plastic grocery bags

[greener]

Is it wrong for me to bring my groceries home in plastics bags if I'm gonna reuse them as say garbage bags, or using them for picking up my dogs feces when on a walk or at the park. I know the harm that processing plastic bags cause, but if I' reusing them is it ok? I would have to buy plastic garbage bags anyway.

[sparky]

That's kinda my philosophy. I always try and use re-usable bags for my shopping but if I do get a plastic bag I always use that for rubbish or something. I wonder if plastic bags are worse than traditional bin liners?

[altyfc]

Well... I guess it's better than not re-using them.

But with faeces, you can use much smaller bags of course (less plastic) and no doubt there are alternatives to plastic bags for scooping up dog mess.

[greener]

ya thats true, I saw a thing at the pet store called a poop and scoop, it's made of plastic, but it doesn't get thrown away. Maybe I will invest in one of those.

[Claire]

I've heard that carrier bags are generally thinner than bin bags, so they might actually be better from that point of view. I think I'd use more bags for shopping than I'd need for the bin though, if I didn't use any reusables. I guess the message is to try and minimise the amount of times you take new bags (I've got into the habit now of straightening out my reusable bags, folding them in three along their length, then rolling them up from the closed end and looping one handle over the roll so it stays rolled, immediately after I unpack them, then chucking a couple back in my handbag - I'm sure non-handbag-users can come up with an alternative so you always have a couple with you. They pack down quite small this way.) and to reuse the ones you do take, maybe rougly matching the amount of bags you take to the number you need for bin bags. The pooper scooper sounds like a plan (all this disposing of dog mess is part of what puts me off having a dog!).

[John Daniel]

Another option is to get just enough plastic bags that you will reuse them, and ask for the remainder in either paper or bring your own.

We have a paper bag filled with plastic bags we accumulated. We then use paper bags until our stock of plastic ones gets low.

John Daniel
Federal International, Inc.

[greenacy]

If you are going to use plastic bags as liners anyway I would get them. I use them for bathroom waste baskets but like others have said if I didn't use reusable bags then I would be bringing more home than I could ever use and thats a waste.

[spadlet]

I was told that the lowest grade of plastic that turns up for recycling, including plastic bags, gets turnied into bin liners. So using plastic bags as bin liners rather than recycling them might actucally save energy and resources.

[Claire]

Originally Posted by John Daniel

Another option is to get just enough plastic bags that you will reuse them, and ask for the remainder in either paper or bring your own.

We have a paper bag filled with plastic bags we accumulated. We then use paper bags until our stock of plastic ones gets low.

John Daniel
Federal International, Inc.

Intuitively this seems like a good idea - but in fact LCA suggests that the impact of paper bags is greater, mainly because they are heavier and bulkier to transport, I believe... it depends, of course, on how you factor in the "litter factor" and plastic bags causing danger to wildlife, but I would suggest avoiding the use of any kind of single-use bags - except, as spadlet suggests, just enough to reuse as binbags (and minimise use of those).

[John Daniel]

I must admit first of all I know a lot more about recycling than environmental impact. But I will say this, paper bags make for excellent raw material to produce new cardboard boxes. The plastic grocery bags are difficult to recycle.

I think if you investigated what happened to most of the plastic grocery bags that are "recycled" at the grocery stores, you would find many end up in the landfill.

I know the environmental impact in terms of energy and water is huge when recycling a paper bag. But turning wood into a paper bag is even higher! Try a simple experiment. Using stuff in your home (hint: a blender and screen), try turning a paper bag into a new paper bag. Pretty easy - now try it with some wood. I don't think you will be able to due it. And if so, you will have to use a bunch of heat and chemicals. (If you figure it out, let me know!)

Sincerely,
John Daniel
Federal International, Inc.