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About gvanr
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- Member since: 2007
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On May 9, 2007 gvanr Discussed
Bad Plastic Bags
- and said:
I saw the plastic bag video on the site today. It discussed the downside of plastic shoppiong bags and pointed out that paper bags used more energy etc. – concluding that canvass totes were the answer.
Unfortunately no analysis of the impact of totes was made available.
The question of shopping bags has been debated in Australia for years – I recognised the turtle photo – it was taken at the Melbourne Zoo – and no, it was not a shopping bag in his mouth.
Canvass / cotton bags use a lot of resources to manufacture, and there is an impact associated with their re-use.
I worked out that if all Australian shoppers were to use them for grocery shopping, there would be an additional 5000 tons of material transported in those shoppers’ cars. If people left them in the car so as not to forget them, this amount of material would be transported on every trip taken in the vehicles.
Think of the extra fuel required!
I use my plastic shopping bags as bin liners, for gym gear, and when I take the dog for a walk. If I did not get them at the store I would need to buy them.
As long as you don’t litter them, I think they are low impact and very useful.
Gerard, Sydney, Australia
gvanr has not GOODmarked anything yet.
I saw the plastic bag video on the site today. It discussed the downside of plastic shoppiong bags and pointed out that paper bags used more energy etc. – concluding that canvass totes were the answer.
Unfortunately no analysis of the impact of totes was made available.
The question of shopping bags has been debated in Australia for years – I recognised the turtle photo – it was taken at the Melbourne Zoo – and no, it was not a shopping bag in his mouth.
Canvass / cotton bags use a lot of resources to manufacture, and there is an impact associated with their re-use.
I worked out that if all Australian shoppers were to use them for grocery shopping, there would be an additional 5000 tons of material transported in those shoppers’ cars. If people left them in the car so as not to forget them, this amount of material would be transported on every trip taken in the vehicles.
Think of the extra fuel required!
I use my plastic shopping bags as bin liners, for gym gear, and when I take the dog for a walk. If I did not get them at the store I would need to buy them.
As long as you don’t litter them, I think they are low impact and very useful.
Gerard, Sydney, Australia