Reusable Shopping Bags - You Don't Need Paper or Plastic

There are many ways that pollution can damage reefs. Debris like this plastic bag can quickly become entangled on a coral and smother it.

(Courtesy of NOAA)

Here is more information from the EPA.

Did you know plastic grocery bags consume 40% less energy to produce and generate 80% less solid waste than paper bags? Did you know plastic bags can take 1,000 years to decompose whereas paper bags take about a month to decompose? The debate over whether plastic or paper bags are better for the environment has a long history and is often rekindled each time we check out at the grocery store when we hear that familiar question: Paper or plastic? Many of us have not been able to resolve this question, but there is an alternative --read on below.

There seem to be pluses and minuses on both sides of the debate. For paper bags, the life cycle stages consist of timber harvesting, pulping, paper and bag making, product use and waste disposal. For plastic (polyethylene) bags, the steps involve petroleum or natural gas extraction, ethylene manufacture, ethylene polymerization, bag processing, product use and waste disposal. In all of these steps, energy is required and wastes are generated.
Some more facts about these two products may help us to answer this age-old question:

Current research demonstrates that paper in today's landfills does not degrade or break down at a substantially faster rate than plastic does. In fact, nothing completely degrades in modern landfills due to the lack of water, light, oxygen, and other important elements that are necessary for the degradation process to be completed.

Incineration can decrease the quantity of plastic and paper bags. However, incineration causes air pollution and creates ash which has to be landfilled.

**Look into purchasing reusable bags or reusing your paper or plastic bags at the store. Reusing a bag meant for just one use has a big impact.**

In New York City alone, one less grocery bag per person per year would reduce waste by five million pounds and save $250,000 in disposal costs.

When one ton of paper bags is reused or recycled, three cubic meters of landfill space is saved and 13 - 17 trees are spared! In 1997, 955,000 tons of paper bags were used in the United States.

When one ton of plastic bags is reused or recycled, the energy equivalent of 11 barrels of oil are saved.

This sea turtle is choking on a plastic bag. Turtles eat jellyfish and often mistake plastic bags floating in the water for food.

Use reusable bags like the ones we have shown below. Reuse the plastic bags you do have as liners for your bags for wet items from the grocery store. When you are finished with the grocery type plastic bags, recycle them. Although it uses some energy resources for the recycling, it is better than having the plastic in a landfill or in our waterways and drainage systems.

Use reusable shopping bags when you shop at stores for items such as clothing. The heavier plastic bags they use at these stores are not recyclable.

Who knew that one simple act could do so much? Now that you know how easy it is to be green and save, keep going!

Check out some of the options below and then check out our blog at http://begreenandsave.blogspot.com for more great tips on how you can help the environment.

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Sea turtles, like this leatherback, can also get caught up in debris. Not only was this animal entangled, but a necropsy revealed a plug of plastic in its intestine (leatherbacks eat jellyfish which look a lot like floating plastic bags and wrap). (photo: Doug Beach)

(Courtesy of NOAA)