Thats the intended goal of the policy. TAYLOR: Yeah, well, Ill circle back to the three Rs. Over Half of the Worlds Penguin Species Are Threatened, A New Natural Gas Project in Mozambique Gives Locals All of the Costs and None of the Benefits. ETHAN: And that wraps up episode 106 of The Sweaty Penguin. When we got rid of the carry out bags, people had to start purchasing garbage bags. Cause of environmental pollution 2. The 13 Best Electric Bikes for Every Kind of Ride, The Best Barefoot Shoes for Walking or Running. Physicists Rewrite a Quantum Rule That Clashes With Our Universe. (Cindy) Works Cited. I know it sounds silly, but it would make a difference. So the unintended consequences. bags, or maybe even stop keeping bags at the register at all. Anyway, at a cracker plant, they use extreme heat to crack the molecular bonds in the oil or gas to produce a new gas called ethylene. But in terms of plastic, you are correct. They are not the largest sources of plastic pollution Plastic waste is indeed a. The reasons for papers higher carbon footprint are complex, but can mostly be understood as stemming from the fact that paper bags are much thicker than plastic bags. As plastic bag bans go into effect, some question the unintended Unlike reusable fabric bags, plastic bags can take lifetimes to biodegrade.Over that time, their light weight allows them to be carried long distances, causing environmental havoc along the way. I hardly know her! 1- Out of all the bags that are currently available in the market, plastic bags are the most convenient for consumers. NADJA: After much deliberation, Nandor and I have invited a new resident into the house. ETHAN: Given all this nuance weve explored pertaining to carry out bags, grocery bags, is there any advice you have for individuals who want to do their part? Now a hybrid ban, where you ban a particular thin plastic or film plastic, as long as theres also consideration for the other types of bags such as paper bags, and reusable bags, and requiring stores to charge for those other bags. No, of course not. If your chief concern is climate change, things get even muddier. If they dont get reused a certain amount of time. And buy the thinnest reusable bag that you know, youll actually reuse. This is often called border shopping. Businesses may be reluctant to engage in default choice modification because customers might not realize the law and think theyre just getting bad service. Australia has had a plastic bag ban since 2018. In fact, they may even feel too awkward to ask for one. So paper and plastic as litter paper, you know, decomposes, it breaks down, its not as harmful to the environment, if it if its litter. Still, many environmentalists argue that plastic is worse than paper. Bags made out of woven plastic like polypropylene can be reused over and over, meaning even though there are consequences to producing plastic, you dont have to manufacture as many bags. Its the type of giving that allows us to plan for future projects and provides us with the consistent funding we need to continue bringing you the climate news that you rely on. The Australian study concluded that the best option appears to be a reusable bag, but one made from recycled plastic. ETHAN: The Sweaty Penguin is presented by Peril and Promise: a public media initiative from The WNET Group in New York, reporting on the issues and solutions around climate change. Now, a new law hopes to take things a step further by banning these: single-use plastic pre-checkout bags that are not recyclable and can contaminate compost facilities. Others, like in New York City, treat all single-use bags equally. Like, get a life, man. Paper does have its own environmental consequences in terms of how much energy it takes to generate, acknowledges Emily Norton, director of the Massachusetts Sierra Club. Last month, the New York City Council passed a 5-cent-per-bag fee on single-use bags handed out by most retailers. Harmful to human health 6. Bag bans cut this litter off at the source: In San Jose, California, a plastic bag ban led to an 89 percent reduction in the number of plastic bags winding up in the citys storm drains. Thats right, nothing like getting high on your own supply. And so in terms of ranking those, that would be my order, taxes, hybrid bands, and then least preferred standalone bands. Thats right, its always the one you most suspect. But for UPROSE, that concern is outweighed by the negative impacts of plastic bags on disadvantaged communities. It honestly sounds like a superhero, doesnt it? And so my recommendation is to use as few bags as you can reuse the ones that you do purchase and purchase your bags, make it an active decision. Often they need to be reused at least 100, if not more times, to be more environmentally friendly than those thin plastic bags that were so familiar with. In fact, eight states have gone so far as to ban single-use plastic bags, and over 200 counties and municipalities have enacted ordinances either imposing a fee on plastic bags or banning them. Increasingly, environmentalists are pushing for laws that include fees for all single-use bags, and that require paper bags to be made with recycled content, which could lower their carbon footprint. The first time you say your dog ate it, its a funny story, but by the fifth time, youre definitely going to fail first grade. Testimony on the Proposed Paper Carryout Bag Fee | CBCNY These residents are trying to keep them out. . Aw, dammit, I was so close! Again, Im not referring to carbon emissions, Im talking nitrous oxide, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, smog, Sagittariuses, really bad stuff. How do we do that? So if you have a policy in your own city, but the next city over doesnt, and you decide to shop in then next city over to avoid the policy. Talk about consistency! And then if when those you know are no longer possible, can we recycle them? They say Hanukkah gets eight nights as if its special, but with Christmas, you get six whole months! Studies of bags environmental impacts over their life cycle have reached widely varying conclusions. Whether its paper, whether its plastic, can we reuse it, you know, extend its life? Try Christmas now! I collected data from supermarkets, on the types of bags people were using at checkout, both before and after the policy went into effect. [bell ring] Like blueberries or trips to the bathroom, not all plastics are created equal, and single-use plastic bags are typically made from a material called high-density polyethylene. [slam the wrong buzz several times, then rewind] Okay, okay cracker? If so, awesome, although we should probably talk about why youre that obsessed with your tote bag. Many supermarkets have experimented with bag bonuses trying to get people to reuse their either bags by giving them five cents, and they havent found them to be particularly effective. Well discuss the extent to which plastic bags are a problem, some of the shortcomings of the trendier solutions, and some other less commonly discussed ideas for how to most sustainably and effectively move forward. Yeah, that was even rough for my standards. debut in season five. But on the other hand, paper has a much higher carbon footprint than plastic, its much more water intensive, its much more energy intensive to produce. If someone wants a straw, they can ask and get it, no questions asked. Our best hope the next time Earth is in the crosshairs? LASZLO: Oh, alright, if itll shut you up. Was Implementation the Right Theme for COP27? I also mistake plastic bags for food sometimes, and let me tell you, Walmart makes a delicious tall kitchen. When the plastic bags were banned in California, paper bags were still allowed with the feet. Then, that ethylene can be sent to a new plant where theyll add a catalyst which initiates a chemical reaction and forms our high-density polyethylene. Not So Fast by Ben Adler The author of the piece Ben Adler agrees that plastic bags have an adverse impact on the environment. You get merch, bonus content, and more. Two weeks ago, the Massachusetts State Senate passed a measure that would ban plastic bags from being dispensed Seeing how nuanced this issue is, I asked Dr. Taylor what the next steps could look like. Eat one less meat dish a weekthats what will have a real impact on the environment, says Tyler. ETHAN: Now, it is worth noting that a single-use plastic grocery bag takes about 20 years to break down in the environment about as long as it takes the average to break down. Instagram, Follow us on 4 Absent the fee, which provides the economic incentive to bring reusable bags to the store, simple bans tend to shift consumers from one type . NADJA: Its perfectly harmless, Laszlo. LASZLO: What I want to know is why I wasnt consulted in inviting this creature into our home. In fact, eight states have gone so far as to ban single-use plastic bags, and over 200 counties and municipalities have enacted ordinances either imposing a fee on plastic bags or. If they were going to use a slur for white people, why not name it Karen or Wonderbread? Studies of bags environmental impacts over their life cycle have reached widely varying conclusions. The larger takeaway is that no bag is free of environmental impact, whether thats contributing to climate change, ocean pollution, water scarcity, or pesticide use. To help combat this waste, several American states have enacted bans on plastic grocery bags. Banning plastic bags is great for the world, right? How many plastic bags are replaced by one cotton tote bag? Lets start with paper: the only kind of bag that is, in the most literal tense, tearible. Climate change, they say, isnt the only form of environmental degradation to worry about. And so many of these supermarkets have actually rolled back their policies. Two weeks ago, the Massachusetts State Senate passed a measure that would ban plastic bags from being dispensed by many retail businesses and require a charge of 10 cents or more for a recycled paper or reusable bag. So were still figuring it out right now, but weve got a great episode for you today. I also looked at paper bags as well. It argues that while banning plastic bags may be good for the environment, it is not as simple as it seems. Two weeks ago, the Massachusetts State Senate passed a measure that would ban plastic bags from being dispensed by many retail businesses and require a charge of 10 cents or more for a. Like cigarettes, plastic bags have recently gone from a tolerated nuisance to a widely despised and discouraged vice. On The Pros and Cons of Banning Plastic Bags by John Stossel LASZLO: Am I? Were trying to get these deep dives a little bit shorter so you can listen to the whole thing during your commute or workout or walking your grandpa or what have you, and also make it a little bit more manageable for our team. Animals can become entangled in the bags and drown or mistake the bags for food which can clog their intestines and cause them to starve. So have at least 88 localities in California, including the cities of Los Angeles and San Francisco, plus cities and towns in more than a dozen other states and more than a dozen other countries. On the disposal side, single-use plastic bags are currently not recyclable, but thats because the bags are so flimsy they can get caught in the machinery. So some of my recent research was looking at to what extent do we actually see border shopping occur? Maybe call the manager over or fly the CEO in on a helicopter or pull the fire alarm so everyone starts screaming and running. Obtain that grain. New York State and Hawaii just passed theirs, set to go into effect in 2020, and California's bag ban, which was passed in 2014, has been shown to have reduced plastic bag usage by 85 percent . [deep echoey filter] ITS INSATIABLE! The Massachusetts proposal may not become law this year, but its the latest sign that the plastic bag industry is losing this war. You can order the T-shirt plastic bags in wholesale from Bags . As part of our commitment to sustainability, in 2021 Grist moved its office headquarters to the Bullitt Center in Seattles vibrant Capitol Hill neighborhood. Summary Response to Adler's Essay .docx - Banning Plastic I asked Dr. Taylor how we can account for the cost of alternatives when we create policies to address plastic bags. As the Australian study noted, a cotton bag has major environmental impacts of its own. 2. Fees have a smaller, but still significant, effect. You can learn more at pbs.org/perilandpromise. The Australian study concluded that the best option appears to be a reusable bag, but one made from recycled plastic, not cotton. Not so fast. Plastic bags not only destroy the physical infrastructure, she says, referring to the way they clog up storm drains and other systems, they contribute to emissions. And she points out that marine plastic pollution is a threat to low-income people who fish for their dinner: So many frontline communities depend on food coming from the ocean. Thats why her group supported New York Citys bag fee even though its more of a burden on lower-income citizens. Washington, D.C.s government estimates that its 5-cent bag tax has led to a 60 percent reduction in the number of these bags being used, although that figure is contested by other sources. Banning Plastic Bags Is Great for the World, Right? Not So Fast [end filter] Never mind, that was underwhelming. Plastic Bags Take Up To 1,000 Years to Decompose. Now, Im not sure how far along plant plastic or CO2 plastic are in the development process, but certainly very exciting possibilities if they could scale up. Do local governments get to say how these products are regulated? High costs for cleanup 8. Its been more than five years since single-use plastic bags like these were banned from grocery stores, a ban advocates say made strides for the environment. Because of that, the climate impact of a cotton tote is 131 times that of a plastic bag, and its overall environmental impact is thousands of times worse. Also, this question is something like asking, Would you prefer to get a parking ticket or a tax assessment? It depends on the specifics, but its better to avoid both wherever possible. Goldstein is confident that if people switch to reusable bags, even cotton ones, and use them consistently, that will ultimately be better for the environment. Proposition 67, also known as SB270, officially passed in November 2016, prohibits plastic bags . Now, obviously, there are still benefits of reducing our consumption of plastic.