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The Cleaner Earth Project: Impact Of Plastic Bags On Environment

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Daytime

Published: April 8, 2011

Pati Robinson from The Cleaner Earth Project visits Daytime to talk about the impact plastic bags have on our environment and what you can do to make a difference.

1. In 2010 over 1 trillion single use plastic bags were taken by consumers worldwide.
(see: Timeline of plastic bag industry)

2. An estimated 12 million barrels of oil are required to make the nearly 100 billion single use plastic bags used in the U.S. annually.

3. What you can do to make a difference and why you should?

4. Single-use plastic bags represent a huge threat to our environment. They clog our landfills, pollute our oceans, poison our soil & water-ways and kill thousands of animals that mistake them for food.

5. Should we tax or ban plastic bags?
- India banned plastic bags because there were so many in the environment that drainage pipes were being clogged up and causing floods.
- In a dramatic move to stem the time of 60,000 metric tons of plastic bag and utensil waste, Taiwan banned both.
- In 2001 Ireland use 1.2 billion disposable plastic bags, or 316 per person. A very successful plastic bag tax introduced in 2002 cut consumption by 90%.
- Canada started taxing plastic bag use in 2003 and now 95% of their consumers supply their own sustainable bags when shopping.
- China has banned plastic bag use.
- Most South American countries have either banned or starting taxing plastic bags.

6. Why taking plastic bags and then recycling them may not be the answer.

Amazing Facts
- In 1974 the first single use plastic bags were introduced to stores and presently over One Trillion bags are used each year.
- If you placed one year's worth of plastic bags end to end, they would go around the Earth almost 36,000 times.
- For you Southerners, you could put a year's worth of single use plastic bags flat on the ground it would cover all of South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia and Florida each year.
- Those from the North, you could cover with a year's single use plastic bags Maine, Massachusetts, Delaware, Rode Island, Connecticut, Vermont, New Jersey, New York, Maryland, New Hampshire, West Virginia and Washington DC, each year.
- If you placed one year's single use plastic bags end to end, they would go to the moon and have enough bags left to circle the moon several times each year.
- There are 14,000,000 trees cut each year to make paper bags for consumers.
- Single use plastic bags cost the store ¼ of one cent (.0025) but it cost the store five cents to recycle them (.05). What do you think the majority of stores are doing even if they are collecting the bags?
- A family of four uses approximately 1,500 single use plastic bags each year.
- There is an ever-growing patch of discarded plastic in the Pacific Ocean the size of Texas and ships must navigate around it.
- Fish in the Ocean confuse plastic pieces for plankton and scientists have found that they eat more plastic than plankton. Wildlife also die from becoming entangled in plastic.
- In the US alone, it takes 12 million barrels of oil to produce one year's worth of single-use plastic bags.
- If 1,000 sets of Earth Bags were used regularly in your community, it would save 1,000,000 plastic bags each year.
- Many cities in California have banned one time use plastic bags and put a small charge on paper bags, North Carolina has banned the use of plastic bags in the Outer Banks of the state and Seattle, Washington charges .20 for paper or plastic. China and India have also banned single-use plastic bags.
In conclusion, one must ask the question; "Does charging a fee on single-use bags really work?" The answer lies in our Nation's Capital. In January of 2010, a .05 fee was placed on single-use plastic bags and in six month's time, use of those bags has decreased by 65%. Consumers in Washington say it is not the .05 fee but the "guilt" associated with using plastic bags at the checkout counter.

Simple Things You Can Do
Help Us Create a Cleaner Earth
There are hundreds of web sites that can teach you about "going green", but at the Cleaner Earth Project, we really want to focus on "going clean." We are dedicated to informing and educating anyone who wants to help improve the future of the planet by taking steps toward a cleaner life through everyday habits, thoughts and actions.

Our quest is not difficult. It's about reducing litter and pollution. Think about it. If many of us make small changes to create a cleaner future, then we can have a big impact.

Maybe you are already doing much of what it takes to live a fairly clean life - (hopefully) you don't throw trash into the street, and maybe you're already doing some recycling. Now, we will show you how to take that "clean life" a few small steps further and create a "Cleaner Earth" for yourself, your family and future generations.

What you can do.
1. No more plastic grocery bags!
2. Recycle
3. Reuse
4. Up-cycle
5. Properly dispose of hazardous household waste.
6. Don't litter and commit to teaching others not to litter as well.
7. Clean up litter in your own community.
8. Drink bottled water responsibly.
9. Don't use disposable diapers.
10. Composting

You can help make a difference by visiting the Cleaner Earth Project: www.CleanerEarthProject.org

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