The article seems to indicate that it is a very robust material. I wonder what happens when it is discarded (does it break down in the environment and what it breaks down into) and whether it can be recycled.
Hopefully the answers are positive, as there is not much point in developing a plastic alternative, if the impacts are somewhat similar to plastic.
The research indicates Titanium dioxide (TiO2) is one of the principle ingredients of the product.
The bigger question might be the availability of the resource. Ilmenite and rutile are the principle sources of titanium products. Annual production (TiO2) is around 7.5Mt from estimated total reserves of just 750Mt.
Australia’s famous beaches hold up to 20% of world reserves.
Titanium the metal is valuable due to its high strength, high temperature stability and corrosion resistance. At US$3000 a tonne for raw TiO2, use to manufacture a plastic alternative appears a very expensive solution.
Hopefully there is a better cellulose fibre based solution to follow?
My wife just showed me a couple of $5 scratchies she bought yesterday.
They are now made out of plastic instead of paper.
I wasn’t sure whether to post it under this topic or under “Unscrupulous Behaviour Of Gambling Operators”.
A real problem in North West America.
Australian researchers are working on making plastics from seaweed.
Great stuff.
Yet another problem with plastics.
My friend was the first one to become eco-friendly, and I slowly began to realize how important and easy it was. It’s not hard to replace plastic: shopping bags instead of plastic bags, we don’t really need that much cloth, etc. It’s all up to us.
A while back, I noticed old water mains being replaced with pale blue plastic pipes. I wonder how much microplastic ends up in the water supply.
Are not big fat water pipes macroplastics? Did not big fat concrete pipes, metal pipes or ceramic pipes shed bits of themselves now and then? Which is more harmful? I don’t know. Do you?
Plastic pipes, what next?
There is always bottled water.
Although the options available in glass are very limited, and have massive carbon penalties given the desired European water quality vs the local brew.
Nothing wrong with Aussie tap water. Hold your breath and think of the low carbon cost of supply pumped efficiently through our low friction plastic pipes.
For everyone else beer and wine come with a glass container option.
Cairns has the best water I have tasted anywhere in the world.
In some places. In others it is crap or variable.
Relative to ones life experiences?
Any water that can be consumed as is without a high risk of falling seriously ill might set the standard.
Agreed some water is an acquired taste, or not! 
It depend on how thick you like it.
Self explanatory, apologies to those reliant on bottled water.
The beverage industry has also put a spin on the situation in response. I’ve not linked to any of their spin offs to keep this short. It would be difficult to comment without some bias. We have our own tank water uniquely characterised by what has washed in from the roof and gutters. Plastic is far from being a major concern.
There are many other sources of plastics around us that may be more of a concern. All modern paints are plastic based. All external paint weathers.
https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/09/how-to-reduce-microplastics-from-paint/
No. Nobody does. That’s the point. We’re conducting an uncontrolled experiment.
Our term “plumbing” comes from “plumbum”, which is Latin for the metal lead. They reticulated drinking water in lead pipes. It played a role in the fall of the Roman empire.
Meanwhile:
Watched a program some years back that showed a car body made by the CSIRO that was made of hemp, was biodegradable, and was indestructible when hit with a sledgehammer. Why can’t we use hemp instead of plastic for cotton bud stems, toothbrushes,etc. Infact, why can’t we use hemp again for a lot of our products as they used to do before hemp was vilified in order to promote American plastic instead.
You may have answered your own question, excepting the petrochemical industry has since become global with the majors being ExxonMobile (USA), BP (UK), Shell(NL), and a host of comparatively smaller ones, all under the wings of governments that embrace fossil fuels and anything that can be derived from them.
More broadly, ‘why can’t we use cellulose, ceramic, …’ based products?
It’s not self evident that the world before plastics relied on hemp. It’s just one more source of cellulose and fibre. We’ve a small collection of older wares and household goods from the prior two centuries. Wooden spoons, cutting boards, ceramic and earthen ware, cast iron, bone handles on knives, etc. No hemp needed. Even most of the modern household appliances from the 50’s were mostly robust and die-cast products. Bakelite, first derived from wood cellulose was the most common plastic, while a type of hard vulcanised natural rubber was also used.
Cotton buds I vaguely recall once had a rolled cardboard tube and earlier a soft timber round shaft. It’s all about the cost. My mum used to recycle ours by wrapping a little extra cotton wool on the buds, peeling it off as used followed by more fresh cotton wool. I gather they used to be an expensive, and not a cheep throw away item.
We create our own future?
P.S.
Alternative plastics and fibres can also be derived from plants, although the processing most used (chemical) is often environmentally a concern.
The Qld Government is set to extend plastic bans this year.
4. Plastics ban
Plastic straws, stirrers, cutlery and plates will be banned in Queensland by the second half of 2021 under legislation set to be reintroduced.
The ban will apply to both the supply and sale of those items.
It was initially anticipated the legislation would become law in early 2021 but after consultation with small business, the ban will not come into effect until September 1 at the earliest.
Not from your footy team days?
