Is It the End of the Road for Plastic Take-Out Containers？得來「速」還是得來「塑」？如何解決外送服務的環保問題？
Is It the End of the Road for Plastic Take-Out Containers?
You're sitting at home with friends, and you're hungry.
A few years ago, you probably would have gone out.
But the ease provided by apps like Uber Eats and Foodpanda have made the stay-at-home option much more likely.
The problem is that it also adds more plastic to the environment.
Although there's no evidence that delivery services add to global pollution, many people see a connection.
The number of plastic containers going into garbage landfills has tripled since 1980, even though regular waste has decreased significantly.
This situation will get worse as the food-app business is expected to nearly triple over the next 15 years.
This is a global problem.
In countries like India, 26,000 tons of plastic are used every day.
Restaurants even get bad reviews if they don't use spill-free plastic containers.
Taiwan now largely uses paper containers.
However, many of these are coated in a plastic substance that is difficult to dispose of.
So, what can be done?
Recycling isn't the answer — only 9% of plastic actually gets recycled globally.
Never has it been so important to find ways to replace plastic.
option（n.）選擇；選項
evidence（n.）證據；證明
landfill（n.）垃圾掩埋
triple（v.）（使）成三倍
dispose of sb/sth（ph.）清除；處理
Is It the End of the Road for Plastic Take-Out Containers?
Because plastic has been found clogging our oceans and rivers, companies as well as researchers are also looking for solutions.
One possible answer is "fish plastic."
Lucy Hughes, a university student in the UK, recently invented a plastic substitute made from fish skin.
This natural product can be returned safely to the ground or the water.
It also has other environmental benefits.
For one, producing it uses less energy than making regular plastic.
In addition, it solves a problem with the large amounts of waste produced by the fishing industry.
Fish skins won't need to be shipped away and dumped anymore.
Elsewhere, Pivot Packaging is making containers from farm waste such as wheat, bamboo, and straw.
Producing these new materials uses less water than what's needed to make paper or plastic, and it doesn't require forests to be cut down.
Using plastic to package food shouldn't be necessary.
To get rid of it entirely, consumers need to stop accepting plastic in their take-out orders — or just eat out.
eat out
to eat in a restaurant
去餐廳吃飯；在外用餐
