Cradle to Cradle
Shivani Burra
How is your product made?
To make the bottle, particles of the plastic are dropped into an injection machine that heats it up to extremely high temperatures
The gooey plastic is shot at high pressures into a mold in the shape of the bottle, but a smaller, compressed size
The smaller bottle is again heated into a malleable state, then is stretched into the actual size of the bottle
Crude oil is needed to make the plastic that goes into the bottle
This is extracted from deep under the Earth’s surface, mainly in many parts of the Middle East
To extract the oil, an oil rig drills deep into the Earth’s crust and a steel pipe is placed into the hole to maintain the integrity of the hole throughout the process of extraction
Often times the underground pressure is enough to bring the oil to the surface once the drill hits a pocket of oil. However, in certain circumstances, a pump is needed in order to extract the oil
This product is used to hold the lotion in a container throughout the span of its use
- Its use goes from the point the lotion is placed into the bottle, throughout the time it is shipped and placed in a store, it’s shelf life, and the time in which the lotion is bought and being used.
What happens to your product when no longer needed?
When the product is no longer needed, it is thrown into the garbage
It takes the average lotion bottle anywhere from 400-500 years to completely decompose
- When burned, it is harms the atmosphere and the organisms inhaling the smoke. It is also harmful for animals to, if scavenging for food, to accidentally eat this.
The plastic in this bottle can be recycled and reused by plastic manufacturers. The plastic bottle is shredded then extruded into little pellets. These pellets can move on and, while they do not completely retain the exact characteristics of brand new plastic pellets, can still be reused.
Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle
The three R’s help to cut down on the amount of waste that we produce that fills up our landfills. One of the main ways that it preserves Earth’s biodiversity is by conserving natural resources. If we reduce, we simply produce less waste that goes out into our landfills, saving landfill space and therefore preserving Earth’s natural beauty. If we reuse, not only are we saving money, but we are lowering the demand for some products such as plastic bags and bottles, which also preserves our natural resources. Finally, if we recycle, the material that would be going into landfills is being used again, also lowering the demand for natural resources from the Earth.