Nowadays, more grocery stores are turning away from providing plastic bags and settling for paper or tote bags. Organic farmer’s markets are not the only businesses that use reusable plastic or nylon bags. Anyone can use the same bag for carrying groceries, books or other important items. If you are planning to sell products and raise awareness about environmental causes, you want to promote recycled and reused products. Learn why reusable bags make such great fundraising ideas and ideal products in general.
Plastic Bags Stay in the Environment
Once a plastic bag enters the natural environment, it usually stays there for thousands of years, interfering with the ecosystem. The average plastic bag takes anywhere from 10 to 1000 years to decompose in nature.
Also, plastic is not the cleanest material produced in factories. Plastic is known to degrade, but it releases toxins when it does. In the soil and water, plastic pollutes the area and poisons many of the animals. In the oceans, there are heaps of plastic bags that collect together and move around like floating landfills.
Plastic Bags Stay in Landfills
A great deal of plastic is not recycled and is left to decompose in landfills. The main problem is that plastic does not decompose easily, so it adds to the pile of waste. Also, plastic bags are likely to fly off on their own and create more chaos for the environment. When you reuse plastic bags, you reduce the sizes of landfills and eliminate environmental pollution.
All over the world, people use billions of plastic bags, so the average person uses dozens of bags every year. When you go to the store, you are likely to see large collections of plastic bags waiting to be used.
Many bags reach the trash can, but many more do not. Companies around the world spend millions of dollars trying to clean up the litter that includes non-recycled plastic. In major waterways, these bags contribute to a large portion of debris that gets washed to shore. Some scientists have seen bags that have floated all the way up north to the Arctic Circle.
The Manufacture of Plastic Bags Is Wasteful
Plastic bags are manufactured from gas and oil products, which are made from nonrenewable resources that are not easy to replace. The manufacturing process is strenuous and expensive, too, because the use of fuel drives up the costs. Each year, countless oil barrels are used to create endless supplies of bags.
If you want to make a difference for the ecosystem where you live, eliminate your dependence on plastic bags. It is very simple to start reusing bags for school, work, and basic errands. If you want great fundraising ideas that are also unique, include the use of recycled, environmentally friendly products.