Articles about plastics

A look inside Amazon’s push to eliminate plastic packaging

Amazon is phasing out plastic from the envelopes, bags, boxes and cushioning it uses to ship items, swapping in paper-based solutions. Read More

Recycling gets smarter: AI robots from Amazon-backed startup are sorting waste in Seattle

Entering Recology’s recycling facility in South Seattle stuns your senses. The din from heavy machinery is continuous. While recycled goods… Read More

Amazon scraps 95% of the plastic air pillows used in delivery packaging in North America

Amazon on Thursday announced that it has eliminated 95% of the inflated plastic pillows that it uses to cushion goods… Read More

This startup just raised funding to turn wood pulp into sustainable, biodegradable plastics

A Vancouver, B.C.-based startup making biodegradable plastics out of wood pulp has raised up to $5 million from Brazil’s Suzano… Read More

UW researchers develop promising ‘bioplastic’ that can decompose like a banana peel

Plastic trash is everywhere in the environment. Bottles made from fossil fuels litter the side of the road, screw caps… Read More

Ridwell starts collecting more difficult types of plastic as recycling startup grows to seven states

Ridwell, the Seattle startup that aims to keep more trash out of landfills, is adding more types of plastic to… Read More

This startup aims to improve recycling by capturing ‘chemical fingerprints’ with high-tech cameras

If you’re someone who recycles, you’ve experienced that paralyzed moment in front of a row of waste bins not knowing… Read More

How do you recycle plastic? Startups and scientists are trying to make it easier

Each week, Ridwell workers fan neighborhoods in six cities around the country picking up canvas sacks stuffed with plastic bags… Read More

Gut check: Seattle Aquarium scientists simulate a whale stomach to test plastic alternatives

You cannot deliberately feed plastic to a whale, even in the name of science. So researchers at the Seattle Aquarium… Read More

In unusually close votes, Amazon shareholders send messages on exec pay, labor, and environment

New numbers reveal an undercurrent of Amazon shareholder opposition to the company’s board and management on issues including executive pay,… Read More