I have a mixed bag of emotions.
My initial reaction, and it takes some controlling, is to ask for an outright ban on the bloody things.
But then with more thought, or is it coping out, I think that would most likely not work out that well, at least initially.
Some people show a blatant disregard for the land with all their littering. That is another issue, the plastic gad issue can be dealt with, it just needs some thought, discussion and then action taken.
Sure there will still be kitchen catchers, garden bags, garbage bags and other types of packaging. But you usually don’t see those blowing around in the streets, ending up in the water ways, some times but not usually.
Something should be/must be done, the question then arises, who will do it.
Do we get one of the government levels to legislate a ban? Do the stores initiate some sort of control on there use? Or introduce a fee for the bags to make it less attractive to use them.
Loblaws have started the ball rolling down south. I know other countries and smaller jurisdictions have banned the use of them in stores.
Maybe start a campaigned to recycle the bags; you have to pay for new ones. Maybe urge the stores to offer some sort of incentive to not use them. Perhaps some level of government can contribute in this regard.
Maybe the local government has to introduce a by-law to control there willful overuse.
I think some control on a local level, instead of waiting for the province, would be the best way to proceed.
It can be up to individuals to exercise the use of re-usable bags. There are more and more people doing this. Alas the stores here hand out the plastic bags like confetti. Buy a coke and bag of ships and they are stuffing them in a plastic bag, makes no sense to me.
Perhaps the stores have a moral responsibility to get more involved, so too does the consumer.
Sure we use the bags, we re-cycle, they come in handy for storing stuff, but I think we use them at a minimum. If push comes to shove I'm sure we can do without them too.
9 comments:
Having a little guy still in diapers, we reuse a lot of ours, those we don't we have always brought back to the store to be recycled. Like you, I am on two minds about banning them.
Hi Brian,
I enjoy reading your blog. In terms of plastic bags, perhaps we consumers need to consider what we used BEFORE these things became such a blight on our planet. I along with many of my friends have a large collection of cloth bags for grocery shopping, etc. Back in the day, when paper bags were common, plastic was introduced with the idea of saving the forests. Perhaps we can reduce the dependence on plastic bags by eliminating plastic shopping bags and offer recycled paper bags for a fee to those customers without cloth bags.
I live in Ontario and we have finally convinced the provincial gov't (in May) to stop providing plastic bags as soon as the current supply is gone, which should be soon. You should have heard the bag manufactureer's screaming. Paper bags will be supplied for those without the handy cloth bag (specially designed with compartments for 4 bottles)that is sold by the LCBO.
Speaking of plastics, I think we would all be a great deal more concerned if we were fully aware of what they are doing to our oceans and marine life. Check out this link if you like, but be warned it is deeply disturbing to witness the extent to which plastic has become part of the food chain. This is just one of a series created. There is a brief ad at the beginning of each episode. You can hit "skip ad" (which pops up after ad starts) to go direct to vid.
http://www.vbs.tv/video.php?id=1498976287
I saw this doc on CBC (and I believe that if more people saw it, they would begin to think seriously getting rid of them. You can watch the doc online at http://www.cbc.ca/doczone/battleofthebag/index.html
Keep blogging.
All the best,
Miranda
a few mornings ago i had to wait in line at a supermarket with just one cashier on duty. i was in a hurry so i went early before work. the young girl in front of the line holding a very small dog in her arms had forgotten her green canvas enviro friendly bag. she decided to leave all her goodies on the counter and prance to the parking lot to retrieve it from her vehicle. the rest of us had to wait until she returned.surely she could of purchased another enviro bag for .99 or used the plastic available?? nope,little miss dizzy was saving the planet.the cashier wouldn't cash the goods in nor let the next person in line do so. thinking back now i would of left mine on the counter and said i was going to go get my green bag and i would of just went on to work.save the planet but lets not irritate the next guy. lol
Part of the problem here is that bags appear to be given out no matter how many items a person buys - a child buying a can of pop and a bag of chips does not need a bag, and indeed, does not want a bag if the speed of discarding said bag on the road is any indication! Another part of the problem is the expectation of a plastic bag - we always take our little backpacks to put our groceries in and even though we have been doing this for a year and a half, the cashier always reaches for the plastic even though I am standing there with the backpack at the ready! Every time, we have to say - "No bag, thanks. We have one."
my enviro bag holds a dozen cold ones perfectly
Cheers!
Little ones: brings back memories of me mom with cloth diapers and hours spent toiling over the copper and hanging them on the cloths line [no bans back then on cloths lines].
The way we are headed it won’t be long and that will be the norm again.
I’m heartened to hear of the ban in Ontario, it’s a start, won’t hang by the short and curlies for it to happen here in NL. I agree with the high price we are about to pay for all this neglect, I had seen some of those videos, seems many have not.
Seems the check out girl, or the customer, could have dealt with this incident way better. I have a lot of peeves at check outs, one is people paying for a very small purchase with a card, the phone lines are notoriously slow up this way at times.
I’m no physiologist but I tend to think it is habit by the store staff. That and the staff are eager to please the customer, stuff it all in the bags, after all they are there for the customers use.
Some education is needed here; perhaps the store managers need some talking too.
Another of my peeves is when a customer has a large grocery purchase, after all the goods are checked through customer stands there and watches as the clerk pack all the goods into bags, some doubled up. Then you have to go through the payment routine. Good thing life is in the slow lane up here.
I don’t get upset with these things [most times]; just wonder at peoples insensitivities to others.
Burp.
Hi Brian,
I noticed that in my enthusiasm to discuss the plastic bag situation, I stated that in Ontario we managed to get the provincial gov't to agree to stop using plastic bags when current supplies run out. This ban applies to the 600 LCBO (gov't liquor stores)stores only. Unfortunately, grocery stores and other merchants are still free to use them. But getting the LCBO to stop was huge as their bags are so thick and heavy duty (compared to most other retailers) that they probably wouldn't break down for 100 years.
Plenty of us continue to work toward getting a total ban on plastic shopping bags, so I remain hopeful.
Regards,
Miranda
Oh, that’s a bummer, but at least it’s a start.
Yesterday we came across the good and the bad of it while walking along the shore to where people were fishing and picnicking. The thoughtful bagged up all there trash and took it back. Others just left the garbage where it was.
What a shame if people choose not to pick up after themselves, Brian. Particularly sad because (based on all of the many photos I have seen of Nain, thanks to your postings), it is such a uniquely beautiful place. The terrain is so incredibly different from other parts of this country. Given the small population, I just assumed that controlling litter would be relatively simple. But, I guess as with many things, it’s just human nature…
Post a Comment