Is it better for the environment to choose paper or plastic bags at the grocery store, and why?

Question

Assume that I'm going to recycle both types of bags when I'm done with them.

FYI - all grocery stores around here have places where I can recycle my old plastic grocery bags.

Answer 1

Actually, if you are concerned about the effects of paper and plastic bags on our environment, you should use neither.

Plastic bags are made of petroleum products, which are being depleted at an alarming rate. They pose a lethal hazard to wildlife. Even if people reuse them as garbage can liners and such, are those bags worth the hundreds of years that it takes for a bag to decompose in a landfill?

The production of paper bags uses a lot of energy and requires chemicals that are dangerous to the environment.

Reusable bags are more friendly to the environment, don't burst under heavier weights like paper and plastic do, and have longer straps that fit over the shoulder nicely so that you have your hands free to do other things.

They are also durable and can be washed and used for several years. Today, they are even a fashion statement. Businesses like Eco Chic Totes from Kayecee and Company(http://www.priintfection.com/totes) are offering canvas totes that are very stylish. A lot of people already have tote bags around the house that they could use for shopping. Or you can find them very inexpensively at garage sales and such. When I first started using canvas, several friends gave me their unwanted totes.... and a few converted with me. :)

Answer 2

Hi,

Whether you know it or now, you asked a trick question. The truth is, you can't really recycle the plastic bags you get at grocery stores.

Why? Because the bags are made from petroleum products, they're non-recyclable and non-biodegradable. Well, mostly, anyway. Some grocery stores do collect these bags and recycle them though alternate means. However, this is a very small percentage of the total number of plastic bags produced. According to the Christian Science Monitor, "less than 1 percent of 100 billion plastic bags tossed each year get recycled."

In an Ask Yahoo! column I wrote earlier this year, I found that "the typical plastic grocery bag takes anywhere from 450 to 1,000 years to break down." The best solution is to bring your own bags.

Thanks!

Mike

Answer 3

The worst sort of bag is the sort you pick up at the store - take your own instead. It doesn't much matter what type of bag you re-use at the store because by re-using it you are costing the environment nothing. And it cost you nothing too. Only when the bag can no longer be re-used does it matter what it was made of and then plastic is worse because it takes so long to decompose and it can be a hazard to wildlife until it has decomposed. I think re-usable hessian bags are amongst the best because they last a long time and decompose naturally when worn out and discarded. But if you already have some plastic bags it is best to use them up first rather than throw them away before they have worn out. And remember never go shopping without your own bags. I'm glad you are thinking about this issue and I am sure your example will be taken up by others eventually. The issue is growing. Best wishes

Answer 4

Obviously the best is to bring your own reuseable bag from home. I always bring a big tote bag, Big Blue Bag from Ikea, and smaller canvas bag whenever I go to the grocery store.

If for some reason you have an aversion to this, paper is probably the better environmental choice. Paper bags can be recycled, though it takes more energy to produce them than plastic bags, and trees have to be cut down to make them.

Plastic grocery-type bags cannot be recycled. They can be reused for various applications, but if you put them in your regular recycle bin they will get thrown out. California just instituted a law that all stores have to have plastic bag recycle (reuse) bins.

If you know of a place where they have specific bins for these plastic bags, then that's probably a better choice than paper. Otherwise get paper bags, unless you can bring your own reuseable bags from home.

Answer 5

We are so behind on this issue. Paper and plastic bags are not the answer. I've batted this question back and forth. Grocery stores are even confused as which is better. Cut down trees or plug up landfills? People overseas have it right. They bring their own bags - all the time. If we weren't so lazy here in the US, that's what I'd recommend. Bring your own - cloth or recycled bags.

Answer 6

If you recycle them both, it doesn't matter. But I think that paper is still better, because recycling a plastic bag means that somebody else will use it. There are still people who don't care about recycling, so you don't know if the person who gets your old bag will recycle or reuse it. Paper decomposes and you don't have anything to worry about.

Answer 7

Please! Invest in some canvas totes to eliminate the need to use either. Plastic takes forever to decompose and anyone out there that thinks all the plastic bags that get 'recycled' to good use is kidding themselves.

Paper degrades faster, but how many retail stores even have that option; plus the fact that chosing paper means the loss of more trees.

I have canvas totes that I keep in the car; they are strong, washable, and will last me a lonnnnnnnnngggggggg time even with everyday use. You can pick these up really cheapl at flea markets, garage sales, dollar stores. Or you can order eco-made fiber ones on line.

Answer 8

I'm not really sure if there's much in it. Clearly the best way to recycle is to re-use. Felling a Tree or using other fuels to produce plastics both have their effect on the environment, but, with biodegradable plastics and the new technologies in plastic engineering the 'Plastic option' has become far more viable as an 'ecological' product.

Hope this helps!

Take care C.J.

Answer 9

Paper because the recycle process is cleaner than plastic. Just keep taking your paper bags back to reuse them at the store or use your own and get credit and you'll not have to make that decision each time.

Answer 10

I always get both, the paper inside. Then I know that what I bought is not going to rip through some crappy bag and smash in the supermarket parking lot (especially if it is raining). I also know I can re-use the combo at home as a drip proof garbage bag. Otherwise I would have to buy some other strong plastic bag to put trash in for disposal.

Around here if paper or plastic has food drippings or grease on them the recyclers will not take them. And let's face it that food crud is going to go somewhere no matter how many other things you recycle.