This certainly is good news for all those highly interested in plastic bottle recycling. And if it’s true that the material is biodegradable and compostable, that presents even better benefits. The hardest thing to buy is that if the material is made from plastic beverage containers, composting it is going to add some sort of petroleum base into the soil and I question how good it can be. That said, I still think this is another one to keep a close eye on to see how this new material is received in the packaging world.

Reducing the number of bags going into landfills is a worthy goal. I just hope they see the forest through the trees. There’s a much bigger picture to look at. For instance, a lot of people (at lest in the US) use plastic grocery bags inserted in trash cans to hold their refuse. It keeps the can from getting all slimy and gross from food scraps and other wet garbage.

If you reduce the number of available bags, many of those people will turn to buying plastic trash bags off the shelf. If those bags are not biodegradable, they will simply replace grocery bags in the landfills. And, most of those bags are thicker to prevent ripping out so by eliminating grocery bags, we may actually increase the amount of plastic bags in landfills.

I don’t have any scientific evidence for my conclusion and that is why I used the word “may.” I just think it is a point worth raising before we get all gung ho about the reduction of plastic grocery bags.

I wrote an article previously about billionaire, T. Boone Pickens and his $10 million investment in an alternative energy project and how I considered that to be greenwashing. My contention was that if he were truly serious about the subject, he would put some real dollars into the project.

Then, along comes this announcement about Bill Gates and his investment into third generation biofuel. $100 million – now that’s what I’m talking about. That’s a serious infusion of cash that gets the project all the way to commercial production. Once again, Bill Gates provides the elite class of philanthropists with a model worth following.

I can certainly respect a city’s desire to maintain a clean, orderly look. Trashy neighborhoods tend to attract criminal elements and encourage further unkempt yards and businesses and the cycle continues. In their efforts to reduce unsightly paper waste, the Dallas City Council passed an ordinance restricting the number of collection bins in any given location and mandating screens and weekly pick up.

On the surface, this might seem restrictive and a move that will reduce the amount of recycling in the city. The main reason for the ordinance appears to be to get AbitibiBowater, a commercial paper company that manages 562 recycling bins, to keep their bins from regularly overflowing.

My initial reaction was, “Yeah, stop telling them how to run their business.” However, the more I thought about it, the more I saw that if AbitibiBowater can’t handle serving their customer, the city of Dallas, then they should get out of the business. Most recycling companies recognize the importance of picking up bins regularly and that moving material through the process is the best way to make money.

Letting material sit around, accumulating to the point of overflowing bins not only is poor customer service, it also reduces your cash flow. Both these symptoms are early indicators of a company that won’t last very long. If it continues, it looks like Dallas may need to find another contractor that appreciates the value of good customer service.

My sincerest apologies to all who follow this blog. Due to circumstances beyond my control, this blog experienced a host of problems and was down for some time. And, as you can see, there are still some minor issues. How good it feels to be back up and running. Stay tuned as I post several articles I have wanted to publish for several days. I look forward to your comments.