Use of plastic cover

Parsiana is being sent to readers in a plastic cover — good looking no doubt, but an environmental hazard. One doesn’t know what to do with the cover — as it is, there are so many plastic bags in the house.

May I suggest that the magazine be folded lengthwise and bound with a brown paper slip with the address on it? This is being done with many magazines and book post items. And Parsis are in the front line to save the environment.

SOONU JAL

Neemuch

The editors reply

Parsiana used paper envelopes in the past but they often tore in transit. This was more so for the copies posted overseas. Hence we shifted to plastic. While plastic is environmentally unfriendly the only consolation is that some trees are being saved. We considered a bio degradable plastic like the bag made by Earthsoul India Private Limited, but the cost was high and though the manufacturer offered to subsidize the cost the post office did not reply to our query of being permitted to mention on the cover the nature of the material used especially as it was less than 50 microns. Government regulations require plastic bags to be a minimum of 50 microns.