Trent EAB Current Pollution and Health Topics
For further current and recent information about pollution issues at Trent, see the Trent Sustainability web site.
For older & historical information about Trent pollution issues previously worked on by the EAB, see the Pollution & Health Archives section.
Check Peterborough's air quality for today, past, and smog advisories provided by Ontario Ministry of the Environment.
Food and Drinking Water Containers and Health
Prior to Aramark obtaining the contract to manage Trent food services, the model for food delivery was more of a sit-down dinner with ceramic plates and metal cutlery. Since Aramark, the model for food delivery has oriented towards fast food style, with food sold pre-packaged or in disposable containers. Some of these food containers are suspect, not only for their environmental implications (see Materials Management for more info on this aspect), but also for their health implications.
Containers used by the Aramark company to contain food include styrofoam, various types of plastics, film plastic (plastic wrap), and cardboard.
Plastic containers have some health issues, but may seem worse than they are due to some 'urban legends' that have been distributed. The main health issues with plastics are the environmental impacts of their production (and the resultant release of chemicals into the environment), and the release of some specific chemicals from the plastics into the food or liquid they contain. The image below displays the plastic recycling codes found on many plastics.
Here is a summary of recommendations:
- Choose as a plastic container those with recycle numbers 1, 2, 4, and/or 5
These plastics are considered safest for the storage of food and drink, as they appear not to leach chemicals into contained food and drink at room temperatures. Remember that there is still possible issues with chemical leaching over long periods of time and/or with heating (see next two points).
- Avoid using plastic containers in the microwave
Any material has a greater chance of leaching chemicals when heated. The better bets for containers in the microwave are those made of glass and ceramic.
- Avoid plastic cling wraps in the microwave
These plastic wraps have been shown to leach chemicals when heated.
- Avoid water bottled in plastic containers
Not only is the water sitting in the bottle for possibly a long time, increasing the chance of the leaching of chemicals from the container, but the water in the bottled water industry is much more poorly monitored than a municipal water system. Also, don't re-use the containers for food or drink storage.
- Avoid using polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastics (plastic recycle number 3)
"The non-profits Center for Health, Environment & Justice (CHEJ) and Environmental Health Strategy Center have asked companies to phase out the use of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a type of plastic widely used in construction and consumer goods, because it poses serious health threats at every stage of its life cycle." PVC is made with phthalates, which can leach into the food or liquid contained, and is shown to have adverse health affects.
- Avoid polystyrene as a food or drink container (plastic recycle number 6)
These are the foam trays, egg cartons, opaque plastic cutlery, etc. The chemical styrene can leach into food and drink and cause adverse health effects.
- Avoid as a food or drink container polycarbonates and other plastic recycle number 7 plastics
The plastic recycle number 7 includes many different plastics, but is often polycarbonate (a common material from which sports drinking bottles are made), which can leach Bisphenol-A (BPA) into the contained food or drink. Bisphenol-A (BPA) is an endocrine disrupter, and there is considerable evidence of adverse health effects at low doses.
Some 'Urban Myths' debunked:
"Dioxins can be released into contained food and drink from plastic containers."
There are no dioxins in plastics.
"Freezing food and drink in containers can increase the risk of leaching of chemicals from the container into the food."
Freezing as a process actually reduces the risk of leaching. The only consideration here is that freezing often is for long-term storage, and there is an increased risk of leaching with time.
References and Further Reading
