Now that we are getting to an ecology-conscious generation, what is your stand on the plastic-or-paper issue?

Question

when grocery shopping? Do you have any other options?

Answer 1

take a sturdy canvas bag with you.

Answer 2

Neither, make a collection of reusable bags.  Whole Foods gives the away when you buy enough.  Giant sells them for 99c.  etc.

Thanks Bella.

Answer 3

Permaculture Answer:

The Short Answer use any bags that you have do not plastic or paper. If you already have ANY old bags, no matter what they are made of,  that will carry shopping, using what you have is by far the greenest option. Use them to their death, it is even greener. It is not a fashion issue it is a green issue. Check your cupboards and use what you have first.

The Reasons Why?: Or The Long Answer

The scale of the use of plastic is a major environmental problem. Plastic production is highly unsustainable, presuming that we are talking about the oil based plastics and not the new bio-starch products. Plastic carrier bags are ephemeral so they are quickly disposed of. The chances are that the bag will end up in landfill after one use.

Plastic Bags: There are a lot of reasons given why people 'like' plastic bags. However, they still never decompose no matter how many times you use them. This is compounded when people tie their rubbish into plastic bags and thousands of other such filled plastic bags are piled on top of each other in landfill sites. So if you must use plastic, re-use as many times as possible then take them supermarket to be recycled.

Biodegradeable Bags/Bioplastics: Polylactic acid (PLA) a biodegradable polymer derived from lactic acid. These vegetable based bioplastics biodegrades quickly under composting conditions and does not leave toxic residue. However, bioplastic have own environmental impacts caused by manufacturing and disposal of end product. Charges will be levied for plastics and bioplastics as the Government are having to pay landfill penalties. You will be charged for these impacts and taxed but on the plus side biodegradable bags (from potato and corn starches) are a new thriving industry

Paper Bags. Great if singly composted. In land fill can take years for layers to decompose. Still an organic material. But there is cost of production, costs to environment of pulp trees (monocultures, loss of habitat, etc) costs of recycling/disposal. Again you will have to pay for these production costs and disposal costs and taxed.

Recycle the cardboard boxes at the store to carry your groceries home or just pack into the boot of your car without bags and then carry in from the boot.

France is banning plastic bags 2007 others are moving towards it. The most effective is taxing plastic bag use. If we do not take action we will be taxed as the Irish are for using plastic bags. Effective as a decrease of 90% plastic bag use in Ireland.

Whilst cotton bag production is also unsustainable it is generally used many many more times, generally for a number of years. And are not non-biodegradable. People do not tend to tie their other rubbish into a cloth bag to send it to landfill. Cotton bags will compost in any home composter. Therefore a reused bag made of cloth clearly does not have the same detrimental effect on the environment as a reused bag made of plastic (or many). The environmental impact of plastic bag disposal is magnified because of the number of the bags that are used.

Willow is highly sustainable, from willow coppice and returns to the ground without trace. A wicker basket would be the obvious thing, to cut down on this massive use on single-use plastic carrier bags. Willow can be grown on sewage outfall which as we know is an environmental pollutant. There are no ENVIRONMENTAL costs of processing/production of a willow basket. It is a local economy that does not use heat, beat or treat. It could be grown in the supermarket car park dealing with the waste from the toilet block. In Permaculture we call this zoning and edge. It also demonstrates redundancy of function when used in sewage treatment. Willow is highly sustainable, from willow coppice and returns to the ground without trace.

Perhaps the best solution is to LIMIT YOUR CONSUMPTION OF EVERYTHING.

Think about what you are buying first and how the packaging will be disposed of:

Use your local butcher who will wrap in paper.

Buy fruit and vegetables from local growers it supports your local economy. There are usually lots of recycled cardboard boxes at Farmer's markets.

Buy from the local baker wraps in paper.

Buy milk in glass bottles or recyclable plastic.

Avoid pre packed foods and processed foods. The packaging is excessive.

Ensure you recycle metals, plastics, glass and cardboard.

Compost green waste.

There will be hardly anything left to go to landfill.

Answer 4

The most environmentally friendly is to bring your own reusable bag (i.e. canvas bag).  That's what I do, in fact I bring several (3-4 canvas bags) to the supermarket.

If you can't or won't, then it depends.

Paper bags require more energy to produce and trees to be cut down, but are easily recyclable.

Plastic bags require less energy to produce, but are not recyclable.  They are reusable for other applications, but only if your area has a specific plastic grocery bag recycling program (every retail store in California is now required by law to have one, for example).

So from most to least environmentally friendly:

1) Bring canvas bag(s)

2) Plastic if there's a specific recycling program

3) Paper

4) Plastic if there's no recycling program

Answer 5

I grab a bunch of organic stuff and then eat it all before I get out of the toilet!  That way I do not need any bags!

Answer 6

I'm very happy with the plastic bags.

Answer 7

deff bring a bag with u...i do think that all grocery stores should sell those bags for ppl to use