More cities have been thinking about enacting plastic bag bans. So far as I’m concerned, this is an overall good thing. Plastic is cheap to make, and I hear its carbon footprint is actually better than that of paper, but the long term issues are a definite problem.
You see, they are only minimally recycleable.
You can see the bins at grocery stores for them. Seems like when I’ve taken plastic bags in the bins are always full, so there are definitely people doing this. What happens to these bags?
I read on Yahoo that they get made into lumber-like boards. That’s not a bad use, but very few actually make it that far, about 1%.
Best of course is to just not use them. I have a couple of canvas shopping bags that I adore… especially since I got them free from one place and another. I just have to get better about using them.
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Kashi sent me a great foldable bag. I think it’s tyvek – it’s definitely a plastic material.
We carry it with us when we go to the grocery store/discount stores. It’s great, it folds up easily to fit in my purse and then expands to hold a good number of items.
My husband and I sell sandals made from recycled car tires. Each order is sent out in a very tough envelope made from plastic grocery bags which have been ironed together. You can find the recipe at:
http://recycledsandals.blogspot.com/2008_01_24_archive.html
I have cloth bags that I use as well, but am sometimes caught without one on me…at least I know my plastics will find new life!