What are the environmental concerns with polyurethane?
Polyurethanes do not break down easily, and their lifetime of service is often quite long. When disposed of they will biodegrade extremely slowly (like polyethylene), but it is unlikely that they pose a toxic risk in a normal disposal manner. Some of the raw materials that go into polyurethanes are toxic, and manufacturers (e.g. Aragon Elastomers) need to be careful in the management of these raw materials. At Aragon we have zero disposal of toxic liquid waste, because our chemical background permits us to only have to dispose of solid, non-toxic polyurethane materials. Will polyurethane crack or harden with age? Polyurethanes which are properly formulated for outdoor exposure should last many years. For example, a 14″x14″x1″ firewood splitting backstop made of black 80A polyurethane has been used for over 20 years with no loss of serviceability.
