Greening (or Greenwashing?) the Most Dangerous Plastic of All

by Sarah Irani on December 23, 2008 in Sex

Discover is on a mission to help green that ubiquitous sliver of plastic we all have taking up real estate in our pockets: our credit cards. Discover’s grand gesture of ecological friendliness? They’re introducing biodegradable credit cards. I certainly hope the company doesn’t think that’s the best they can do. The most dangerous thing about having credit cards is not the fact that they are leaching BPA’s into your pocket.

I suppose the biodegradability makes the cards technically eco-friendly, but what about all the “stuff” you buy with it? What do you think, everyone: is this green or greenwash?

For those who are curious, the cards won’t biodegrade in your wallet. They’re made to break down in the compost or landfill over the course of many years. Just make sure you remember to slice those cards up well when discarding, or we may see a new rash of compost pile identity thieves!

Green is the platinum, after all.

Luanne Bradley
December 23rd, 2008 at 10:48 AM

To answer your question, yes, I think this is the best they can do! Everybody’s getting into the act.
Sara Ost
December 23rd, 2008 at 11:45 AM

I’m glad it’s biodegradable, but since the purpose of the card is to buy stuff, it would be better if they provided an online guide to help consumers make green shopping choices. I couldn’t find any info about this in the release: http://www.fiercefinance.com/press-releases/discover-financial-services-introduces-biodegradable-discover-r-card
Global Patriot
December 29th, 2008 at 6:44 AM

While getting advance info on how green a particular product is would be the best route, it would also be interesting to see a note on your statement that flagged the green products you bought.

Can’t say that’s practical solution, as it would require some sort of universal ranking system, but if I might dream for a moment, if would be awesome to see a credit card statement that told me how much I spent and how much I impacted the environment.

Global Patriot’s last blog post..Blessed Unrest – Insight #1
Sarah Irani
December 29th, 2008 at 11:21 AM

Or what about a credit card company that used the profits towards green research, incentives, information dissemination, etc. Now that’s dreamin’!
Juli Jones
January 14th, 2009 at 8:36 AM

Every little bit counts! What if every person or business decided that the little that they are able or willing to do was not worth it and did not make a difference? All of the little things add up and are way better than nothing!