Products made using recycled LDPE are not as hard or rigid as those made using recycled HDPE plastic. When recycled, LDPE plastic is used for plastic lumber, landscaping boards, garbage can liners and floor tiles. It is not commonly recycled, however, although this is changing in many communities today as more plastic recycling programs gear up to handle this material. LDPE is considered less toxic than other plastics, and relatively safe for use. Some clothing and furniture also uses this type of plastic. The plastic grocery bags used in most stores today are made using LDPE plastic. LDPE is often found in shrink wraps, dry cleaner garment bags, squeezable bottles, and the type of plastic bags used to package bread. To avoid items made with PVC plastic, consider replacing plastic food wrap with reusable beeswax wraps plastic toys with reclaimed wool stuffed animals and your PVC garden hose with a Drinking Water Safe Garden Hose. While some PCV products can be repurposed, PVC products should not be reused for applications with food or for children’s use. Products made using PVC plastic are not recyclable.
Almost all products using PVC require virgin material for their construction less than 1% of PVC material is recycled. PVC is dubbed the “poison plastic” because it contains numerous toxins which it can leach throughout its entire life cycle. Because PVC is relatively impervious to sunlight and weather, it is used to make window frames, garden hoses, arbors, raised beds and trellises. It is commonly used as the sheathing material for computer cables, to make plastic pipes and parts for plumbing, and in garden hoses. PVC is a soft, flexible plastic used to make clear plastic food wrapping, cooking oil bottles, teething rings, children’s and pets’ toys, and blister packaging for myriad consumer products.