What's with the controversy surrounding plastic and paper disposable bags? If you've been paying attention to the news in recent years you may have heard about the negative effects of plastic and paper disposable grocery bags. Why is that? Why is it important to stop using disposable bags and commence using eco friendly reusable or recycled bags? Before buying into any trend or cause, it is essential to be familiar with exactly how your commitment will produce a positive impact on the environment and our world. In today's article, we will analyze some key ecological issues and problems connected with disposable shopping bag usage.
The Environmental Literacy Council does a wonderful job of explaining the negative effects of both plastic and paper disposable bags at EnviroLiteracy.Org. Let's start with the environmental impact of producing plastic and paper bags in the first place. Plastic bags are manufactured using oil, and so the environmental consequences of creation includes everything from extracting the oil, to the separation of chemicals in the oil refinement process, to the plastic manufacturing process, and the energy used and emissions created to dispense the bags to shopping stores. So in reality, the creation of plastic bags (caused by our demand as consumers) is a contributive factor to our dependence on oil. Paper bags, are obviously created from trees and add to worldwide deforestation and reduction of habitats all over the earth. Moreover, the sum of effort exploited to fabricate and distribute paper bags and the carbon emissions produced even exceeds that of plastic bags. The reality is that paper and plastic bags are not a healthy product for the environment, especially when you compare it to eco friendly recycled grocery bags.
Obviously, as you may know, one other key issue with disposable bags is the extensive pollution and litter problem, especially connected with plastic bags. Plastic bags are like the "modern tumbleweed" blowing down the road. They show up everywhere and often end up in swamps, streams, rivers, lakes and in the ocean. While researching this piece I came across some startling data at 5gyres.Org, which educates people regarding the 5 gyres in our world's oceans. Here's a tid bit: "At sea floating plastics are swept up into slow moving currents. These currents are called 'gyres'. Our Oceans are dynamic systems.... made up of complex networks of currents... Large systems of these currents, coupled with wind and the earth's rotation, create 'gyres', massive, slow rotating whirlpools in which plastic trash can accumulate." Out of all these Gyres, the most renowned is the North Pacific Gyre, also known as the "great pacific garbage patch", has been studied the most and is a collection of trash and plastic estimated to be roughly the size of Afghanistan.
What many folks don't recognize is that there are actually 5 gyres distributed throughout our world's oceans and seas where floating trash, and mainly plastic is accumulating at a fast rate. One of the scariest things about all this is that aquatic mammals often ingest this waste floating in the sea and suffocate or starve to death as a result. By utilizing biodegradable bags, as opposed to disposable bags, our daily human actions contribute to the answer instead of the problem.
The ecological dilemma our earth finds itself in today requires that we take immediate action. You now can obviously see, the widespread use of disposable shopping bags contributes to significant environmental problems that won't just disappear. We must alter our daily habits by reminding ourselves to use eco friendly shopping bags whenever we can possibly do so. When we take a stand against the common pollution problem caused by disposable shopping bags, we are creating a healthier world one choice at a time.
The Environmental Literacy Council does a wonderful job of explaining the negative effects of both plastic and paper disposable bags at EnviroLiteracy.Org. Let's start with the environmental impact of producing plastic and paper bags in the first place. Plastic bags are manufactured using oil, and so the environmental consequences of creation includes everything from extracting the oil, to the separation of chemicals in the oil refinement process, to the plastic manufacturing process, and the energy used and emissions created to dispense the bags to shopping stores. So in reality, the creation of plastic bags (caused by our demand as consumers) is a contributive factor to our dependence on oil. Paper bags, are obviously created from trees and add to worldwide deforestation and reduction of habitats all over the earth. Moreover, the sum of effort exploited to fabricate and distribute paper bags and the carbon emissions produced even exceeds that of plastic bags. The reality is that paper and plastic bags are not a healthy product for the environment, especially when you compare it to eco friendly recycled grocery bags.
Obviously, as you may know, one other key issue with disposable bags is the extensive pollution and litter problem, especially connected with plastic bags. Plastic bags are like the "modern tumbleweed" blowing down the road. They show up everywhere and often end up in swamps, streams, rivers, lakes and in the ocean. While researching this piece I came across some startling data at 5gyres.Org, which educates people regarding the 5 gyres in our world's oceans. Here's a tid bit: "At sea floating plastics are swept up into slow moving currents. These currents are called 'gyres'. Our Oceans are dynamic systems.... made up of complex networks of currents... Large systems of these currents, coupled with wind and the earth's rotation, create 'gyres', massive, slow rotating whirlpools in which plastic trash can accumulate." Out of all these Gyres, the most renowned is the North Pacific Gyre, also known as the "great pacific garbage patch", has been studied the most and is a collection of trash and plastic estimated to be roughly the size of Afghanistan.
What many folks don't recognize is that there are actually 5 gyres distributed throughout our world's oceans and seas where floating trash, and mainly plastic is accumulating at a fast rate. One of the scariest things about all this is that aquatic mammals often ingest this waste floating in the sea and suffocate or starve to death as a result. By utilizing biodegradable bags, as opposed to disposable bags, our daily human actions contribute to the answer instead of the problem.
The ecological dilemma our earth finds itself in today requires that we take immediate action. You now can obviously see, the widespread use of disposable shopping bags contributes to significant environmental problems that won't just disappear. We must alter our daily habits by reminding ourselves to use eco friendly shopping bags whenever we can possibly do so. When we take a stand against the common pollution problem caused by disposable shopping bags, we are creating a healthier world one choice at a time.
About the Author:
Albert Jefferson is an educated author going over environmental and sustainability concerns in addition to spreading the idea to companies to use eco reusable green bags to advertise both their brand and awareness for the environment.
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