Paper or Plastic? Isn't it time to get beyond that question and look for real answers to our packaging woes? Paper or Plastic, the new new book from author Daniel Imhoff and Sierra Club Books does just that.

Pandora's Box of Packaging Packaging is one of the evils of modern life, and not always a necessary one. Ask yourself: Do we really need individually wrapped slices of cheese? Do perfectly durable items like basketballs and bicycle helmets really need to be sold in a box? Hasn't our world become grossly overpackaged? As author Daniel Imhoff reports in Paper or Plastic, a new title from Sierra Club Books, "About one-third of the gross weight and half of the volume of America's solid-waste stream is composed of packaging materials -- at least 300 pounds per person per year." And despite recycling efforts, the problem is getting worse, not better. Of course, some packaging is worse than others. Below, we've listed some of the more egregious examples. And we'd like to hear from you about the ones you find most irksome. Vote now for the containers you think deserve the dubious distinction of being the "worst of the worst" in our Packaging Hall of Shame. Pick your peeve: Trashables It used to be you made your lunch in the morning and carried it to school with you in an eminently re-usable lunch box. Kraft has instead given us Lunchables, packages within packages containing processed food marketed especially to school-age children. Nothing like teaching 'em young. You've got AOL discs! Junk mail is a sore subject to anyone with a mailbox, but at least MOST junk mail can be recycled. Those unwanted AOL discs (really just packaged information) are a different story. One disc might not be so bad, but the company just keeps on sending them. Disc, after disc, after disc. And, no, writing 'return to sender' on it doesn't work. Plastic Fort Knox It's nice to be able to open a package once you've purchased the product in it, don't you think? Openability is not one of the virtues of blister pack, however. The indestructible, oversized, hard-shelled plastic packages are designed to foil thieves, not cater to consumers. We find blister packs especially galling as packaging for things like knives, since that's precisely what you need to open them. What's next? A can-opener in a can? Cup in a cup (o' Joe) No one likes to burn their hand, but is it really necessary to put coffee in two paper cups - one to hold the coffee and one to insulate your hand from the coffee? The little cardboard sleeves are an improvement, but of course, reusable travel cups are the obvious best choice. Super-size America We know, we know: If you get a super-size soft drink you also need a super-size cup. (Chances are you also need super-size pants, but that's a different discussion). But now ask yourself this: Does anyone really need super-size anything? Hint to you Hummer drivers: 'No' is the correct answer. Welcome to Lilliput This is almost as bad as the super-size disease. Airplanes come to mind here, with their tiny little packets of peanuts and party mix. And how about those 6 oz. bottles of water they give you on the airplane? You can barely wet your whistle with those things. Pardon the mixed literary allusions, but it's like having tea in Wonderland. Echo Chamber Did you ever stop to consider how much empty space there is in a FedEx truck, even when it's full? The energy spent transporting all that boxed air is a little mind-boggling, isn't it? On the other hand, it doesn't have to go to the landfill, which is more than you can say for styrofoam peanuts or bubble wrap. Up to Top