Why doesn't everyone use cloth instead of plastic/paper bags? It would save trees,air and resources.?

Question

Why doesn't everyone use cloth instead of plastic/paper bags? It would save trees,air and resources.?

Answer 1

What makes you think using cloth bags saves trees?  Pulp wood (trees used to make paper) is a crop and like all crops, when it is harvested, a new crop is planted.   If the demand for pulp wood falls, the current crop will still be harvested, maybe not as quickly, but eventually it will be harvested.  But, new trees will not be planted.  Instead the farmer will plant some other crop.

Answer 2

Speaking for myself only, I reuse the paper or plastic bags as garbage bags. If I substituted cloth bags, I would have to turn around and buy plastic or paper bags for garbage which seems even more wasteful. And I use the plastic bags especially when I am trying to be a good neighbor and pick up after my dogs. If there is some other more environmentally friendly solution to taking care of messes, I am not aware of it.

Answer 3

Because cloth is inferior.

Answer 4

Because who the heck carries a cloth bag with them everywhere they go ?? and if you expect the stores to give them away them be ready to pay for them !!!

Answer 5

but then we wouldn't have any clothes!

omg!

FREERUNNING!!!

Answer 6

I am not sure it would save. Where does it come from. How much energy to produce it. Are people going to consume a lot of energy washing it each time they use it. Don't know answer nor do we have enough information to decide.

Answer 7

I think we would have to produce more cotton and workers to pick the cotton.  Or do machines do that now?  Anyway I recycle my plastic bags and put my recycleables in them for trash.  I use the paper bags to set out for Goodwill or vets pick up.  On trash day I use the paper bags to recycle my newspapers.  I think I would have to have over nine or ten bags made of cotton in order to replace what the grocery store gives me or let me see if going to the clothing store I would need a very big cloth bag for the new suit.  Hmm.. sounds good but we have advanced beyond on people being  fruggle.  We could save a lot of electricity if we went back to ice boxes, outhouses, and washing our clothes in a tub and heating the water on an open fire outside.  I don't think that is going to happen either. .

Answer 8

It is  in error that we "save trees" by using less paper. Forest health today is worse than it has ever been because todays man fails to manage the forests, and we prohibit mother nature from doing so.  The tags on hand dryers in public places that say the electric dryer saves trees is hogwash.

Few people realize that paper is made from trash wood only.

Forest management to promote good healthy growth needs the trash wood removed(called "pulp wood").   We fail to keep our forest clean of trash wood, which promotes disease and fire.  Also, OLD TREES should be cut once they reach their prime.  Growing trees release Oxygen and absorb carbon dioxide(carbon) while growing.  They Store the carbon and keep it out of our atmosphere.At maturity, trees are unable to store any more carbon and actually siphon the oxygen they also need from the air in greater proportion than they put out.  Hence mature trees promote global warming.

The news media and environmentalists do not understand that , and if they did, they would not tell about it.

Plastic is made from Oil(carbon), and the more we use, the less  energy reserves of carbon(oil-gas, coal etc) we have available.  The more we maximize the use of low grade, less processed, non-bleached paper the better off we are.

We grew up in a "disposable" society and it is difficult to get people to use cloth bags.  Plus, in todays superstores, it would take to bag your purchases.

Answer 9

I agree. It definitely would save trees, air and resources... But honestly, today's the first day I heard of using cloth to transport your groceries from the store to your fridge... It's just not a popular thing in america, though I think I will begin doing this. Are they tote bags, kinda? Or are they more big???

Answer 10

Because Americans are not educated enough, nor do they seem to care about the environment enough to bother carrying a cloth bag around. But there is good news. they are now starting to make plastic out of corn, and it is biodegradable!