Making people and ideas findable
Should Indiana bag disposable grocery bags?
From Wall St. Journal -
Question: Let's not argue over the question of paper vs. plastic...instead let's consider whether or not we should ban disposable bags altogether in favor of reusable bags. Who's for it? Who's against it? Why? Share your thoughts here
When plastic grocery bags were introduced some 30 years ago, they were touted as light, long-lasting and cheap. They caught on so well that hundreds of billions are dispensed each year, creating a modern menace that often winds up nestled in trees, stuck in sewers and drifting in oceans.
Faced with the growing blight, countries from Ireland to China and cities from San Francisco to Washington, D.C., have moved to ban or tax their use. On Monday, a United Nations official called for outlawing them world-wide. Said Achim Steiner, executive director of the U.N. Environment Program: "There is simply zero justification for manufacturing them anymore, anywhere."
But nothing is simple in the push to protect the planet. There is growing evidence that the production, use and disposal of plastic bags put less burden on natural resources than paper bags. Meanwhile, a knock against plastic bags -- that they can't be conveniently recycled -- is becoming less persuasive as more cities start accepting plastic bags in curbside recycling programs.
That makes the cash-register question -- paper or plastic? -- more vexing than ever.
Increasingly, cities and states seeking greener grocery stores are proposing taxes on all disposable bags. Seattle and Washington, D.C., are considering imposing fees on both paper and plastic bags. Other places, disinclined to saddle their voters with another prohibition or tax, recently have upgraded their curbside recycling programs to accommodate plastic bags.
Question: Let's not argue over the question of paper vs. plastic...instead let's consider whether or not we should ban disposable bags altogether in favor of reusable bags. Who's for it? Who's against it? Why? Share your thoughts here
Question: Let's not argue over the question of paper vs. plastic...instead let's consider whether or not we should ban disposable bags altogether in favor of reusable bags. Who's for it? Who's against it? Why? Share your thoughts here
When plastic grocery bags were introduced some 30 years ago, they were touted as light, long-lasting and cheap. They caught on so well that hundreds of billions are dispensed each year, creating a modern menace that often winds up nestled in trees, stuck in sewers and drifting in oceans.
Faced with the growing blight, countries from Ireland to China and cities from San Francisco to Washington, D.C., have moved to ban or tax their use. On Monday, a United Nations official called for outlawing them world-wide. Said Achim Steiner, executive director of the U.N. Environment Program: "There is simply zero justification for manufacturing them anymore, anywhere."
But nothing is simple in the push to protect the planet. There is growing evidence that the production, use and disposal of plastic bags put less burden on natural resources than paper bags. Meanwhile, a knock against plastic bags -- that they can't be conveniently recycled -- is becoming less persuasive as more cities start accepting plastic bags in curbside recycling programs.
That makes the cash-register question -- paper or plastic? -- more vexing than ever.
Increasingly, cities and states seeking greener grocery stores are proposing taxes on all disposable bags. Seattle and Washington, D.C., are considering imposing fees on both paper and plastic bags. Other places, disinclined to saddle their voters with another prohibition or tax, recently have upgraded their curbside recycling programs to accommodate plastic bags.
Question: Let's not argue over the question of paper vs. plastic...instead let's consider whether or not we should ban disposable bags altogether in favor of reusable bags. Who's for it? Who's against it? Why? Share your thoughts here
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Charlene Burke on -
Joe, thanks for clarifying, greatly appreciated.
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Permalink Reply by jason tressler on -
ANOTHER CLOSE MINDED HOOSIER... SO SAD... Ignorance is bliss in Indiana , but its not an excuse to NOT change and open your eyes and see THAT WE AS A WORLD / EARTH, COUNTRY, STATE, COUNTY - ALL HAVE A BIG ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUE... Its NOT going to fix its self and wont go away if you ignore it... This response is exactly why Indiana will have a hard time moving ahead and being a GREEN state... im saddened by ignorance.... ; (
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Permalink Reply by Joe Shoemaker on -
now fellas... calm down... this is going nowhere...
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Permalink Reply by Nicki Laycoax on -
Chris, I'd appreciate if you didn't state my name as you just did.
Jason, here's the blog post: http://smallerindiana.com/profiles/blogs/please-dont-call-names If there's one thing that you can learn from this discussion (plastic bags), it's that no one can "win" a discussion with Chris. He's always right...
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Permalink Reply by Nicki Laycoax on
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You knew where to find the link... You felt the need to add the extra bit of sauce to the statement... Hakuna Matata...
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Permalink Reply by Nicki Laycoax on
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Did you know that Gleaner's Food Bank can highly benefit from your plastic grocery bags? They have a couple programs that use them to distribute food to seniors as well as kids... New ones are used for children's programs and used for seniors. http://www.gleaners.org/
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Permalink Reply by Stephanie Daily on -
Nicki, that is cool!
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Permalink Reply by Nicki Laycoax on
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I learned about it when I went in after the Tyson truckload of food was donated as a result of Indiana being the highest pledging state for the Hunger Pledge. Pretty cool!
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Permalink Reply by Joe Shoemaker on
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How about sending Gleaners reusable bags?!?
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Permalink Reply by Nicki Laycoax on
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I think you're onto something, Joe!
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Permalink Reply by Charlene Burke on
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I lamented the loss of paper bags from grocery stores because I always used them again - for stacking newspapers in as I read the paper; for catching all manner of paper trash in my office; eventually for starting fires in the firepit/fireplace/fire circle. Plastic bags are annoying to me - 'baggers' use twice as many plastic bags to bag my purchases than they would paper bags.
Indiana is one of the most 'neutral' states I know of and to ask that we ban a product is simply not in our culture. Instead, I suggest we encourage the production of paper bags with sturdy handles and use public service announcements (PSAs) to encourage their use. In addition, I suggest we, as a state, use the PSA to show how to re-use existing carry bags, i.e. small duffel bags, medium sized cardboard boxes, and other products currently in our homes that could be used as purchase carriers.
Providing alternatives via media, getting people to think differently by presenting scenarios that show the alternatives, would work better than banning products.
Nothing lights the fire of a rebel more than telling someone they cannot do something. Nothing lights the fire of a cooperative spirit more than showing someone how doing something different will benefit them.
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Permalink Reply by jason tressler on
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In Ireland they started charging 50 cents for bags, w/ in a year next to no one used them... If Indiana could be forward thinking (for once) we could put our selves on the map, maybe attract some intellectuals ! Perhaps just make this state more attractive and earth friendly, but we will stay on like put, like a bad re-ran sitcom. Ahhh, why do I even live here!? Indiana is NOT green at all, now we could make a big step forward and follow San Fran and other earth friendly places. if there is a petition or anything I can do SOMEONE PLEASE LET ME KNOW SO I CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/04/080404-plastic-bags...
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1. Please use your real name (first and last) when you sign up, or we cannot open your account
2. Please do not use logos or commercial images for your profile photo
3. Events should be posted in the events calendar
4. You can post pretty much anything you want on your own personal page (self promotion, etc), and you can change the style of your personal profile page to reflect your corporate identification if you so choose.
5. Please keep all comments civil and polite. It's OK to feel strongly about a subject, and it's OK to be critical of ideas, but please refrain from personal attacks of any kind.
If you witness or experience any issues, please contact admin@smallerindiana.com and we will look into the matter.
6. Smaller Indiana is supported by its members, and by corporate sponsors. If you're interested in learning more about sponsorship, please call Pat Coyle at 317 332 7878.
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