In the SF Chronicle [and hundreds of other papers], via the Minneapolis Star Tribune comes this Paul Serres article on the greening of corporate America.
This past month, a small change swept through the consumer electronics department at Target stores: iPod carrying cases came wrapped in cardboard. The seemingly irrelevant change – when coupled with new packaging on several hundred other items – adds up to a significant environmental impact that critics charge is long overdue.
Previously, iPod carrying cases came wrapped in two pieces of plastic bonded together. But earlier this year, Target decided this tough-to-open package – known as a clamshell – was a waste.
Worse still, it was made of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), which contains chemicals linked to cancer and other serious health problems.
So with the force of a retailer with 1,500 stores and $60 billion in annual sales, Target asked its packaging vendor to replace the clamshell with a recyclable cardboard package with a small plastic window. This single change will prevent an estimated 5,000 pounds of PVC from entering landfills each year.
Hoorah!