PET in general use?

[Benjamin Barrett]

It's difficult for numbers to gain traction, though it might work as part of the synergy that perhaps is coming

I've seen the "I used to be a plastic bottle" thing on bags, but I don't think I've seen "PET" in that context. "I used to be a plastic bottle" gets 707K Googits, but the PET version only gets one (P.E.T.).

Looking casually at the top "recycled PET bottle" hits, most seem to be industry-type pages or use outside the US. Still, it seems PET use is upon us :)

I have two "fleece" shirts made from PET--Japanese plastic bottles in general if not PET specifically. They are warm (for Seattle winters, anyway) and comfortable. Since the manufacturer, Uniqlo, has a shop in NYC among other locations in the US, that is another possible route for popularization.

BB

On Nov 15, 2011, at 11:17 PM, Victor Steinbok wrote:

> PET has universal resin identification code 1 (the number in the
> "recycle" symbol stamped on plastic). I believe it's the first type of
> plastic to have been recycled, although I don't know for sure.  Our
> local recycling went from 1 only to 1-3, then 1-5 and now 1-6. I've also
> seen signs claiming the reusable shopping bags are made from "recycled
> PET bottles" (just like the supposedly non-reusable plastic bags are
> made from recycled milk jugs).
>
>     VS-)
>
> On 11/15/2011 11:51 PM, Benjamin Barrett wrote:
>> Thank you for this follow-up also.
>>
>> Maybe the need to separate recyclables will push this into the domain of general use. AFAIK the labeling on plastic bottles is not adequate to make the type of plastic immediately obvious, though it is probably on there somewhere. Clear labeling is probably a requirement to make this a widespread word; otherwise, people will have to look more closely than it's worth before they can identify the bottle plastic type.
>>
>> Here in Seattle, we put all plastic bottles in the recycle regardless of their make (http://ow.ly/7uWEZ). If non-PET plastic cannot be recycled, then it must be the case that the city's garbage vendor separates it out. If that style of recycling catches on, it could be a hindrance to popularizing this term.
>>
>> Benjamin Barrett
>> Seattle, WA
>>
>> On Nov 15, 2011, at 1:21 PM, Victor Steinbok wrote:
>>
>>> Some drink-container-specific recycling bins--such as those installed at
>>> some schools, airports, etc.--are labeled "Glass, Aluminum, PET
>>> Bottles", or, possibly, a rearrangement that mentions both bottles and
>>> cans. Other bins just say "plastic", but that's problematic because not
>>> all numbered plastics are recyclable everywhere. According to Wiki, PET
>>> was patented in 1941 and PET bottle--in 1973.
>

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