4 ms·

I don't know what kind of plastic bag it was, but the grocery bags we get where I live start to develop holes rather quickly so they're not actually reusable. T

I don't know what kind of plastic bag it was, but the grocery bags we get where I live start to develop holes rather quickly so they're not actually reusable. They also aren't allowed in my city's recycle bins because they apparently just get stuck in the sorting machines and cause all kinds of issues. When I tried saving them for various uses and noticed they develop holes quickly, I thought maybe that's good - maybe these bags were made to decompose quickly or something, but that's not the case. And now that we know microplastics are inside lots of organisms (including ourselves) I can't help but just feel like plastic is just a nasty SOB. We've ended up getting a bunch of those cloth re-usable grocery bags and using those. I also use containers rather than zip lock bags. But I doubt I make much of a difference because when I take my morning walks on trash/recycle pickup days I frequently see bins filled to the brim with plastic water bottles where it seems like people just buy multiple cases of water bottles and drink from them like they're cups or soda cans and toss them.

skookumchuck 7y ago
I reuse the paper grocery bags. They can usually be used 10 times or more before they disintegrate, then I use them again as trash bags. I wonder why I've never heard anyone mention this. The grocery store has no problem at all with me bringing back the paper bags and stuffing my purchases in them. They've never said a word about it. I never see anyone else do it.
- jdsully 7y ago
  The grocery store loves you. Bags are a major expense for them - unless you’re in an area where they get to charge. The only potential issue is extra scrutiny from loss prevention.
  - frenchy 7y ago
    > unless you’re in an area where they get to charge. Why don't they do this everywhere? Is it because customers would throw a fit?
    - Kluny 7y ago
      In my city, it took a long time to get a plastic bag ban passed because of strong opposition from plastic manufacturer lobbyists who pretended that they were taking the side of "local businesses".
  - skookumchuck 7y ago
    Around here, plastic bags are banned and paper bags have a per-bag tax. The store doesn't charge for the bags, they just pass on the tax. They didn't charge before the tax/ban, either.
yeahitslikethat 7y ago
I reuse them as garbage bags in small trash cans under the sink, in the bathroom, office, etc. You can reuse small boxes and big coffee cans as the trash cans.

skookumchuck 7y ago

I reuse the paper grocery bags. They can usually be used 10 times or more before they disintegrate, then I use them again as trash bags. I wonder why I've never heard anyone mention this. The grocery store has no problem at all with me bringing back the paper bags and stuffing my purchases in them. They've never said a word about it. I never see anyone else do it.

jdsully 7y ago
The grocery store loves you. Bags are a major expense for them - unless you’re in an area where they get to charge. The only potential issue is extra scrutiny from loss prevention.
- frenchy 7y ago
  > unless you’re in an area where they get to charge. Why don't they do this everywhere? Is it because customers would throw a fit?
  - Kluny 7y ago
    In my city, it took a long time to get a plastic bag ban passed because of strong opposition from plastic manufacturer lobbyists who pretended that they were taking the side of "local businesses".
- skookumchuck 7y ago
  Around here, plastic bags are banned and paper bags have a per-bag tax. The store doesn't charge for the bags, they just pass on the tax. They didn't charge before the tax/ban, either.

yeahitslikethat 7y ago

I reuse them as garbage bags in small trash cans under the sink, in the bathroom, office, etc. You can reuse small boxes and big coffee cans as the trash cans.