The plastics companies don’t like this notion, for obvious reasons. They have hired swarms of lobbyists and spokespersons to represent them in communities where these laws have been considered, offering up some impressive arguments in favor of keeping the status quo: namely, the use of billions of non-reusable, non-biodegradable plastic bags every year, many of which end up as litter. As you might expect, the arguments against a sensible step towards environmental responsibility can be interesting, if not especially compelling.

One representative speaking before an Oregon Senate committee stated that a nickel charge for a paper bag amounts to a tax. Everyone hates taxes, right? Except that a tax is meant to provide revenue for the government, and this nickel you’d pay for a paper bag goes to the grocer, who can use it for whatever purpose he likes – such as paying for paper bags. The fee that is built into the purchase of every bottle of soda or beer you buy is returned when you recycle it. People got over that concept a long time ago and our streets and beaches are several billion cans and bottles freer because of it.

Another argument designed to appeal to the politics of the moment is the notion that banning plastic bags is a curtailment of personal freedom. According to a lobbyist for plastic manufacturer Helix, the Oregon legislature would be impinging on the (Constitutional?) rights of Oregonians by denying them the right to have plastic bags to throw away when they get home from the grocery store. You probably won’t find anything about this in the Constitution, but it’s a question of what the Framers intended.

It’s likely that the Framers weren’t ratifying the right to ignore common sense. Recently a new Maine legislator introduced a law to roll back the requirement to wear a seatbelt while driving because in his opinion, it is an undue violation of personal freedom. Said legislator declared in the same breath that he always wore a seatbelt, wouldn’t back out of the driveway without one in place. But it should be a matter of personal choice, he declared. After half the police departments in the state and a whole lot of parents showed up to testify on the bill, it was quietly shelved.

Using cool Reusable bags make sense. Reducing litter makes sense. Let’s hope that the Oregon legislature finds some sense in the support for reusable bags that is developing in the other forty nine states.

You can still get your lunches made just right and do it in an environmentally friendly way. The first thing you will need to do is make sure you arm your pantry with the right tools to get through the year. Here are a few tips that can help you pack a plastic bag-free lunch for your student.

Get reusable lunch bags! There are also many reusable snack containers that can be reused all year long. We at reusethisbag.com sell a customizable insulated lunch bag that’s a hit with the ‘pack your own lunch’ crowd.

Some more tips for make lunches completely plastic free:

Opt for natural wax paper to wrap your sandwiches in, if you don’t want to use reusable containers. Most health food stores offer natural wax paper, which is biodegradable and can be put into the recycling bin after each use.

Skip purchasing single serve items, like applesauce and other fruit cups, opting instead for larger jars. This will help you avoid using plastic, as you put single servings in reusable containers each day.

Send real utensils in lunches, rather than plastic disposables. If you don’t trust sending your good silverware, pick up a couple of forks and spoons at the store or thrift store that can be used just to be packed in lunches.

These tips work for the adult lunch as well as for your child’s lunch. As people learn more about the unhealthy effects that plastics have on our health and environment, they are searching for ways to reduce their use of it. Since you may be making school lunches for 185 days or more this school year, you can save a lot of plastic by opting for more environmentally friendly options.

It’s an issue that has been brewing for quite some time. Now the state of California is taking things to the next level, as Assembly Bill 1998 works it’s way through the state legislature. The bill, if passed, would enact a partial ban on the use of plastic bags in the state of California at supermarkets and other retailers. But the movement toward getting people to switch to reusable bags and ditch the plastic bags has not come without a fight.

While millions of people are hoping that the bag ban takes effect, many others have fought against it, not least because those who make all those plastic bags each year will lose money if the bill is enacted. Others who have publicly opposed banning the plastic bag have cited such reasons as a concern that reusable bags may carry germs, since people may not take the time to properly wash them.

As California pushes on toward banning plastic bags, including recently gaining the support of the Governor, many facts regarding plastic bag use have come to the forefront. In California alone, roughly 19 billion plastic bags are used per year, and that averages out to about 600 bags annually for every person in the state. All those bags add up to approximately 147,000 tons of waste each year. Furthermore, the state spends some $25 million per year to clean up the waste from all these bags, which frequently end up clogging the waterways.

If AB 1998 passes, the bags that are still permitted may have a nickel tax imposed upon them. But when you consider the environmental damage related to the use of plastic bags, the money raised by that new tax would be a drop in the bucket. It takes a tremendous amount of oil to produce and ship plastic bags, and far too many end up harming the environment, often making their way into the oceans, where they contribute to immense garbage patches. Such bags have even been blamed for killing sea turtles.

As the state moves closer to a plastic bag ban, there is no doubt that other states will end up following suit. The sooner we all take reusable bags by the handle and get busy using them, the better. And, to avoid any germ-related risks associated with them, simply make them a regular part of your wash-day routine.

Helpful Links:

Mercury News: Plastic bag fee is a tax you don’t have to pay.

California legislature looks to ban the bag.

To me, there can only be 1 culprit can be behind it. That culprit would be the makers of the plastic bags themselves! I mean really, bringing your own bags to the market can now make you die! Ecoli virus among countless others!!!
Well, I tell you what……I myself have been using my own reusable bags going on my 5th year.  In all my carries,  eggs, poultry, vegetables, and anything else i may buy I have never, not once, even had a spill of any considerable size in one of my reusable bags!   If i did, I would simply take out the bottom plastic insert and wipe free any “contaminates” that may be there and we would then be free and clear of the problem.  If it were that bad, i would wash my washable reusable bag in cold water and line dry. 

Problem fixed.

It is clear to me that the makers of the plastic bags are acting purely from greed and cash money is their objective.  They do not care that coral reefs are dying by plastic bag strangle hold.  They do not care that the los Angeles River looks like the trash dump from the original movie Star Wars!  They don’t care that  plastic bags waive from trees in Central park like Christmas ornaments, they do not care that CA spends $30,000,000 dollars per year on trying to contain their plastic disaster and barely scrapes the top of it.

plastic bags have a strangle hold on our seas!

The bottom line is that plastic bags are one of our great plagues in the world and slowly but surely people are being made aware of it.  As rap group “Public Enemy” once said, “Don’t Belive the Hype!”  Its propaganda, and it simply isnt true.

If the plastic bag manufacturers had any real amo they would be showing us all the bacteria and sickness’s that have arose from places like Ireland and Austrailia who are bothworking on 10 years free of plastic bags.  If there were any truth in any of this they would maybe start there.

Bottom line, plastic bags hurt the Earth, stay strong, keep bringing your reusable bags, and dont believe the Hype!  It simply isnt true!

Let us take this day to be thankful for all that is Earthly! Fresh fruits and vegetables, snow capped mountain peaks, waves we ride, rivers that run, foggy mornings on the beach, Fish in our oceans, trout in our streams, the sun rising and falling every day, bonfires, the smell of pine trees, the smell of sea salt when the surf is big, wildlife in our forrests……

Add your thoughts!

Contest.

tell us the difference between biodegradable and compostable bags in 300 words or less???
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