An Introduction to the Evolution of Dirty Music Formats:

From Polyvinyl Chloride to Digital Download

Every music delivery format has an impact on the environment, some greater than others. The cleanest and most environmentally friendly format to date is the digital download; it does not need to be shipped to stores, it does not require the resources needed in packaging traditional music formats, and it does not need a physical substrate on which to "print" the music. Digital download does equate for some environmental impact, however, this impact is much less than the impact of all other pre-digital music delivery formats.

The vinyl record was the catalyst for the modern music business. Although other music formats such as the cylinder and the shellac record existed before the vinyl record, these formats were not able to provide the platform of music consumption that the vinyl record did. Vinyl records are made of polyvinyl chloride, or simply PVC ("Center For Health," 2004). PVC is incredibly harmful to the environment through both its production and its disposal. To produce PVC, dioxins, otherwise known as the "most toxic man-made organic chemical" (Campbell, n.d.), are released into the air. A great number of dioxins are produced during the manufacturing of vinyl; however, many more are often produced during its disposal. This is due to the fact that many states in the U.S. still incinerate PVC in order to dispose of it. It's estimated that 500 to 600 million pounds of PVC is incinerated each year in the United States alone ("Center For Health," 2004). The incineration of vinyl releases many more dioxins than does the initial manufacturing of the material. The problem of dealing with vinyl from its manufacturing to its disposal is so great that it has prompted many anti-PVC campaigns such as pvcfree.org ("PVC," n.d.). Incinerating and dumping PVC in landfills is often the chosen route for disposal for PVC, as recycling this "poison plastic", as it is often known, is incredibly difficult and energy intensive ("PVC," n.d.).

Fig. 1: Graph showing the average consumption patterns of PVC worldwide ("PVC-Keml," n.d.)

Magnetic tape formats, including 8-track tape and the standard cassette, followed the vinyl record in the history of music formats. Magnetic tape production and disposal is considerably less impacting to the environment than is vinyl. The greatest threat imposed by magnetic tape is the iron oxide that makes up a great deal of the magnetic aspect of the tape ("What is Magnetic," n.d.). Iron oxide can be harmful mainly to surface water if runoff from landfills occurs. Often times when iron oxide creeps its way into a body of water, it tends to sit on top of the surface ("Measuring Water," n.d.). This can keep sunlight from penetrating the surface of the water, which greatly impacts the nature of the ecology in the said body of water ("Measuring Water," n.d.). The plastic bodies of magnetic tape formats are easily recycled, if only the time is taken to separate the recyclable plastic case from the spools of magnetic tape. The compact disc, or CD, followed magnetic tape, however, CDs would not follow the example of a relatively minimal environmental impact set by the magnetic tape format.

Fig 1.1: Iron oxide accumulation on top of a pond ("Airphoto," 1999).

CDs need valuable, mined metals in order to manufactured, including aluminum, gold, silver, and nickel ("Tossing old CDs," n.d.). Of course, mining is often a less than environmentally friendly task, however, the real shame of CDs is that they're not recyclable. Once the plastic and metal that form the CD are combined, it is nearly impossible to separate them. It takes specialized companies such as Washington based Greendisk to recycle old CDs, which they then form into new plastic products ("Greendisk," 2005). Therefore, not only do CDs require energy intensive materials and practices for manufacturing, they are also non-recyclable in most areas of the United States.

The tangible music formats themselves are not the only things being manufactured in order to deliver a finished product to retailer’s shelves. Resources are also used in order to package these formats. The vinyl record requires an inked cardboard jacket, paper sleeves for the record, and perhaps liner notes, all shrink-wrapped in cellophane. CDs and tape formats require a plastic case, inked paper for the album art inserts and booklets, and again, cellophane.

Perhaps the more serious external cost of tangible music formats is the impact of shipping the final product across the country in 18-wheel semi-trucks to retailers. Oil must be drilled from the ground in order to produce diesel fuel to run these trucks, and then the fuel is burned up into the air releasing carbon. Then, unless the customer walks or rides their bike to the retailer’s location, they must drive themselves in a car in order to reach the final product.

Fig. 1.2: A New York Times graphic showing the relationship between digital and physical music consumption in the U.S.

Digital download requires almost none of the traditional waste aspects of tangible music delivery formats. No material is used to "print" the music on a physical format, and thus, no manufacturing pollution and no disposal issues. There's also no packaging waste as the music is not a tangible commodity in need of a case, inked paper and/or cardboard. The music is downloaded directly to the users computer, eliminating the need for cross country shipping and the trip to a music retailer. One aspect of resource consumption through downloading music digitally is the electricity needed to power the computer, however, every music format will always require a vehicle to play that particular format, whether that be a record player/ receiver combo, tape player/ receiver combo, or a computer.

The evolution of downloading music digitally is a model that is growing ever more popular with the products and media we consume; this model strives for eliminating waste while also delivering a superior product. This is a model of streamlining, and it can be seen everywhere these days, including such small things as the reusable grocery bag to larger ideas like the hybrid vehicle. All music formats throughout the history of music have consumed resources in order to deliver music to the music fan, however, digital download is by far the most efficient, responsible, streamlined idea in music format history.

References

"Airphoto - Aerial Photo: Iron Ore Tailings Pond, Upper Peninsula, Michigan." Aerial Photography - Airphoto. N.p., 20 June 1999. Web. 21 Feb. 2011. .

Campbell, Jonathan. "Dioxin." Remedy for Cancer, AIDS, heart disease, and other Chronic Illness. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2011.

Center For Health, Environment And Justice. (2004, December). Bad News Comes in 3's: The Poison Plastic, Health Hazards, and the Looming Waste Crisis. Tues. 11 Feb. 2011.

"GreenDisk [Services]." Electronics Recycling Services CD Recycling Services DVD Electronics Video Tape. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2011.

"Measuring Water Quality." Environment Canterbury Homepage. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2011.

"PVC - KemI." Kemikalieinspektionen - KemI. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Feb. 2011. .

"PVC: The Poison Plastic." PVC: The Poison Plastic. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Feb. 2011. .

"Tossing old CDs, DVDs, jewel cases may be bad for environment." Arizona Local News - Phoenix Arizona News - Phoenix Breaking News - azcentral.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Feb. 2011.

"What is Magnetic Tape?." wiseGEEK: clear answers for common questions. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Feb. 2011.