Invasion of the Indestructible Plastic Bags
So, one of the ways we are screwing over ourselves and the planet is the sheer, overwhelming, mindbogglingly huge amount of plastic that we litter around our world.
Plastic does not die. Maybe, someday, all the bags, tops, six-pack rings, etc. will find their way below the earth’s crust and be destroyed by the fires of molten rock. But until then (hundreds of millions to billions of years if every), we are increasingly choking our world with plastic refuse.
Recycle what you can, of course. But what about all those plastic garbage bags? I’m trying to figure out ways to conserve, to help reduce the growing plastic tide.
Idea #1
Where I work, every desk has a trash can, but there is also a large trash can in the kitchen. Everyday, the trash is emptied from all the trash cans by simply removing the bags from each and every one if there is any trash in the cans. Which means that if I throw one yogurt container in the trash at my desk, I have just contributed one more plastic bag to the deluge. So I simply have started making the effort to throw away all my trash in the kitchen’s trash can instead of the one at my desk.
Is it as convenient. No.
On a scale of inconvenience, however, it’s probably .001 on a scale of 10.
Idea #2:
Paper instead of plastic. I don’t know about where you live, but I rarely see this as an option in NYC. However, when I went home to visit the ‘rents in RI, one of the big grocery stores still offered the choice. Take paper when you can and then recycle.
Idea #3:
Reuse. Reuse. Reuse. Until the holes in the bags grow too big. Then maybe put one old bag inside another old bag (as long as the holes don’t match up) and reuse.
Idea #4:
Buy your own reusable shopping bags.
And then make sure you remember to use them!
I would love to hear more ideas from anybody. Drop ’em in the comments.
Technorati Tags: plastic bags, environment, recycling
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