[throwaway48476]

The problem is plastic is not one thing but an entire category of materials. There are plenty of places plastics can be designed out but there's also an awful lot where it's never going to be possible to replace. For example operating rooms have huge trash bins because everything comes plastic wrapped for sterility.

[mattkrause]

Even in ORs, there are options for using less plastic use. For example, drapes can be single-use (paper-lined plastic in a plastic pouch) or fabric (wrapped in more fabric and autoclaved).

I agree that getting to zero plastic is probably impossible—-it has amazingly useful properties for some applications—-but it’s also used for convenience and other mundane reasons (e.g., less liability if you offload sterilization to the manufacturer).

[littlestymaar]

> For example operating rooms have huge trash bins because everything comes plastic wrapped for sterility.

First of all we don't need disposable plastic for that… And wrapping it in Kraft paper would work exactly the same way!