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Is banning them really the solution? People need to be able to carry their stuff. If plastic bags are the best option, thats just the physical reality of the si
by bb123 6y ago
Is banning them really the solution? People need to be able to carry their stuff. If plastic bags are the best option, thats just the physical reality of the situation. Arbitrarily banning things left and right isn't going to fix that.
- DubiousPusher 6y agoI live in a municipality which banned the bag years ago. I wasn't thrilled but honestly the difference is a negligible annoyance. You use paper, reusables or do without. It's fine.
- SifJar 6y ago> You use paper GP was talking about banning paper bags I believe
- DubiousPusher 6y agoYes, thank you. I confused myself.
- kijin 6y agoYou can't ban all bags, but you can ban free bags. Like, charge $0.25 for each bag and use the proceeds to clean up microplastic waste in your jurisdiction. It's basically a tax on plastic bags. The current market price of plastic bags doesn't reflect the externalities of using them willy-nilly and throwing them out.
- pjmlp 6y agoWhile in Germany it has helped to increase the amount of foldable bags we carry around, latest surveys just show a large majority doesn't care about having to pay such kind of taxes.
- kijin 6y agoWhat matters is whether the revenue from plastic bag sales actually goes into the cleanup effort, offsetting the externalities. If it doesn't, then the whole policy is a sham. If it does but the revenue is not enough, the price tag should increase until it accurately reflects the true cost. Increasing the cost to well above pocket change might have the welcome side effect of making people care more, but IMO that's a secondary concern.
- raisedbyninjas 6y agoThis argument could be used against the ban of asbestos. One of the factors that makes plastic bags the "best" option is externalized costs. Killing sea life and whatever the effects of microplastics collecting in our bloodstream are not included the price.
- alistairSH 6y agoWe should probably just charge/tax for "throw away" bags (paper or plastic) and move people towards bags that are actually reusable over a long period of time. We use sturdy hemp bags for our groceries. They cost $1.50 or something like that and last for years. And it's hemp, so it should degrade like other natural fibers.
- pjmlp 6y agoYou end like in some European countries where carrying foldable bags has become a tradition.