Plastic, paper and cotton bags are probably the easiest and cheapest options when it comes to containing and transporting foods, powders, ice, chemicals and even wastes. Billions of single-use plastic bags are distributed free of cost every day. These free single-use bags might seem to be of great advantage apparently, but as the old adage goes, nothing in this world comes for free. We pay heavily for using each of these bags with our environment and future.
If we take into account the "cradle to grave" multiple impacts and the effects of each phase of these bags’ life we will be able to illustrate the actual costs paid by our environment and society for the fleeting convenience of unlimited, free, single-use plastic bags.
Firstly, the production of these plastic bags requires a large amount of petroleum and natural gas. These production materials are non-renewable resources and there’s always a risk that unnecessary use of these resources might lead to scarcity. Moreover, the process to acquire these resources immensely contributes to the destruction of the fragile habitats and ecosystems around the world. The production of plastic bags also requires a lot of toxic substances to be used. These toxic substances in turn produce pollution and harm the environment. Energy consumption required for the production of these bags is also huge. This contributes effectively towards global warming.
These bags might be distributed for free to the consumers but definitely does not come free to the retailers. The U.S. retailers alone incur an annual cost of approximately four billion U.S. dollars. When these bags are distributed, the costs are generally passed on to the consumers in the form of higher prices for the goods that they purchase. So, though the concept of these bags might seem to be free, in fact they also have some financial issues involved which ultimately are borne by the end-users.
The disposal and littering of these bags also threatens the environment and the future of mankind and all living forms. These plastic bags are often disposed off into water or littered on land. Thousands of marine lives are put into danger due to this. Sea turtles, whales and other such marine mammals often mistakes these plastics for food and end up dead. When swallowed these plastics choke them or block their intestine resulting in a painful death. Same is the fate of several cows, goats and other such lad animals that often end up eating pieces of plastic while foraging for food. Moreover, it takes almost thousands of years for these pieces of plastic to completely degrade on land. They break down into tiny bits and contaminate soil and water.
So we see that in-spite of the plastic beings ‘free’ of cost, there’s actually a major cost that needs to be paid indirectly and it threatens the mere existence of all living forms on the face of the earth. Mass movements are taking place all over the world in order to reduce the consumption of these plastic and paper bags due to their ill-effects on the environment. Luckily, though, we have seen the introduction of reusable, eco-friendly and environment safe bags on the market to substitute them. These bags are generally made of Polypropylene. They are simple to produce, strong and can be made of different weight or thickness depending on the intended use. Bags made of this durable material are water repellent and avoids bacteria and odor. They are not affected by chemicals or solvents and comply with FDA regulations.
The reusable, eco-friendly bags proves to be a perfect alternative to the toxic plastic or paper bags and should be adopted for a better, healthier and safer environment.
