What is the purpose of using recycled paper bags over plastic carry bags?

Question

an answer of about 4-5 pages or tell me the link plzzzzzzzzz.

Answer 1

I actually just asked a question concerning this.  The advantage is that: in places on the coasts the bags end up in the ocean, suffocating marine life, birds, and animals(on land); oil is used in the production of plastic bags, meaning that we are taking away from energy use for oil and are buying more oil for bag production, making us less energy independent;  this also means that less landfill space is used for plastic bags that will take a very long time to decompose; also less pollution from the production of the plastic bags; there is also the litter aspect, think about how many plastic bags you see on the side of the road/rolling down the street; also some cities in California are either banning plastic bags or are going to be taxing their use, so some will either have to use reusable bags or pay a tax for the bags (this concept will surely spread to other states and cities as well).  

However, I was going to buy some reusable bags at wal-mart the other night and read that they came from China, which to me is really missing the point.  If the reusable bags are made/transported from China then that would mean that the pollution caused by the transporting of the bags from China is pretty much missing the point of using reusable bags.  

If you are going to use reusable bags I would suggest getting US made bags as the transport of the bags from closer would make less of an environment impact than shipping them from China (don't get me started on the US job loss aspect of this).  The ships used for transport also wreck the marine habitats that they travel through.  So I'd definitely think about making sure to buy US made reusable bags.  Hope this helps.

Answer 2

http://howtosaveenergy.blogspot.com/2007...

Lots of facts and figures on why even recycled paper bags is a environmental faux pas.

Answer 3

It's added reinforcement.  Paper bags sometimes break if the items are too heave.  However, using green re-useable bags is a better option.

Answer 4

The 2 big problems I see with plastic bags are

1- it is a petroleum product, which means it won't biodegrade and we have better uses for oil.

2- they are a huge litter problem. They are lightweight, so they fly away from garbage trucks, dumps, vehicles, homes and everywhere in between. They are a hazard to wildlife on land and at sea, animals get entangled, or when they break down into smaller pieces animals mistake them for food.

Answer 5

http://www.greenlinepaper.com/use-recycl...

http://www.ijdesign.com/blog/?p=13

http://palimpsest.stanford.edu/byorg/abb...

I will give you the links but you will have to do your own homework.