The plastic people got this one right. The plastic is made quite efficiently. That’s why so much pointless crap is made from it. Most opponents of plastic shopping bags focus on the environmental impact of discarded plastic.
The only fact I can think of to counter with is that the oil used to make plastic bags is a nonrenewable resources. Alternatives like cloth bags (or paper for that matter) are made from renewable resources.
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April 28th, 2010 at 8:19 am
Wow, that sucks. Mostly because I love paper bags. They’re bigger, they keep their shape in the car so they don’t spill over, and they’re easier to reuse.
I hope the fact that I use waaaay less of them for way longer than some people use plastic bags make up for the less efficient manufacturing process.
I try to use cloth bags, but I only have a couple and I never remember to bring them, whereas I have a pile of paper bags in the car and only have to remember to bring the ones in the house back to the car every month or two.