Realities About Our Use of Plastic Bags
Worldwide, a trillion single-use plastic bags are used each year, nearly 2 million each minute.
Introduced just over 25 years ago, the ugly truth about our plastic bag addiction is that society's consumption rate is now estimated at well over 500,000,000,000 (that's 500 billion) plastic bags annually, or almost 1 million per minute. In a landfill, these single-use bags will take up to 1,000 years to degrade.
The amount of energy required to make 12 plastic shopping bags could drive a car for a mile.
Plastic bags cause over 100,000 sea turtle and other marine animal deaths every year when animals mistake them for food.
The average family accumulates 60 plastic bags in only four trips to the grocery store.
It is estimated that only 3 percent of plastic bags are recycled.
Currently 100 billion plastic bags pass through the hands of U.S. consumers every year—almost one bag per person each day. Laid end-to-end, they could circle the equator 1,330 times.
Each high quality reusable bag you use has the potential to eliminate an average of 1,000 plastic bags over its lifetime. The bag will pay for itself if your grocery store offers a discount per bag for bringing your own bags.
Introduced just over 25 years ago, the ugly truth about our plastic bag addiction is that society's consumption rate is now estimated at well over 500,000,000,000 (that's 500 billion) plastic bags annually, or almost 1 million per minute. In a landfill, these single-use bags will take up to 1,000 years to degrade.
The amount of energy required to make 12 plastic shopping bags could drive a car for a mile.
Plastic bags cause over 100,000 sea turtle and other marine animal deaths every year when animals mistake them for food.
The average family accumulates 60 plastic bags in only four trips to the grocery store.
It is estimated that only 3 percent of plastic bags are recycled.
Currently 100 billion plastic bags pass through the hands of U.S. consumers every year—almost one bag per person each day. Laid end-to-end, they could circle the equator 1,330 times.
Each high quality reusable bag you use has the potential to eliminate an average of 1,000 plastic bags over its lifetime. The bag will pay for itself if your grocery store offers a discount per bag for bringing your own bags.
These are a few of the endless shocking facts about human's use of plastic bags in grocery stores, and how they brutally affect our environment. The only way to put an end to these devistating facts is to eliminate plastic bag use altogether and switch to alternatives such as paper or reusable bags. If you wish to make help the cause and send an email to some of the major grocery store companies concerning their use of plastic bags, please visit the Help The Cause page on this website.
Sources:
http://www.earth-policy.org/images/uploads/press_room/Plastic_Bags.pdf
http://www.rensselaercounty.org/enviroment%20management%20council/plastic%20bag%20facts.htm
http://www.ncsl.org/research/environment-and-natural-resources/plastic-bag-legislation.aspx
Sources:
http://www.earth-policy.org/images/uploads/press_room/Plastic_Bags.pdf
http://www.rensselaercounty.org/enviroment%20management%20council/plastic%20bag%20facts.htm
http://www.ncsl.org/research/environment-and-natural-resources/plastic-bag-legislation.aspx