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The Scourge of Plastic Bags
by Kathryn Schleich
It started with a number I came across in an article – 100 billion plastic bags consumed by Americans each year, according to the Film and Bag Federation. Other numbers were much higher – 395 billion bags in America alone, estimated by an Australian web site. World-wide those numbers defy comprehension, but they also changed my life.
I’ve been recycling for years, but the sheer magnitude of 100 billion petroleum-based bags that take 1,000 years to degrade was shocking. Worse, petroleum bags don’t truly biodegrade, but break down into smaller, but no less toxic particles that potentially find their way into the food chain. Billions of plastic bags clogging landfills, marring the landscape, killing animals, and wasting valuable resources. I resolved to stop using plastic bags and recycle any that I do use.
I began carrying a canvas bag 17 1/2” wide and 12” deep, providing enough space to carry numerous items. I carry the bag in my car using it for trips to the pharmacy, grocery, bookstore, and other establishments I frequent on a regular basis. Soon, employees knew me as the woman who provided her own shopping bag. My consumption of plastic bags dropped dramatically.
I’ve been vocal about the scourge that is plastic bags and I am catching people’s attention. My mother recently asked for a list of cloth bag manufacturers so she could purchase reusable grocery bags. Savvy organizations realize that they need to offer alternatives to plastic bags to help preserve our fragile environment and resources, but also as a means of being a good corporate citizen. The marketing angle comes as a bonus.
Knowing I needed to do much more, the next step was contacting the merchants and organizations we do business with and strongly encouraging them to offer cloth or recycled bags for customers to purchase. I started with my neighborhood pharmacy, where I make trips several times each week, and employees have come to expect that I carry a reusable shopping bag. I contacted CVS Pharmacy in March asking the company to consider providing reusable shopping bags for customers and employees. As I have seen other merchants do, I also suggested printing the CVS logo on every bag. That way the bags would serve the important purpose of replacing plastic bags while at the same time promoting CVS and their good corporate citizenship. I believe this is a win-win situation for all involved.
As an incentive, I provided several companies that manufacture reusable bags and their cost, which diminished greatly as the numbers of bags purchased increased. Several weeks later the company sent a letter thanking me for my suggestion and saying CVS would “consider adding your item to our selection”. I honestly didn’t know whether my suggestion would be taken seriously, or if the company was politely brushing me off. I figured if nothing else, I would contact the corporate offices again.
On a recent Saturday afternoon I got a pleasant surprise. Stopping at CVS for milk and school supplies, I went in search of a cart. Hanging next to the red plastic baskets were white, reusable shopping bags, with the CVS logo emblazoned in red. Naturally, I was thrilled and I purchased one for the very reasonable price of 99 cents. I went home and wrote the corporate offices a letter, thanking them for actually implementing my suggestion.
While I was engaging in my crusade to eliminate plastic shopping bags, my mom Louise, was doing her part to raise awareness of the bags in the hospital gift shop where she volunteers. She looked around the gift shop and realized hundreds of plastic bags were going out the door every day, devouring natural resources and scarring the environment. Mom did some research on the devastation plastic bags cause and approached the hospital board on implementing a new policy of reusable shopping bags for the gift shop.There is still much to do, and 100 billion and higher are staggering numbers. The most important thing I recognized is that one person’s idea or suggestion can in fact make a difference. We all need to get in the habit of carrying cloth or reusable bags to replace plastic ones. It’s an easy, inexpensive step that can have a profoundly positive impact on our fragile environment.
Kathryn Schleich is a freelance writer residing in Minnesota. In 2003 she published her first book, Hollywood and Catholic Women: Virgins, Whores, Mothers, and Other Images through iUniverse.She is currently working on her first novel, Salvation Station. She may be contacted at: kathrynschlei777@yahoo.com. Visit the web site at: www.women-write.com.
