Over the last several months Los Angeles County rolled out a plan to ban plastic disposable bags in an effort to make the area free from plastic litter and to combat the negative environmental impact caused by plastic bags. The ban went into action in stages. The first stage went into law July 1, 2011 and banned the use of plastic bags in major retailers. Phase II extended the ban to smaller establishments on January, 1 2012.
It is understood that reusable bags are safer on the environment, but once you decide to make the switch to reusable bags your decisions do not end there. Reusable shopping bags are definitely better for the environment than disposable plastic bags, but not all reusable bags are the same. Bags constructed from bamboo offer an unparalleled level of sustainability and eco-friendliness.
Champaign, Illinois is throwing around the idea of placing a tax on disposable plastic and paper bags. The goal is simple: to reduce the community’s carbon footprint. The secondary benefit of such a tax would be the revenue. The bag tax could raise nearly $200,000 in revenue for Champaign, according to Angela Adams, recycling coordinator for the City of Champaign. The money would go back to the community and would be used to finance programs and resources for the City, including an education campaign on recycling.
Located in the Pacific Ocean are a number of circular currents that run several thousand miles wide and are known as the North Pacific Gyre. Most vessels making the journey between the mainland United States and Hawaii typically try to avoid this high-pressure system in the central Pacific Ocean because the water lacks the nutrients necessary for fruitful fishing and it lacks the wind needed to propel vessels relying on the winds power to thrust them across the ocean. Trash and debris that find its way into the ocean from Pacific Rim countries travel via these currents and accumulate about 1,000 miles off the California coast all the way to the coast of Japan into what has come to be known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.
Plastic bags are not very popular in Eugene, Oregon, so a recent move to ban them has not caused much of a stir. And the switch to reusable bags has found support from organizations that typically do not back plastic bag bans: grocers. More than 60 local businesses that range from mom-and-pop shops to major chains in the Eugene area have announced their support of the ban. There is still some work to be done, but in the best-case scenario, the folks of Eugene can be free from plastic bags in as little as 6 months.
Sometimes agreeing to disagree is just not an option. The city of San Francisco was recently on the receiving end of a lawsuit that claims the San Francisco Board of Supervisors violated the California Environmental Quality Control Act by not submitting the new ban, which expanded the existing ban put into action in 2007, to a lengthy environmental review before passing the measure. The suit was brought by Steven Joseph, of the Save the Plastic Bag Coalition. Joseph has filed a number of lawsuits against counties and cities all over the state of California fighting efforts to reduce the consumption of disposable plastic bags and encourage reusable grocery bags.
As Girl Scouts across the country commemorate their 100th anniversary of their organization, they are participating in a Take Action Project that they have dubbed the Forever Green program with the goal to educate girls about the environment and sustainability. Teaching girls about the impact waste has on our shared world and how to reduce the amount of non-biodegradable waste each of us contributes to landfills with single-use plastic bags and bottles. Learning how using reusable grocery bags and water bottles can reduce their carbon footprint.
Kindergarten students at Dillon Valley Elementary in Colorado, which is about 70 miles west of Denver, recently, completed a six week unit on water and oceans, and a main point the kids took away from their studies was that plastic bags are just no good. Lessons focused on water quality and ways to protect our waterways, students learned about the destructive impact of litter and that disposable plastic bags make up the overwhelming majority of litter. The devastating toll plastic bags take on the environment, particularly the world’s oceans, was an eye opener for the kids. Many of the children were saddened by the knowledge that marine animals can become entangled or mistakenly eat discarded plastic bags which lead to their deaths. Empowered with this knowledge the students made the decision to forgo plastic bags in favor of reusable shopping bags.
Hawaii is known for its stunning natural beauty and this environment is very much tied into the culture and the day-to-day life of those who call the island chain home. This makes unsightly litter all the more unsettling. To help protect the beauty and integrity of their home and to do right by the environment the Hawaii County Council approved a bill to ban plastic bags on the Big Island in favor of reusable bags for shopping and groceries. The bill barely passed with the 5 minimum votes needed to get the measure in front of the mayor, Billy Kenoi, who in turn waited till the last day possible to sign the bill into law.
Washington State is quickly becoming a hotbed for reusable shopping bags among more and more plastic bag bans. As another city recently passed ordinance number 1294, also known as the Solid Waste and Plastic Bag Reduction Ordinance. The City Council voted on the ordinance with a strong 7-0 vote and starting January 1, 2013, retail establishments in the city will not be able to give customers plastic disposable bags.
It is well known by now that San Francisco was one of the first cities in North America to ban plastic bags. The initial law that went into action in 2007 banned plastic disposable bags from being distributed in large grocery stores and chain pharmacies. The reasoning was groundbreaking back in 2007 since the notion of banning plastic bags was still in its infancy, but it was simple enough: plastic bags are not biodegradable so when they are tossed in landfills they just take up space. Furthermore, disposable bags wreak havoc on the ocean, wildlife, and their habitats, they clog sewer systems and storm drains, and they have a tendency to end up as litter.
Many stores have decided to make an impact and charge for disposable bags or ban plastic bags altogether. Many of these policies are in response to environmental issues or the increasing number of bans being implemented across the country. Whatever the reason, when stores charge a fee or ban disposable bags the purpose is to encourage the use of sustainable eco-friendly reusable bags.
There is no denying the many merits of reusable bags, from the environmental impact to the cost savings for both the stores that supply disposable bags and the municipalities that pick up litter. Reusable shopping bags definitely are a step in the right direction on many fronts, but they require some care and attention. If not properly cared for reusable bags can possibly nurture and spread bacteria. A few studies have been done on the issue and while the amounts of bacteria found were minimal, exposure is all it takes to become ill. Remember to bring your bags
In an unprecedented turn of events, Sioux Lookout, in Ontario, Canada has rescinded the bag ban put into place in September 2010. A town bylaw implemented the ban on single-use plastic bags which were not to be sold or given away within the town. The plan was structured with a 1-year phase-in period to allow residents to get used to an existence free of disposable bags. During the phase-in period, warnings were issued to anyone violating the law, but after that period fines would be charged to those selling or giving away disposable plastic bags.
Students from the small New York state town of Sleepy Hollow have some big plans. A group of middle school students in the Environmental Action Club have started a grassroots campaign to ban plastic bags and move to reusable bags in their hometown. They got the idea from the neighboring city of Rye which recently put a bag ban in place and from the movie ‘Bag It,’ a documentary about the environmental effect of plastic bags. Their efforts have attracted the attention of the mayor, Drew Fixell, who paid the club a visit to discuss the pros and cons of such a ban.
Plastic bags have come under fire lately, as they should. Resources are drained to create these bags and only a small percentage ends up being recycled, leaving the rest to either sit in landfills or litter streets, parks, and wildlife habitats. To put an end to the environmental and financial havoc plastic bags wreck on the world many cities have taken to banning plastic bags to encourage the use of reusable shopping bags. Many such bans include a section concerning paper bags. A typical ban consists of a straight out prohibition of plastic bags, but allows paper bags to be
Over the last several years cities have contemplated and/or put bans on plastic bags into motion. Those who support the bans cite the environmental impacts. But even still laws are sometimes not enough to stop the use of single-use plastic bags in favor of reusable grocery bags. Read more about cities and countries struggle of dealing with this growing problem.
There is seldom a one-size-fits all solution to big problems, and the folks of Madison, Wisconsin are proving that point. As cities all across the United States are banning plastic disposable bag in hopes of reducing litter and preventing these non-biodegradable nuisances from taking up space in garbage dumps, Madison decided to step up efforts to recycle plastic bags. In 2009 Madison began a plastic bag recycling program. Drop-off locations were setup throughout the area and residents could simply deposit their plastic bags.
In an effort to combat litter and encourage recycling many states have enacted returnable container laws, more commonly referred to as bottle bills. Oregon was the first state to put such a trailblazing law into place in 1972 and since that time 10 other states have passed similar legislation. Between that and rise in the use of reusable water bottles, less and less is winding up in landfills.
Several cities across the United States are weighing the pros and cons of banning plastic disposable bags. Austin, Texas is another city implementing such a ban in favor of reusable bags. The Austin Resource Recovery, the department handling the transition, has been working diligently on drafting and redrafting the bill to make sure they get it right. As with other cities that have passed similar bans, there is resistance and opposition to switching to reusable shopping bags, but the authorities of Austin have allowed the community to join the conversation and give feedback via public forums.