Get the Lead Out

Kermit2

Joined Feb 5, 2010
4,162
Why is everyone blaming the inanimate object for the problem?

I actually clean up areas where I find discarded trash. When mankind takes the environment for granted HE is the problem. Don't blame the garbage, blame the garbage maker.

Enforcement of littering laws would make a larger impact.

So, tell me how wrong I am now. I'd love to hear it. :)
 

NetDoc

Joined Jan 6, 2014
22
I've never blamed a plastic grocery bag. I've never blamed lead in paint or even in gasoline. I blame the irresponsible people who think they're a good idea and manufacture them.

Better?
 

tracecom

Joined Apr 16, 2010
3,944
I've never blamed a plastic grocery bag. I've never blamed lead in paint or even in gasoline. I blame the irresponsible people who think they're a good idea and manufacture them.

Better?
No.

Grocery bag manufacturers aren't the cause of litter any more than scuba tank manufacturers are the cause of coral reef damage. The cause is the irresponsible human behavior of those who misuse or abuse the products.
 

NetDoc

Joined Jan 6, 2014
22
Yes.

I'm a pretty responsible and eco-focused person but I've had those blasted crocery sacks escape when a quick wind pops up. They are hard to handle. I even saw one get sucked out of a garbage can by the wind. Once they escape your grasp, they are so light that they can be airborne in a heartbeat, high above my ability to retrieve them. Also, they are a drain on our resources. Use a reusable bag and call it a day. I can't wait for them to be outlawed here in Florida.
 

nsaspook

Joined Aug 27, 2009
13,081
Yes.

I can't wait for them to be outlawed here in Florida.
When bags are outlawed only ... well you know ... :D

How about a little positive reinforcement like we do with bottles and cans, add value to them and they will disappear from the landscape.
 
Last edited:

Kermit2

Joined Feb 5, 2010
4,162
For some reason; perhaps they are too costly to recycle. The plastic grocery bags are an item we are specifically instructed to NOT place in our green recyclables bin. Our recycle bin is almost always overflowing and the refuse bin is often less than half full when trash is collected. Making them from something easily recycled would be nice.

Making plastic soda bottles worth 5 or 10 cents each would greatly reduce people's incentive to toss them on the ground. So would a few weeks of community service picking up trash if they are caught tossing them, but that's for another day's discussion. :)
 

alfacliff

Joined Dec 13, 2013
2,458
wouldnt a small change in the formulation of shopping bags to make them degrade sooner help? I tried to get the media here interested in a 'Kansas jellyfish" (shopping bags) campaign. you see them stuck in trees and on fences all over the place. they are most numerous around the landfills (trash dumps).
 

NetDoc

Joined Jan 6, 2014
22
wouldnt a small change in the formulation of shopping bags to make them degrade sooner help? I tried to get the media here interested in a 'Kansas jellyfish" (shopping bags) campaign. you see them stuck in trees and on fences all over the place. they are most numerous around the landfills (trash dumps).
Then you're only addressing the pollution they create and not the resources they consume. Less than 5% of all plastic bags are recycled.
 

nsaspook

Joined Aug 27, 2009
13,081
Then you're only addressing the pollution they create and not the resources they consume. Less than 5% of all plastic bags are recycled.
I agree, most stores use paper bags here, trees are a local crop. Someone also needs to tell the reusable cloth bags people they need to wash the smelly things.
 

shortbus

Joined Sep 30, 2009
10,045
For some reason; perhaps they are too costly to recycle. The plastic grocery bags are an item we are specifically instructed to NOT place in our green recyclables bin. Our recycle bin is almost always overflowing and the refuse bin is often less than half full when trash is collected. Making them from something easily recycled would be nice.

Making plastic soda bottles worth 5 or 10 cents each would greatly reduce people's incentive to toss them on the ground. So would a few weeks of community service picking up trash if they are caught tossing them, but that's for another day's discussion. :)
Must be a regional/local thing, not taking the bags. They take them here. Most of the grocery store bags are polyethylene, either LDPE or LLDPE.
 

tracecom

Joined Apr 16, 2010
3,944
Must be a regional/local thing, not taking the bags. They take them here. Most of the grocery store bags are polyethylene, either LDPE or LLDPE.
Wal-mart takes them at every store. Not have a place to recycle is not an excuse. I don't do it, but it's not for lack of a place.
 

Kermit2

Joined Feb 5, 2010
4,162
I haven't been to WalMart in a while. When I do go it has never crossed my mind to check and see if they accept the bags for recycling. I'll note it and next time I'm there will see if my local Worldmart takes the bags. I regularly stop by our local BestBuy because they have a recycle bin for batteries of all types(except 6 and 12 volt SLA). The oil change business just around the corner takes used motor oil as well, which is a whole other subject that needs to be addressed seriously by mankind. The last estimate I saw on that subject suggested the amount dumped on the ground in the US alone is equivalent to the spill in Prince William sound. I don't know what the amount really is but I'm sure it is needlessly, outrageously large.
 

JoeJester

Joined Apr 26, 2005
4,390
Your local food bank could use those bags ... so could the local thrift stores.

Recycling doesn't have to be renewing the bag.
 

Wendy

Joined Mar 24, 2008
23,415
I recycle most at my local Walmart, but I also use them for small trash containers around the house.

It would be interesting to see if they could be made to dissolve in salt water.
 

#12

Joined Nov 30, 2010
18,224
+1 on the trash can liners. They work just fine on the small bins.
I believe I read about biodegradable t-shirt bags a few months ago.
Yes. Geo also said that in post #14.
Personally, I often tell the cashier, "Save a dinosaur, don't use plastic bags". :D
 
Top