It’s estimated that the world devours plastic bags at a rate well over 500,000,000,000 (500 billion) annually, almost 1 million per minute!
There’s really no market for recycling plastic bags. Very few recycling centers accept plastic bags because they are of little recyclable value. Plastic bags are made of high-density polyethylene, (HDPE), manufactured from non-renewable resources, such as oil and gas. Plastic bags can take from 15 to1,000 years to break down and they do NOT biodegrade, but rather photodegrade, a method where sunlight breaks down the plastic into smaller and smaller toxic bits contaminating soil and waterways.
Paper bags have issues too. Every year nearly 900,000,000 trees are cut down to provide materials for American paper and pulp mills. Contributing to this figure is the 10 billion brown paper grocery bags used annually in supermarkets.
Many countries in Europe and Asia are attempting to abolish plastic bags. Some are banning plastic bags altogether while others are implementing a tax on plastic bags to decrease their use. There are many accessible alternatives to plastic and paper bags that you can consider. The most effective way of reducing the amount of plastic litter in our environment is to reduce consumption.
Consider using a reusable bag which has the ability to delete an average of 1,000 plastic bags over its lifetime. Almost every supermarket sells them now, and some even give you a small discount on your groceries if you use them instead of plastic bags. Keep them in the trunk of your car so they’re always handy! If you’re going on a shopping spree and are considering using paper or plastic, consider neither! Take a cloth bag with you or a backpack!
Some alternative choices…
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