Environment: Let’s wean ourselves off plastics

Re: “Union coalition urges state to approve methanol plant,” (TNT, 12/3).

A coalition of about 25 national and international unions claims that in addition to creating family-wage jobs, the proposed methanol plant in Kalama, Washington, would also help fight climate change.

While it would provide about 200 permanent jobs, its 4.6 million tons of carbon dioxide pollution annually would only surrender to climate change, not fight it.

The proponents’ prevailing attitude seems similar to what they once tried selling in Tacoma: that if it’s not built here, it will be built elsewhere, so why help the local economy?

But no matter where it’s built, it will pollute big-time, doing nothing to combat climate change as carbon pollution does not respect geographic boundaries.

Perhaps it’s time for the world to think seriously about weaning itself from plastics dependency (methanol is the feed stock for making plastics) to more reusable, renewable and biodegradable materials.

Incentives to do this would surely engage the entrepreneurial spirit of our country and lead to better jobs and a healthier environment.

This story was originally published December 15, 2020 at 12:22 PM with the headline "Environment: Let’s wean ourselves off plastics."