
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, March 15, 1990                   TAG: 9003152381
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: B6   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE: ST. PAUL, MINN.                                LENGTH: Short

`ENVIRONMENT-FRIENDLY' PRODUCTS AREN'T ALWAYS

Claims that products are good for the environment are laced with "hype and hogwash," state and federal officials said Wednesday at a forum aimed at developing standards for packaging pitches.

Many industries, spurred by public concern about the environment, have offered diapers, greeting cards and a host of other products billed as environmentally friendly. But an eight-state task force led by Minnesota Attorney General Hubert H. Humphrey believes the trend is veering out of state and federal control.

Such claims as "recyclable" and "biodegradable" can be laden with deception and outright lies, Humphrey said.

A Hefty trash bag, for instance, calls itself degradable when it doesn't break down in landfills, he said, and a can of aerosol hair spray billed as "ozone friendly" contains chemicals that cause smog. - Associated Press

by CNB