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12:23:00 PM EDT
Cities Rekindle Debate Over Plastic Bags
(Photo Credit: David Paul Morris, Getty Images)
Should We Ban Plastic Bags? Which Bag Is Best? The New York Times ran an article this week about a bill being considered in Annapolis, Md., that would ban plastic bags from all retail stores in order to protect marine life in the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries.
Stores would have to offer paper bags made from recycled materials. Plastic bags discarded as litter kill many fish and birds in the Chesapeake and nearby rivers every year.
The Times says that similar bills are being considered in cities such as Boston; Baltimore; Oakland, Calif.; Portland, Ore.; Santa Monica, Calif.; and Steamboat Springs, Colo. San Francisco has banned plastic bags at large retail stores.
I support the Annapolis bill because it would protect wildlife in our nation's largest estuary, which is in my home state.
Maryland retailers oppose the bill, saying plastic bags are less expensive than paper ones and cost less to transport. Costs will rise, they warn, and will eventually be passed on to the consumer. (Nothing new there)
Supporters say that we consume 12 million barrels of oil each year to produce the 100 billion plastic bags Americans use (and mostly discard) per annum. Recycled paper bags use no oil, they claim. (We cut down 14 million trees per year to make new paper bags; these do require oil in the manufacturing process.)
I think Annapolis should enact this law and retailers should then charge consumers for the recycled paper bags -- maybe 10 to 15 cents per bag. That way the bag users pays the cost of the bag. The result will be that shoppers will use fewer bags; many will bring their own reusable bags. (In Ireland, a 15-cent tax on plastic bags reduced use by 95 percent.)
For the record, making a plastic bag requires fewer natural resources and produces less pollution than making a paper bag. I'm not sure if that holds up when comparing a plastic bag to a recycled paper bag. Plastic bags take 5 to 1,000 years to decompose, but paper bags take about the same time, due to poor landfill design. (See 'The Live Earth Global Warming Survival Handbook,' by David de Rothschild)
The real answer to the "Paper or plastic?" question is "neither." Follow the adage "reduce, reuse, recycle." Reduce the number of bags you consume -- either don't get a bag with your purchase, or bring your own bag. Purchase some reusable canvas, hemp or mesh bags -- they'll last decades and you won't have paper or plastic bags piling up in your home.
Reuse any old plastic or paper bags that you have. Once they fall apart, recycle them.
(Photo Credit: Mario Tam, Getty Images)
Also keep the issue in perspective. According to columnists from the Sierra Club and Grist magazine, the paper vs. plastic debate is small potatoes: The 14 million trees used in paper bags represent one percent of the U.S. timber cut and the 12 million barrels of oils used for plastic bags equal a small fraction of the gasoline our cars and SUVs use on trips to the store each year.
So, using canvas and mesh bags is best; if you're stuck without them, choose plastic. But to really help the environment, drive your car less and buy the car with the highest miles per gallon that will meet your needs. Walk to the store with your bag and you're batting a thousand.
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I dont think we should ban it because pastic bags are good for my garabe cans lol
Stace from
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hi
8/9/07 12:31 AM