Choice of Paper or Plastic in Environmental Context

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Choice of Paper or Plastic in Environmental Context

Table of Contents

Introduction
Nature of Paper vs. Plastic
Conclusion
Works Cited

Introduction

Nowadays, governments of many countries strive to make a transition to renewable energy. Due to the harmful nature of paper and plastic, many natural habitats become unsuitable for living for many species, and air and water become more polluted. This necessitates the authorities to implement different strategies to alleviate the negative impact and limit the consequences. Yet, paper and plastic are still produced and are popular among many people due to their convenience. Still, while both of them are immensely detrimental to wildlife, the environment, and people, out of both options, plastic is less dangerous.

Nature of Paper vs. Plastic

First, before emphasizing the differences between the two sources, it is vital to see their standard features. The first common feature is that both plastic and paper need a significant amount of energy to be manufactured. Water is constantly required in considerable quantities in the production process, but organic resources typically require more. In order to create one thousand of plastic bags, roughly 250 liters of water are needed (Plastics: Material-Specific data). As for the paper, approximately 4000 liters of water are required (Paper and paperboard: Material-Specific data). Such detail makes the production of plastic less costly from environmental and financial perspectives.

Another similarity that needs to be emphasized is the amount of both paper and plastic in the landfills where these sources occupy large areas. For example, according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, in 2018, there were almost 30 million tons of plastic in landfills (Plastics: Material-Specific data). Additionally, there were nearly 18 tons of paper waste in the landfills (Paper and paperboard: Material-Specific data). As a result, the negative impact of both sources stems from the slow rate of decomposition, which accelerates pollution.

When it comes to the differences between the two types of sources, it is vital to evaluate the efficiency of recycling and combustion. For instance, paper and cardboard products made up the majority of solid waste generated in 2018. That year almost 50 million tons of paper were recycled, which was the biggest amount of solid waste recycled (Paper and paperboard: Material-Specific data). Furthermore, nearly 5 million tons of paper paper-related products were burned altogether. This amounted to 12.2% of all waste burned that year (Paper and paperboard: Material-Specific data). In comparison, the volume of recycled plastics is modest, being only three million tons in 2018, which accounted for an 8.7% recycling rate (Plastics: Material-Specific data). However, that year, there were almost six million tons of plastic items combusted. That amounted to 16.3% of all solid waste combusted, which is more efficient than paper combustion.

The next point to consider is the generation amount of both paper and plastic, which might result in different scope of influence. In 2018, the overall waste generation of paper-related products was almost 70 million tons, accounting for 23.1% of the entire solid waste generation (Paper and paperboard: Material-Specific data). In comparison, plastics and plastic-related items are an increasingly important part of solid waste that is less prevalent. Plastics manufacturing in the U.S. totaled almost 36 million tons in 2018, accounting for 12.2% of solid waste production (Plastics: Material-Specific data). Due to the amount of plastic, it can be said that this might lead to fewer environmental consequences than from paper.

Conclusion

Hence, both plastic and paper play an integral role in modern society due to their ubiquitous nature. However, while both types of sources have certain similarities, such as the requirement of significant quantities of energy for production and the prevailing in landfills, there are specific differences. For example, while paper recycling exceeds the rate of plastic recycling, the latter is still more efficient in terms of combustion rate. Moreover, the generation rate of paper waste is much higher than the generation rate of plastic, which can be more dangerous to the environment.

Works Cited

Paper and paperboard: Material-Specific data. United States Environmental Protection Agency.

Plastics: Material-Specific data. United States Environmental Protection Agency.

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