Environmental Impact of Plastic Bags

The best and most urgent way to answer the question , “Why do you use reusable bags ? It’s no secret that single-use plastics like shopping bags and water bottles are overcrowding landfills, and posing a threat to wildlife.

Do-gooders, tree huggers, and others urging us to reduce our plastic waste are so widespread that we may feel inclined just to ignore them.

The fact is that plastic bags have a negative impact on the environment. So rather than preaching to you dear readers who want to get straight to the point and then buy some cool stuff, let us give you some hard facts about single-use plastic bags.

5 Facts on Global Plastic Bag Use

• The Centers for Biological Diversity reported that plastic pollution in the seas has caused at least 267 deaths.
• Plastic bags alone are responsible for up to 100,000 deaths annually among marine animals. One of the most endangered species is the leatherback turtle. This turtle mistakenly believes plastic bags are jellyfish and is often killed by them. According to the Centers for Biological Diversity (1 out 3 leatherbacks) has plastic in their stomachs.
• Nearly one single-use plastic container is used per American resident per day. Let’s see how that compares to Denmark, where consumers use approximately four plastic bags per annum.
• The Earth Day Network estimates that less than 1% (of the 4 trillion plastic bags globally) are recycled every year, while the United States has a staggering 100 billion plastic bags.
• It can take plastic bags 500 years to become compostable in a landfill. According to Earth Day Network’s estimates, plastic bags take 500 years to degrade in a landfill.

Why isn’t everyone using reusable bags more?

This seems like an easy decision, considering all the advantages of using a reusable shopping bag. And it is.

Ironically though, our brains are the biggest obstacle to fully adopting reusable bag use. Many people simply forget that! We’ve all been there. You could also try to pack the bags into your vehicle so you don’t forget them when you go to the shop.

In recent years plastic bags have become somewhat of a taboo issue. In an effort to curb the pollution of our planet’s oceans, bans were introduced all over the globe. Even the most prolific producers of waste are looking to make plastic bags disappear with China aiming to ban non biodegradable bags by 2020.

The Earth Policy Institute estimates there are nearly a billion plastic bags still being used every year in the world, despite our dislike for single-use carriers. This works out to be 2 million plastic bags per minute. They will never biodegrade and bags can end up on trees and in the ocean, where they choke, choke and entangle wildlife. Even though bags eventually degrade, small pieces known as microplastics can still be found in food and drink water supplies.

Do you want to buy single-use bags from the store?

Then go for reusable bags.

Make sure you bring your grocery bags with you when you are done packing. Even better, make another trip to take them with you.

While these extra steps may seem tedious at first, if you repeat them enough times, you’ll never forget what bag you have. It’s a small price for saving the lives of millions and our planet.