In some cities they have implemented a tax to stop people from using these damn things but not NYC. We're really fucking shit up. I mean honestly, I bet the average New Yorker uses 3 per day minimum. And that's an average day without any heavy shopping.
I store up all of my plastic and take it to AAA Polymer in Greenpoint where they recycle bags. But the best thing to do is simply not use these damn things, which is easier said then done. However read this new article on the topic, it might sway you to be more proactive.
Link:
Plastic Bags Are Killing Us
Plastic Bags Are Killing Us
"Every year, Americans throw away some 100 billion plastic bags after they've been used to transport a prescription home from the drugstore or a quart of milk from the grocery store. It's equivalent to dumping nearly 12 million barrels of oil."
"Bits of plastic bags have been found in the nests of albatrosses in the remote Midway Islands."
"...every plastic bag you've ever used in your entire life, including all those bags that the newspaper arrives in on your doorstep, even on cloudless days when there isn't a sliver of a chance of rain, still exists in some form, even fragmented bits, and will exist long after you're dead."
great post! really informative yr on a roll lately, the chicago and tony brummel ones were really good too...
ReplyDeleteyou could always just say "no bag, thanks"
ReplyDeleteAnd I do, often. But if you turn your head for a second - say to sign a CC slip - then they've already bagged your purchase. Sometimes you need to use a plastic bag but you almost never need a double bag. When they double up with out me noticing I used take the outer layer off and hand it back. But then I noticed that when you do this the damn clerks just ball it up and throw it in the trash! So now I just take it with me because at least I'll put it to use eventually or recycle it. But the point is that 1/10,000 people (if we're lucky) even bothers to think about this kinda shit. So unless they implement that tax (which I hear they may) then plastic bags are going to continue to do some serious damage.
ReplyDeleteno, i agree that bagging has become absurd. what ever happened to "paper or plastic" anyway? I could think of at least 6 more uses for a paper bag. here's a great blog you might be interested in: http://365daysoftrash.blogspot.com/
ReplyDelete