, rakes, bins, pallets and trays.
Number 6 Plastics -- PS (polystyrene)
Number 6 plastics are used for disposable plates and cups, meat trays, egg cartons, carry-out containers, aspirin bottles, and compact disc cases. Number 6 plastics can be recycled through some curbside programs and can be used again in insulation, light switch plates, egg cartons, vents, rulers, foam packing and carry-out containers.
Polystyrene can be made into rigid or foam products -- in the latter case it is popularly known as the trademark Styrofoam. Evidence suggests polystyrene can leach potential toxins into foods. The material was long on environmentalists' hit lists for dispersing widely across the landscape, and for being notoriously difficult to recycle.
Number 7 Plastics -- Miscellaneous
Number 7 plastics are in three- and five-gallon water bottles, 'bullet-proof' materials, sunglasses, DVDs, iPod and computer cases, signs and displays, certain food containers and nylon, among other things.
Traditionally, number 7 plastics have not been recycled, though some curbside programs now take them. They can be used again in plastic lumber and custom-made products.
A wide variety of plastic resins that don't fit into the previous categories are lumped into number 7. A few are even made from plants (polyactide) and are compostable. Polycarbonate is number 7, and is the hard plastic that has parents worried these days, after studies have shown it can leach potential hormone disruptors.
In terms of health, the most important thing to be aware of is called Bisphenol A, or BPA, and appears in plastics that fall into number 3 and number 7 plastics (because number 7 plastics tend to be a catch-all classification). Studies show that BPA has adverse health effects. And Kiera Butler, in an article for Mother Jones, relates how:
In an ongoing study at the Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, part of which was published last December, mothers with higher levels of BPA in their urine early in pregnancy tended to have daughters who behaved more aggressively than daughters of moms with low BPA levels. Hugh Taylor, an expert in reproductive endocrinology at Yale School of Medicine, thinks some of BPA's effects might not show up for a generation: His team injected pregnant mice with the chemical and found that it altered the babies' uterine genes, leaving them less fertile than their mothers.
I encourage you to check out the rest of article. It focuses on common food packaging that is still unregulated and is used by some of the biggest brands.
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