Why Shouldn't We Use Plastic Bags?

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Why shouldn’t we use plastic bags? • Americans use over 380 billion polyethylene bags and wraps per year • An estimated 100 billion of those bags are the free carry-out bags that have proliferated since their introduction in 1978 • An estimated 12 million barrels of oil are used to make these single-use plastics • The amount of petroleum used to make one plastic bag would drive a car about 11 meters. • Factories around the world churned out a whopping 4-5 trillion of them in 2002, ranging from large trash bags to thick shopping totes to flimsy grocery sacks. Americans throw away approximately 100 billion polyethylene shopping bags per year Of those, only 1-2% are recycled • It takes 1000 years for polyethylene bags to degrade/break down • Plastic bags don’t biodegrade, they photo-degrade, breaking down into smaller and smaller toxic bits contaminating soil and waterways. They then enter the food chain as animals ingest them. • Plastic bags clog both our solid waste facilities and storm drains. • Plastic is the largest source of ocean litter. • Ocean debris worldwide kills at least 1 million sea birds and 100,000 mammals each year, the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association has estimated. Using your own cloth bag over and over again to carry goods from the store to your own door could save 350-500 plastic bags a year. With this small action from everyone in our community we could make a positive impact on our environment and on the way we see all single use plastics. This project has been funded wholly or in part by the United States Environmental Protection Agency under assistance agreement X1-00J05301 to City of Hailey. The contents of this document do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Environmental Protection Agency, nor does mention of trade names or commercial products constitute endorsement or recommendation for use. .

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2012 Plastic Film and Bag Recycling Collection: National Reach Study
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