FAQs

Any Questions? Good.

1. But wait...aren't paper bags better for the environment?.......NO

--> while it may seem like paper bags would be the "greener" choice over plastic bags, the reality is, they're worse. Paper bags not only take more energy to produce, but they also take up a lot more space in landfills. The thickness of paper bags is clear even when you're just holding one...its weight and thickness is obviously more than that of a plastic bag. This makes paper bags the wrong choice when it comes to food shopping.

2. How harmful are plastic bags?

--> Every year, Californians use an average of 552 plastic bags per person...totaling more than 19 billion bags per year...most of which end up in the ocean or sitting in landfills for thousands of years.

--> The bags that do end up in the ocean kill up to 100,000 sea animals and turtles a year...and that's not even counting birds!

3. What are plastic bags made of?

--> Plastic bags are made of nonrenewable fossil fuels, and 12 million barrels of oil carry the necessities for a one-year supply of plastic bags for the United States.

--> The harmful chemicals in plastic bags harm the oceans in more ways because when they begin natural decomposition, the chemicals enter the oceans where animals ingest them and become ill...usually ending in death.

4. How Many Plastic Bags are Generated Per Year?

--> on average, 500 billion plastic bags are made per year

--> that's 1 million plastic bags per minute!

5. What is the lifespan of a plastic bag?

--> A plastic bag lasts anywhere from 15 to 1000 years until it is completely bio degraded

6. What should I do with the plastic bags I have at home?

--> there are many things you can do with plastic bags you may already have at home, or may receive when there is no option to use a reusable one, such as:

- reline your smaller trash cans with plastic bags so they get used more than once

- use them to transport items when you travel, such a toiletries that may open and spill during flight

- use them to pick up your pet's waste

- RECYCLE THEM !!

7. What can I do to make my town more aware of the dangers of plastic bags?

--> getting your town involved may seem like a lot of work, but many cities have already taken the plastic bag-free plunge and are now only using reusable bags in food stores

--> by talking to your local food store you can educate them about plastic bags as well as advising them to sell reusable bags if they already don't

8. How do plastic bags affect the environment?

--> most plastic bags are blown out of trash cans and end up in oceans or other bodies of water...this leads to the death of hundreds of thousands of seal animals every year from ingesting the plastic bags, mistaking them as food

--> birds and other common land animals are constantly trapped in plastic bags that blow into their habitats or that they get tangled up in

--> plastic bags also affect the environment when ingested by animals, because after the animals die from choking on the plastic, they decay and leave the plastic (which takes up to 1000 years to decay) behind. This plastic then moves on to be ingested by other wildlife.

9. Plastic bags are free, right?......wrong!

--> Plastic bags aren't free at all- in fact, the United States alone spends at least 4 billion dollars a year on plastic bags that are "free" at the supermarket

10. Where can I buy a reusable bag?

--> you can buy reusable bags at almost any local food store (including chain stores such as Whole Foods, Safeway, Target, Stop & Shop)- these stores want to help in your quest to reduce the use of paper and plastic bags! The cost of bags is normally very, very low, and many times the money goes to charities to help save the environment