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This is undoubtedly going to turn into a bit of a rant, but it's just one of those things that pisses me off. Last night I saw a story on the news that Santa Fe might be banning plastic bags at grocery and retail stores. People will also be charged for paper bags... .10 cents.
I've noticed that a lot of people here bring their own bags to the store... good for them I guess. If they think they're saving the planet, and don't mind the hassle, then more power to them. Who am I to interfere with that? But now we have a situation where these people are trying to force me to live the way they live. That's B.S. The news story last night had two kids from a local elementary school who supposedly thought this up all on their own, (yeah, right!) talking about how wonderful it is was going to be for everyone, etc, etc... blah, blah, blah. The kids were obviously parroting their parents beliefs and silly statistics. Lame as that is... I guess I don't have a problem with lefty loons brainwashing their children... again, who am I to interfere?
The bottom line is I don't feel like buying reusable bags. I'll be damned if I'm going to be charged for paper bags, and the plastic bags aren't really going to ruin the entire planet. If Albertsons wants to give me a free plastic bag for my convenience because I decided to shop at their store, then that's between me and Albertsons. People need to but out! This year they say I can't have a plastic bag because it's bad for the environment... okay, fine. So what's to stop them next year when (because of the environment of course) they demand I buy a Prius or take the bus?
One last thought... As an elementary school student in the 1980s I remember quite clearly that back then it was paper bags that were bad and evil! Cutting down tress and the rainforest and blah, blah, blah... whereas today paper bags suddenly aren't bad anymore. Huh, go figure. Maybe, just maybe... the plastic ones aren't bad either and it's totally unnecessary to ban them? Just a thought.
As an elementary school student in the 1980s I remember quite clearly that back then it was paper bags that were bad and evil! Cutting down tress and the rainforest and blah, blah, blah...
Biodegradable plastics are far less harmful to the environment than other materials that degrade more slowly - like paper and cardboard.
Quote:
Plastic bags are the most energy-efficient form of grocery bag. The U.K. Environment Agency compared energy use for plastic, paper and re-usable bags. It found the “global warming potential” of plastic grocery bags is one-fourth that of paper bags and 1/173 that of a reusable cotton bag.
"consumers would have to use a cotton bag 173 times, or once a week for more than three years, before it matched the energy savings of plastic bags."
Interesting article. So if my canvas cloth bags last longer than 3 years they are more environmentally friendly, correct? As long as I use each one once a week. I'm sure they'll last a lot longer than 3 years. Not sure if it's true but someone told me in Europe they provide no bags.
My pet peeve with plastic is how many of them are thrown out the windows and end up in chollas and in my garden. Lovely. I also get tired of them collecting under my sink and taking them back to the store.
I wonder how many people actually take them back to the store to recycle versus throwing in the garbage. How many are actually reused (doggie bags, etc.) versus tossed? I certainly don't reuse every plastic bag I bring home and I try to remember to use my cloth bags so I don't have as many as a typical family must collect. The article didn't address those questions and it seemed to be their assumption that people recycle the plastic.
I try to never take paper if I have to have a bag at the store. In Santa Fe they're even harder to recycle than plastic and the one time I tried to keep them next to the frig to reuse, when I pulled it out there was a big black widow on it. Shudder...I almost grabbed it. That cured me of paper!
Maybe a better project would have been to get easier recycling for paper and cardboard and to promote recycling the plastic bags or no bags at all--I think Natural Grocers no longer provides bags. It would be interesting to see the research they did before deciding on this particular project but I think the main thing is that they are caring about the environment and trying to do something about it. Maybe they should stick to their computer games instead.
Not sure if it's true but someone told me in Europe they provide no bags.
We lived in Europe in the late 70's. Our first shopping experience was that they provided no bags. But they did have some for sale. They did last us the four years we were there.
They only banned plastic bags in Ireland when I was leaving so I never dealt with it till I went home in 2006. It was a PITA because I never remembered to bring a reusable bag with me. I got charged 10cents once for a bag but the other times I just said I am not from here and I got free bags.
The great advantage to the plastic is their strength. Not that they won't tear or break under certain conditions, but remembering back to when paper bags were the norm, there was a lot of spillage using the grocery sacks. Plus they were awkward to carry - no convenient handles!
Comparing Europe to USA overlooks the fact that most Americans have vehicles to haul home their goods in, and are not in the habit of daily shopping for their groceries.
Europeans traditionally shop daily, carry their goods home on bicycles, buses and trains and use bags and backpacks that they find easy to carry. They don't, for example, buy toilet paper in dozen roll packages or their beer in 30 can "suitcases."
I hate plastic bags. Hardly any recycles them and they are an eyesore, blowing all over the place. Santa Fe does recycle paper bags as well as newspaper. So I don't mind paper. But I always keep three or four resuable bags in my car. Sturdier, and easier to handle. And why shouldn't the store charge you for a paper bag? They pay for them, don't they? That's just passing on a cost of doing business.
I love the plastic bags. They blow down the street and then get stuck on my chollas. As far as I am concerned, plastic bags clinging on cacti are a form of southwestern landscaping.
A few years before I left Seattle, the trash collection started a new system, where the smaller your garbage can (the introduced 3 different sizes), the lower your bill. This encouraged people to recycle, and to minimize their trash. I wish Santa Fe would do something like that.
My experience also. I think the city does a lot of things for political reasons that is more appearance than substance. The upcoming ban on plastic bags at grocery stores is, to me, another example. Certainly not the biggest environmental impact the city could make.....
I think the city does a lot of things for political reasons that is more appearance than substance. The upcoming ban on plastic bags at grocery stores is, to me, another example. Certainly not the biggest environmental impact the city could make.....
I disagree. But it could be an environmental impact if carefully administered. I don't normally have strong concerns about a lot of the environmental and conservation claims. I have seen people protesting cutting of tree limbs (That were rubbing power lines), and other questionable issues. But the "inks and colorants used on some bags contain lead, a toxin. Every year, Americans throw away some 100 billion plastic bags" which is the equivalent to dumping nearly 12 million barrels of oil." The counties of Australia, Bangladesh, England, India, Mexico, Myanmar, Rwanda and other countries have cities which have placed bans on plastic bags. “Plastic shopping bags are an enormous problem for New York City,” which pays $10 million annually to send 100,000 tons of plastic bags that are tossed in the general trash to landfills.
I do not agree with some the the Santa Fe issues on plastics bags, but it is still in discussion. There is also a thread Plastic bags - should we ban them? in the Albuquerque forum...
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