Made from plant base
starches; renewable
resource.
Extraction
Harvest plants
Plants take in carbon dioxide while they
grow reducing global warming.
Refining and manufacture of products
Both plant-based plastic and oil based plastic require the same
process to turn them into products, and require transport; if
the process plant only use Green energy; energy for renewable
resources like solar, wind, tidal power, this part of the process
is good for the environment, but if they use coal or oil based
fuels, then this is bad.
injection moulding
Blow moulding
Extrusion
Compression moulding
Vacuum forming
Product use
If the product is well designed and lasts a long time,
then this is a positive, but if the product is a
disposable item (water bottle) then this is bad. If the
product is made from a bio-plastic then this is better
for the environment.
Disposal and recycling
If the product has been manufactured using plant
based oil, and the plastic has been designed to
biodegrade without affecting the environment,
then this is good; some bioplastics can be
recycled back to virgin monomers without
degradation ready to be reused.
If the product has been made from oil based plastic, and it is
recycled then this is good because it saved resources and
energy, but oil based plastic can not be broken down into
monomers so the quality of the plastic reduces each time you
recycle it.
Natural habitats
need to be cleared
to farm these mono
cultures.
No
Made from oil; none
renewable
resource.
Extraction
Oil rigs
Natural habitat destroyed to make way for mining, toxins
released into the air, oil leaks into the environment poisoning
land and water, killing animal life.