Have you thought about saying no to plastic bags?

Question

Saying no to plastic bags would help the environment in the long run as well as other recycling tips... but if you recycle old items made of fabric and make shopping bags like on this site - would it make you feel better - www.mosbags.com

www.morsbags.com

Answer 1

I have, and it just does work too well. First of all, I couldn't quite find the cloth bags I wanted. Secondly, paper bags around supermarkets around here have dousy designs. There are no handles to allow people to carry more than one bags in one hand. Choosing between green and convenience is not a pleasant one. People would choose plastic bags more often than we like.

Going green can be a lot easier if some thoughts were put into the idea. Paper bags will not be as strong as the ones which handles and would cost significant more initially, but it's a worthy pursuit.

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As for the ones who said using paper bags kill trees, those idiots should be dragged outside and shot on the spot. Which morons are cutting down trees to make paper bags? Paper bags just need to hold stuff for short amount of time. The raw materials for the bags should be 100% recycled. Any other compositions of recycled materials for the bags are just plainly wrong.

As for the nuclear plants debate, I do not exactly like it either. Yet, the thing is that saving the environment is saving the future for the sake of our children and our children's children. It's always difficult to predict the future. Nuclear plants were troublesome before mainly because of the nuclear waste problems. The waste problem still has not gone away but supposedly nuclear technology has made tremendous strides to make nuclear energy safter than before.

Also, nuclear energy has been fission energy, which involves splitting atoms into radio active materials. Fussion energy as in merging seperate atoms into one are being devloped as we speak. Have we been able to merge radioactive atoms into stable non-radioactive atoms, the disputes about nuclear energy will completely disappear. Yet, currently, there are no developments toward this specific area.


XR

Answer 2

Great answere SHO R!! And yes, something that makes people remember really is the magic ticket. James Knight--fortunately that's not true--In SanFransisco plastic grocery bags were out-lawed a while back. The effect of that is spreading. I live 3 valleys away from there and people are still talking about it here.

All it takes is a little work and courage to get people to pay attention and "act right". I reuse, reuse, reuse--everything I can. I split between paper and plastic depending on what I need for my reusing. I once sat down and wrote "100 things to do with plastic bags" it was fun and made me think. Some were silly--but all were actually do-able. A lot of stores now give you credit on your grocery tab for bringing your own bag--but usually you have to ask. If they don't, talk to the manager and push for them to not only do it--but also advertise that they do. Make it your pet project to convert one store before the end of the year. Now, make your own list of reuse ideas, have fun, and keep up the great work everyone.

Answer 3

In Ireland the government decided to start charging us for plastic bags in August 2002 - five years ago. The bags now cost 22 cents a time, so we simply stopped using them. And it is amazing how much cleaner the environment is as a result. I have a cotton bag, but if I forget to bring it with me, I use a cardboard box from the store. And I recycle that later.

Answer 4

Plastic bags can be hard to come by here. It was annoying the first time I went to a store and had to pay extra for a canvas bag but I like it now. The big canvas bags are so much easier to carry things in when you're walking several blocks. It's nice to not have plastic bags blowing all over the place too. In Oklahoma you would see hundreds of those things down every backroad, some full of trash even. It's disgusting.

Answer 5

On days when my mind is working well enough to plan ahead a bit, I bring a laundry basket along with me to the grocery store. I put it on its end in the cart while I shop. When I get to the checkout, I wiggle the empty basket out. I "bag" my own groceries by putting it all back into the basket into it or ask the "bagger" to do the same. My biggest basket fills a shopping cart so it's exactly the volume that fits in there. I put the filled basket back on the cart somehow so I don't have to bend into the cart to lift it out. This works for me because I drive a car to the store and I'm a strong woman. (Courtesy of 13 years of carrying children around and frequent visits to Curves, but I digress.) Could use 2 smaller baskets. It doesn't hurt to permanent marker your name on them to prevent anyone from suggesting that you're stealing laundry baskets lol.

When I forget my basket and I'm just buying a few items and I can easily carry them, I tell the cashier that I don't need a bag. I say I'm "saving a plastic tree." They smile. A teeny positive effect on the environment, a smile for a cashier. Who knows? Maybe the idea of turning down the bag will be a bit contagious to the cashier and person behind me because they remeber the idea because it was highlighted by the silly joke.

Answer 6

Yes, I try to use as few plastic or paper bags as possible. I have fabric bags that I use for shopping. There are still occasions when I don't but most of the time I at least try to cut back on the numbers. You can buy inexpensive bags $1.00 each at places like Grocery Outlet in Yakima. I have collected a number of canvas bags and find them very useful. I also have collected old grain bags and reused them for horse tack and other things that need caring

Answer 7

Plastic bags seem to breed on their own. There are so many of them, everywhere one looks. I use plastic bags to line my wastebaskets and when it is time to throw the trash away, I just tie them shut and toss and put a new one in the basket. However, I prefer paper bags when I shop or even cloth bags. When I lived in Missouri, stores would offer a nickel credit on every bag that was reused. I have never seen that here in Virginia. I think there needs to be done more, to save our environment but getting people to switch from plastic bags will take time. Until they determine it is necessary to save our planet, instead of a matter of convenience to use plastic bags, I don't see many people willing to change. I remember when there was no such thing as plastic bags; paper sacks or boxes were used to sack items. Even though I use plastic bags now to line my wastebaskets, I try not to do a lot of shopping that will cause me to receive more plastic bags in return. I have tried to bring my own bag with me when I shop but am always given strange looks and am told that they have to sack my groceries, or whatever, in their own bags. Doesn't make sense to me.

Answer 8

I always bring my own bags and I also have my own bags for produce. I buy as little prepackaged crap as I can and I carry around a reusable (metal) water bottle with me where ever I go.

For the guy who seemed to think paper bags were okay.. well I hate to break it to you mate, but paper bags are just as damaging to the environment as plastic.

I can't believe people think that just reusing a plastic bag to scoop up dog poo makes it okay to use them in the first place.. Plastic is STILL plastic.. the less we make of it the better.

Take a look around when you go outside at the number of bags hanging out of trees or blowing around on the ground. It's terrible and it's all so people can be lazier...

It amazes me how people justify themselves to do such things...

Answer 9

At the risk of going off at a tangent I can't really let Rob's comments go unchallenged.

1. Compact flourescent lights are better than 'old filament bulbs'. The bit about mercury is a red herring because whilst he is right that they contain it, there is also mercury in coal (the main source of fuel for electricity generation). The saving in mercury is greater through the energy saved than the piddling amount of mercury in a compact flourescent light.

2. Nuclear emits less CO2 than other fossil fuels, but it is not an energy saving magic bullet. It is expensive, unreliable and a long term headache. The best form of energy is saved energy. And saving energy is 7 times cheaper than trying to build your way out of an energy gap with nuclear.

Sorry to have a go. I only wanted to support the idea of refusing plastic bags!

Answer 10

I recently purchased fabric grocery bags (just some plain colored tote bags at Hobby Lobby). I wish I remembered to bring them into the store with me more often. I'm working on that. Truly though, I feel so good about using them. And even though I get some strange looks and some hassle from cashiers, I know I am bringing awareness about this issue, which is crucial. I also plan to give fabric grocery bags as gifts!

P.S. When using your fabric bags at the store, offer to bag your own items and the clerk is likely to be more easygoing with you.