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MIAMI (CBS4) ― It's in our kitchen cabinets, our refrigerators, and in our bathrooms. Plastic is just about everywhere. Over the past few decades plastic has become a big part of our everyday lives. But now, some environmental groups are saying that one plastic is a poison plastic. It's called polyvinyl chloride, or PVC.

If you turn over your plastic bottles you can see it's also called plastic number three.

Many environmental groups like the Centers for Health and Environmental Justice, are now warning consumers that plastic 3 is more dangerous than any other plastic.

In a new video that features a cartoon character named Sam Suds, they claim plastic 3 is in all sorts of products, from rubber duckies to shower curtains.

The video puts it into simple language. "You know that new shower curtain smell? That's the smell of toxic chemicals being released," said cartoon character Sam Suds.

The CHEJ says that unlike other plastics, plastic 3 can't be recycled. And it's made with certain chemicals that help make plastic more flexible, but those chemicals can seep into the air and make the air toxic.

In the video, a character explains the dangers. "PVC releases poisonous chemicals linked to cancer and birth defects."

"It was worse than I thought. How could an innocent duckie do that?," said character Sam Suds.
Dr. Jeff Bernstein, at the University of Miami's poison control center believes the Sam Suds fear is overblown.

"There should be more studies," he said, "but I think that the effort to ban it is fear mongering."

Others say there are a lot of reasons to be worried about plastic 3. "It's been proven to be a poison," said Dr. Janier Gasana, an FIU professor of environmental studies. He's been studying toxins for 11 years.

"Several years ago, researchers found out it caused cancer. One of the proof was that it was angiosarcoma of the liver. It's the only known cancer that is caused by that product. It is not caused by any other product."

Dr. Gasana said plastic 3 was recently banned from children's toys in many European countries but since the FDA has not yet taken such a stance, it's still in many of our everyday products in the us. Patty Kodish ,an international health advocate who's starting a Florida environmental coalition, said that since plastic 3 can not be recycled, it sits in our landfills, where toxic chemicals can seep into the soil, air and water.

Kodish said Florida is the 7th largest landfill location for PVC waste.
"we can't get rid of it," she said. "it takes years to scrub the environment of these toxins."
Modish is especially worried about plastic 3 chemicals leaching from kids toys when they chew them, and into food containers when they're heated.

"Once the very hot sugar contacts the PVC in the bottle," she said, "there is a leaching process into (things like) maple syrup"

Others are worried about plants that manufacture PVC. After one in Illinois caught fire and exploded, officials were concerned about a potentially toxic cloud of chemicals that they evacuated all nearby residents.

So how common is plastic 3 in South Florida? The cbs4 team-team took a hidden camera to local stores and in aisle after aisle we picked up plastic containers, looking for the number three.

It wasn't hard to find them, holding products like Emeril's salad dressing, ACT fluoride rinse, Sesame Street bubble bath, Johnson and Johnson kids body wash.

Even organic so-called "planet friendly" lollipops, which the packaging said were free of "yucky" chemicals and dyes, were packaged in a plastic 3 container.

The I-Team showed the products to several moms like Cathy Francis, who had no idea so many products were made with plastic 3, products like shampoo for your pets and bubbles for your kids.

"I'm really grateful to find out this information because sometimes we're not aware of this," Francis said.

Elizabeth Heist is so environmentally aware that she uses cloth diapers and metal baby bottles. When saw all of these products the I-team found she said the government should simply ban plastic 3.

"If you are going to preach family values," said Heist, "you know, make it so companies are not allowed to market things that are going to be harmful."

Others, like Ann Kaufman, say companies should be more socially conscious and use alternative plastics.

"what could possibly be going through your mind that you would put this in a child's hands," she asked.

The I-Team called every one of the companies marketing the plastic 3 bottles we found to see if they have any plans to switch their packaging.

Some never called us back, or simply said their products are FDA approved, others said they're making changes.

Johnson and Johnson said by e-mail that it is committed to reducing plastic 3 packaging, and it promises to change some packaging by the end of the year.

And remember the lollipop company? After hearing from the team-team, it sent a letter saying thanks for teaching us about yucky PVC.

They will now use non-PVC bags. About 50 national groups are now urging American stores to stop selling PVC products.

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