The Plastic Bag Problem

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“Plastic Free” is a practical guide to educate everyone on the presence of plastic and its harmful effects on the environment. Learn how to rid your life of plastic with pertinent knowledge, realistic application and a commitment to encourage others to limit — or even eliminate —their plastic intake.
“Plastic Free” is a practical guide to educate everyone on the presence of plastic and its harmful effects on the environment. Learn how to rid your life of plastic with pertinent knowledge, realistic application and a commitment to encourage others to limit — or even eliminate —their plastic intake.
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Blowing down the street, flapping from trees, clogging storm drains (costing municipalities millions of dollars in cleanup costs), and making their way out to sea, plastic bags have been referred to as “urban tumbleweeds” for good reason.
Blowing down the street, flapping from trees, clogging storm drains (costing municipalities millions of dollars in cleanup costs), and making their way out to sea, plastic bags have been referred to as “urban tumbleweeds” for good reason.

Plastic is prevalent in our lives. It fills our fridges storing food in individual containers. It frames our glowing computer screens and nestles our DVDs. It totes our groceries around when we lack a free hand. Unfortunately, plastic has a darker side. Plastic is made from fossil fuel sources, such as natural gas and petroleum. Toxic chemicals bleed into our water from the plastic bottles we purchase. Plastic is not biodegradable, therefore it always exists, crowding our landfills and polluting our oceans. You can combat the growing plastic problem with knowledge and a helpful guide, both found in Plastic Free(Skyhorse Publishing, 2012) by Beth Terry. Writer of the leading blog on plastic-free living, My Plastic-Free Life, author Beth Terry provides personal anecdotes, stats about the environmental and health problems related to plastic, and personal solutions and tips on how to limit your plastic footprint. Learn about the plastic bag problem and what you can do to cull these “urban tumbleweeds” from the landscape in this excerpt from chapter 2 “Plastic Bags (Why Are There Melons in My Shirt?).”

What’s Wrong With Plastic Bags?

Plastic bags have some unique problems. While their environmental costs are burdensome for communities and the planet, the cost of plastic bags for retailers is pretty low. Made from ethylene, a byproduct of petroleum or natural gas, plastic bags are so cheap and flimsy that cashiers use them freely, double bagging as a matter of course and often sticking just a few items in each bag. As a result, shoppers end up with piles of plastic bags spilling out of closets and threatening to take over cupboards . . . until we finally throw up our hands and either dump them in the trash or, if we’re lucky enough to live in an area where stores provide plastic bag collection bins, cart them back for recycling. Sure, some of us reuse plastic shopping bags to line our waste bins or to pick up dog poop, but the bags still end up in the landfill.

Even when disposed of properly, plastic bags are so lightweight and aerodynamic, they are easily picked up and carried by the wind. They can escape from trash bins, recycle bins, garbage trucks, and landfills, and end up littering the landscape. Blowing down the street, flapping from trees, clogging storm drains (costing municipalities millions of dollars in cleanup costs), and making their way out to sea, plastic bags have been referred to as “urban tumbleweeds” for good reason. And they persist in the environment, causing harm for a very long time.

Eating Plastic Bags for Lunch

  • Published on Feb 4, 2013
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