Newspaper Customer Service Department FAQ Sheet

The following oxo-biodegradable statement will normally appear on all PolyGreen news bags. Most subscriber, reader and advertiser questions will probably relate to this statement.

UNDER AEROBIC CONDITIONS, THIS OXO-BIODEGRADABLE PLASTIC BAG CAN DEGRADE IN A FEW MONTHS AND CAN BIODEGRADE IN AS LITTLE AS 2-3 YEARS. PLEASE RESPECT THE ENVIRONMENT AND RECYCLE.

**Important: These bags also feature eco-friendly water soluble inks and non-lead based color concentrates.

1. What does "aerobic" mean? Occurring in the presence of oxygen
2. What does OXO mean? It’s a word prefix that refers to oxygen.
3. What are Oxo-biodegradable plastics? Referred to as OBP’s, these are conventional plastics such as polyethylene, polypropylene and polystyrene to which is added a proprietary mixture that accelerates the breakdown of the chemical structure of the plastic. The resultant breakdown products are then amenable to conversion by micro-organisms, for which these products are an energy source or food, into carbon dioxide and water; thereby returning otherwise intractable plastics to the ecosystem.
4. “They degrade in a few months and biodegrade in 2-3 years - degrade means what? Molecules oxidize and get smaller biodegrade means what?” Micro-organisms and fungi digest the smaller molecules and return the positive waste to the environment.
5. What is the difference between oxo-biodegradable Oxo-biodegradable plastics require a proprietary additive and oxygen to stimulate and control the life-cycle. Heat, stress and UV rays also act to accelerate degradation and biodegradable? Biodegradation is defined as the natural breaking down of organic material by microorganisms.
6. Do OBP’s actually biodegrade? Yes; independent third party testing and field trials in several countries have proven that they do.
7. Can oxo-biodegradable packaging be recycled? Yes. Because they are conventional plastics with an additive, they are completely compatible with the existing recycle stream. Please recycle always.
8. When oxo-biodegradable packaging degrades, doesn’t it just create millions of smaller pieces of plastic to pollute the ecosystem? No. It does disintegrate but the smaller pieces have a completely different chemical structure that makes them amenable to rapid consumption by naturally occurring micro-organisms.
9. Are the additives in OBP's harmful to people or the environment? No. The active ingredient in oxo-biodegradable products, a transition metal salt (often of cobalt), is used at very low levels. Cobalt is a micro-nutrient essential for life. Oxo-biodegradable plastics have also been determined to be safe for use as food packaging.
10. Is this a new phenomenon? No. The chemistry of this breakdown, called degradation, has been understood and written about for a long time. It involves the reaction of the plastic with oxygen in the air to form different molecules that are much smaller than the original plastic and molecules that can be wetted by water. Micro-organisms can utilize these smaller wetted molecules as food whereas they cannot use the original plastic.
11. Why is this important to the environment? Conventional plastics have excellent properties – they are strong, impermeable to liquids and gases, easy to process into complex forms and they are inexpensive. They are reusable and can be recycled. They are ideal for single use applications such as packaging but, because of their chemical inertness, they persist in the environment for a long time when they are discarded. Oxo-biodegradable technology allows for the retention of all of these good properties and it accelerates the rate at which these products return to the ecosystem when they are ultimately discarded.
12. Why is THE NEWSPAPER introducing this technology?
13. Where can I get more information on oxo-biodegradable technology? www.oxobio.org, www.gp-plastics.com, www.willowridgeplastics.com, www.biodeg.org
14. What does the oxo-biodegradable life cycle look like? Oxo-biodegradable Plastics (OBP’s) are plastic materials, generally traditional polyolefins, which undergo two-step degradation, initially by an oxidative process that is promoted by the inclusion of catalytic additives and subsequently by biodegradation. Products made from these materials degrade under conditions of sunlight (UV) heat, and/or mechanical stress to complete the cycle of resource utilization and return otherwise intractable plastics to their natural origins.