Should plastic bags be banned?

[thalassa]

They are terrible for the environment and more often than not, they end up floating around where they don't belong...

Is it time to ban the plastic bag?

[anunitu]

Re: Should plastic bags be banned?

In many places now you have cloth bags you can buy and reuse them over and over. I do think plastic bags need to go.

[monsno_leedra]

Re: Should plastic bags be banned?

Don't think the ole cloth bag will be that great for a pooper scooper bag. Personally think the issue is more connected to our throw away mentality and such than actual plastic bag usage. Change the mentality. Figure plastic bags are bad but no where near as bad as the plastic can / bottle holders that also end up in the water and such.

[anunitu]

Re: Should plastic bags be banned?

It used to be you used the paper shopping bags for a lot of things. For the garbage can,smaller ones for lunches..then the paper bags went like the dodo,and we got plastic. Things change and there will always be a replacement for things,and we will adjust.

[monsno_leedra]

Re: Should plastic bags be banned?

The old double sleeved paper bags. They made groceries so much easier though many a bag person over loaded them to the point you couldn't carry them. Bring them home with groceries and then use them to cover your school books, trash cans, my family used them for bags of popcorn for the drive in and probably a thousand other things. I sort of despise the plastic bags for groceries as what might have taken a few paper bags turns into 20 something for the same amount of groceries.

[Willow]

Re: Should plastic bags be banned?

I dislike the plastic bags and don't use them (for shopping) unless I absolutely have to. Which really is more like once every 6 months these days.

[B. de Corbin]

Re: Should plastic bags be banned?

The plastic bags are long past due for their own extinction.

They were first adopted on the mistaken idea that they were better for the environment than paper bags. What people fail to realize is that paper is made of one of the few honestly renewable natural resources we have - poplar trees. A field of poplar trees can be clear cut every ten years for pulp - the trees grow back quickly from roots, and they have a short natural life (10 - 20 years, average). Paper is biodegradable and, if properly managed (which IS important), goes right back to where it ought to be - the soil.

Plastic bags are horrendous for the environment. They are made of hydrocarbon by- products, they hang around for eternity, they lead to a slow, lingering, painful death in any animal that mixes with them.

All in all, a misguided snafu that needs correcting, ASAP.

[habbalah]

Re: Should plastic bags be banned?

In Oregon (I think) they have (or had) it so that plastic bags were banned, and you had to pay (a very nominal price) for paper bags. It was to encourage people to bring their own. Please excuse me if my memory is off--it was about thirteen years ago when I was out there.

[Thorbjorn]

Re: Should plastic bags be banned?

Is it time to ban the plastic bag?

Damn skippy!

[Tylluan Penry]

Re: Should plastic bags be banned?

Wales banned free plastic bags a few years bag and even a nominal charge made a big difference. Also pooper scooper bags were made degradable and easy to rot down. It does make a difference.

[Medusa]

Re: Should plastic bags be banned?

Yeah. My near by city already banned them. I have about 5 different reusable bags for all occasions. I love them!

My fave being my Wolverine one from the 99 cents store

[Rae'ya]

Re: Should plastic bags be banned?

Categorically YES.

Adelaide banned plastic bags in supermarkets and large retail stores years ago. The world didn't explode and the retail industry survived.

Unfortunately the rest of Australia didn't jump on the bandwagon and you can now purchase plastic bags at the supermarket, but they're heavy reusable ones rather than the ols style ones. I have a pack of roll up fabric bags in my handbag at all times now, and we have a stack of cloth bags that we take grocery shopping. We also have mesh bags to use for buying veggies rather than put them inbthe little plastic bags.

Also, you should use biodegradable poop bags, not regular plastic.

[anunitu]

Re: Should plastic bags be banned?

About plastics,just this picture of a "Plastic Island"



Afloat in the Ocean, Expanding Islands of Trash

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/10/sc...atch.html?_r=0

[Rae'ya]

Re: Should plastic bags be banned?

A point of difference between plastic bottles and pladtic bags is that most bottles are rcycleable, while bags aren't. In Adelaide we all have recycle bins right alongside our garbage bins, provided by the council along with a fortnightly pick up (all free of charge). Shopping malls and public places have dual bin systems and separate bins for bottles. If local governments worked on building community recycling habits, we may have less plastic bottle wastage. It's not a perfect solution, but it's more realistic than trying to ban plastic bottles.