OK, before y'all go bonkers in the comments, I do not endorse plastic nor do I work for a secret plastic organization. I merely ran across some facts about the
paper vs. plastic debate that caused me to pause briefly and give thanks that I use canvas.
- Plastic bags require 40% less energy to produce than paper bags.
- Paper bags produce 80% more solid waste than plastic and due to modern landfill techniques, don't biodegrade much faster than their polyethylene counterparts.
- It takes less energy to recycle a plastic bag than paper.
- Plastic bags weigh less and take up less landfill space than their paper counterparts.
- Paper bag manufacturing creates more air and water pollution than plastic bags.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
2-06-2008 @ 12:39PM
David said...
Paper bags are mostly made from recycled paper and plastic bags are made from petroleum and can take 500 years or more to biodegrade. It's a no-brainer which one is better, and while I know you did not write the article you are referring to, it's obvious why that article was written. It's kind of like the people who go on Fox and say "global warming isn't real" - and then the real media actually picks the story up.
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2-06-2008 @ 3:28PM
UrbanFrugal said...
The problem isn't the plastic bags. We need to use whatever materials we have wisely. Paper bags or the current fashion item - the canvas bag can pollute if we have too many of them.
We need to reduce the amount of paper and plastic bags that we use, and reuse/repurpose them until they cannot be used anymore, then recycle them.
If we take fewer bags from the store then we would use less energy all around.
http://www.urbanfrugal.com
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2-06-2008 @ 6:26PM
eloomanator said...
I wish you could see the creek that flows through our community's "Nature Center". It's choked with plastic bags, not paper.
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2-07-2008 @ 9:34AM
Lou said...
I find a lot of the facts misleading in the way they're worded. It says paper and plastic bags take about the same amount of time to biodegrade, and I found that rather hard to believe. I followed the link to the original article, and there they add "in a landfill". I mean, sure, if you put a paper bag in a plastic garbage bag, it won't decompose until the plastic bag does. Duh. But seriously, in 2008, does anyone still put paper in the actual garbage that goes to the landfill (rather than the recycling bin)? If so, then I'm even more worried about our future than I already was!!
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2-07-2008 @ 9:41AM
kelly.leahy said...
Good point. I should had added, "in a landfill."
Unfortunately a lot of paper does still end up in the landfill. My city doesn't even offer recycling nor do any of the surrounding counties. There are one or two places where you can bring your waste or pay for private pick-up.
2-08-2008 @ 2:46PM
slaphappy said...
Hellya they do (put paper in plastic!) Some of my neighbors would blow your mind. They don't recycle AT ALL. It is *mind boggling* to me. It's selfish. It's disgusting. We put out buckets and buckets of recycling, and yet I know we could do better, and that makes me feel guilty. I don't get how people can just decide it's too much of a hassle to recycle.
2-08-2008 @ 9:03AM
Lou said...
That's so depressing! :-( I live in Canada, and I'm pretty sure curbside recycling pickup is available everywhere here.
I visited my snowbird parents in Florida last year and almost had a stroke when I saw them put ALL their garbage (paper, plastic, etc.) in the regular garbage bin. They said they hadn't seen any recycling bins anywhere. I was just flabbergasted... They're going back there this week, so I'll beg them to look for recycling possibilities.
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2-08-2008 @ 9:07AM
kelly.leahy said...
Recycling in the states is a regional thing. More progressive areas will have it ... large cities, Northern states on both coasts, etc. I know that it's getting more popular but we still have a long way to go!
2-08-2008 @ 10:01PM
emramnarine said...
I just want to say that where I go to school the student government is making more people recycle by putting out more bins, the senior project this year is to promote recycling, the art classes make signs to promote recycling, we had an all day assembly to promote recycling, all the teachers have recycling bins in their classrooms, poeple fish recycling out of the trash (and trash out of the recycling) and thats not even most of it. I live in massachusetts, not someplace like maine where there are recycling centers everywhere. but it still surprises me to hear that people couldnt find a place to recycle. at the very least poeple can use the back of paper that was already printed on to write things like grocery lists. many towns have places that you can bring your recycling other than a curbside pick-up. These places tend to cost a little but compared to how much they help the enviroment it's really nothing. when you put things like plastic and cans in the trash think about our earth in 50 years.
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2-08-2008 @ 10:04PM
kelly.leahy said...
I think that as current generations get used to the idea of recycling, we'll see a lot more of it happening. That's great news about your school. I'm pretty sure we didn't recycle in my high school nearly 15 years ago so that's a pretty big improvement.
2-11-2008 @ 4:05PM
Benn said...
So I take it you don't like single-use bags? What a bunch of Bag Monster Busters! There's a blog for people who want to be entertained and informed about the bag crisis: www.BagMonsterBusters.com
Nobody seems to want us around anymore... It's hard being a Bag Monster in the Age of Bag Bans! I can't even get a job because of those new-fandangled reusable ChicoBags.
I just got back from getting trashed at Mardi Gras! To see my latest shenanigans go to my blog: http://www.BagMonster.com
With competition like ChicoBag, I don't know how long we'll last without endangered species protection. *sigh* It's tough being a Bag Monster.
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3-14-2008 @ 9:30AM
hannah louise and caitlin said...
i think plastics rock!!!!!!! they are theee best thingss ever invented my house shed car and everything is plastic even tho my cooker is plastic and a bit metal but i juss say its plastics they rule hteee world hahahahahahahahaha i think hooever says plastics are bad for the world because i am a world famous scientist and i know that plastics do not harm the enviroment so get going cuz they are the best seyaLOSERS EHO EVER GOES ON IS WEBSITE IS PURE CULLSSS AYEEEEEEE
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