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- Jon Entine, 12 October 2009
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Opinion:
The last word: Plastic waste – Ethical dilemma in the bag
Jon Entine asks if plastic bags are really the problem they are made out to be
Corporations are following suit. After first instituting a charge for plastic bags, Ikea ditched them completely. And now Wal-Mart has launched its latest sustainability effort, first in Brazil, where it is no longer bagging its goods in plastic as part of its so-called Global Plastic Shopping Bag Waste Reduction Programme in cooperation with the Environmental Defence Fund. It is even participating in a television ad campaign featuring a popular musician with the slogan “saco e um saco”, which translates as either “a bag is a pain in the butt” or “a bag sucks”.
The United Nations is putting its stamp on the movement. A top official for the UN Environment Programme has called for a global ban on plastic bags. “There is simply zero justification for manufacturing them any more, anywhere,” says Achim Steiner, executive director of UNEP.
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Comments:
Plastic Bags - Symphony UK, 13 Oct 2009
John Entine is right - it makes no sense to ban plastic bags (see http://www.biodeg.org/Plasticbagbans.htm), and the alternatives are worse.
It is however a fact of life that some plastics will get into the open environment, where they can lie or float around for decades. The answer is Controlled-life Plastics (see d2w.net) which will self destruct after their useful life, leaving no harmful residues. The additives are NOT toxic and they do NOT pollute water sources.
This type of plastic is made from a by-product of oil which used to be wasted, so nobody is importing extra oil to make it.
Plastic bags - Julian Friedland, 14 Oct 2009
Interesting points all. But I think you too quickly embrace the recycling option, which during this economic contraction is no longer profitable. Recyclables are now piling up without sufficient demand to process them.
You assume that reusable tote bags are unrealistic. But they are becoming quite popular among educated consumers, and are really the best solution. Co-ops and health food stores are now charging for non-reusable bags as an incentive for shoppers to bring their own. And leaders of that industry such as Whole Foods have been giving bag credits. That seems pretty socially-responsible to me.
Plastic bags - Louis Chauvin, 14 Oct 2009
Entine quickly and seamlessly moves from plastic bags being mistaken for food to "getting caught" in plastic bags. That changes the whole argument doesn't it? Read a lot of stories about cows dying in India because of ingestion of these bags. I doubt that they'd die from "getting caught" in them though.
Plastic Bags - , 20 Oct 2009
A useful article outlining the complexity of some environmental issues where seemingly one solution generates problems of its own.
However, I entirely agree with Julian Friedland's point about understimating the willingness of consumers to use totes and other alternatives.
Isn't the real point that we have to get away from this 'use once, throw away' culture - and the plastic bag has become a clear symbol of this.
Plastic Bags - Heather MacKinnon, 25 Nov 2009
Many grocery stores (and other retail stores as well) have implemented a 5 cent charge per plastic bag. The result has been that the majority of shoppers do show up at the supermarket with their handful of reusable totes. While the idea has taken some time to catch on, and certainly has not eliminated the use of plastic bags, consumers now have a choice and seem to be embracing a new way forward.
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