Environmental awareness increased in recent years. The beginning of the 20th Century was defined by war due to national interests and the fast change as a result of industrialization. The outrages speed of invention and capitalistic strategy of short time goals limited the view for health and environmental related issues. Mankind jeopardized itself. The new millennium is a test for the humanity and will define the contemplation of the human race as a part of nature or beyond.

 

 

 

 

 

Due to the undeniable advantages of using plastic in our daily routine and industry, plastic became a stable companion, an unquestionable guest in our life. Although the plastic shopping bag was introduced in US American supermarkets relatively recently in 1977, it became the essential carrier due to the free supply for the consumer. The production and distribution costs are low, the strength extraordinary and its look offers no sentimental worth what lead to the single-use behavior of transporting groceries to the home with no further use or as a short time housing for fast consumed comestibles.

 

Reliance upon thin plastic shopping bags decreases due to jurisdictions and eco-mentality. High standardized nations as well as uprising economical giants like India and China or developing nations in Africa have shown an increasing dialogue in environmental issues. A mixture of responsibility and economical potential lead to jurisdictions which already lowed the consumption extraordinarily in the participating areas.

 

Plastic bags are commonly produced out of high density polyethylene (HDPE), a thermoplastic made from oil. Fossil fuels are extracted and processed to provide the energy (0.48 MJ) required for production, contributing to a unpredictable but already visible climate change. The lightweight properties of the plastic bag allow it to escape from rubbish bins and official/unofficial landfills and are prevalent in many regions. Under good circumstances, HDPE will take more than 20 years to degrade. In the less ideal circumstances of a landfill or general refuse, it persists 1000 years and more. The Recycling phenomenon of veiling real impacts due to a nice-guy image is enormous. The truth is, anywhere from 5% to 3% winds up recycled, the prognostic amount of thin-film single-use plastic bags is lower than 1% according to the Worldwatch Institute report, 1% of 500billion to 1trillion produced bags per year; that is a million bags used per minute. (1)

Usually a bag is put in the trash bin or is used as a litter-bag to be burned in the following processes. The endless fossil oil is used carelessly and rises the CO² percentage of the atmosphere by burning the bags. Even if a bag enters the recycling circle it enters another tragedy; the economics behind bag recycling are costs of "$4,000 to process and recycle 1 ton of plastic bags, which can then be sold on the commodities market for $32." (2).

When plastics gradually break down, they don't biodegrade; they photodegrade. This means the materials break down to smaller, more toxic petro-polymers. Those fragments readily soak up toxins and contaminate soil, waterways and animals upon digestion. They move around the natural environment causing a variety of problems and entering the food chain. The extremely slow decomposition rate of plastic bags leaves them to float on the ocean. Animals ingesting bags for mistaken food what can cause immediate death or a starvation due to a false sense of satisfaction. 10% of overall plastic fills the oceans and 70% of this amount sinks to the ground, where it will likely never degrade.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Nations all over the world started to reduce the usage of shopping plastic bags although their reasons and strategies differ.

 

• ECONOMICS

The production of HDPE bags depends on polyethylene, a thermoplastic made from the oil, an expansive and ending fossil. China used estimated 3 billion plastic bags and banned the distribution and use of free HDPE plastic bags and it is estimated by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) that plastic bag consumption at supermarkets has been reduced by 66% what equals a saving of 1.6 million tons of petroleum per year.

 

• TOURISM AND MARINE LIFE

The Ocean Conservency kept 43 different types of refuse in 2008. Cigarette butts were the most common. Plastic bags came in second. Every square mile of ocean contains about 46,000 pieces of floating plastic. Plastic debris acts like a sponge for toxic chemicals, soaking up a million fold greater concentration than surrounding water of such deadly compounds as PCBs and DDE. (3) The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) reported that plastic, especially plastic bags and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic bottles, accounts for more than 80 percent of marine litter. Beside killing animals, plastic can also damage boats, fishing gear, and agricultural facilities.

The semi-autonomous Tanzanian territory of Zanzibar banned the importation and production of plastic bags in 2006 due to fears that plastic bag marine debris would harm the marine tourism industry upon which the economy is based.

 

• HEALTH CRISIS 

Dhaka, Bangladesh and Mumbai, India banned plastic bags due to water-bourne diseases. Monsoonal flooding carried the large number of dumped plastic bags to the drains, clogging them and preventing free movement of water; diseases flourished in the aftermath of these floods. Prior of the ban Dhakar used daily 9.3 million plastic bags; approximately 85-90% were thought to be dumped in the city streets after use. As well as exacerbation of flood waters, plastic bag litter on farms had the potential to leach contaminants into vegetable and grain crops with serious human health implications.

 

• ECO-MENTALITY, IMAGE AND RESPONSIBILITY 

Developed nations consist of high standard societies. A heap of plastic on the streets, in the bushes and trees is bad for the reputation. Investment and migration status varies with the look of districts or the image of the whole city. People want to live in clean neighborhoods and express their discontentment. Especially the uprising eco-life and increasing interest in health and environmental issues lead to special stores with matching service. Even strategic non-ecological orientated companies try to win costumers by promoting eco-products and partly shifting the image. McDonalds is one of the biggest polluters in the world with a questionable value of fast food for the human body. Still, this company use salad adverts and changed to a green colored emblem to proclaim healthy incredients and products.

West European governments have many jurisdictions for the usage of shopping plastic bags. Furthermore those stable economies can focus on future investments and have the opportunity to act in respect of their responsibility for a green earth.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Differing economic and cultural systems lead to different strategies to reduce the reliance on shopping plastic bags. Most concerns are about the thin-single-use bags. Nations like Germany traditionally do not use a high amount of those thin bags and instituted a high levy long time ago. Additionally most supermarkets offer reusable bag to buy at the counter. In nations with a prior high use of thin plastic bags differs the method of reduction:

 

• HIGH TAXING ON PRODUCTION AND IMPORTATION

Italy introduced a tax in 1989 which was five times higher than the cost of production.

 

• TAX AT THE CHECKOUT

Ireland implemented a plastic tax as the first of its kind on 2001. The market-based strategy enabled to continue the occasionally use of plastic bags but discourages the daily, thoughtless use of plastic bags by charging a nominal fee per bag at checkout. According to the Irish Department of the Environment the plastic bag usage had dropped 93.5%. This breaks down to a drop from 328 to 21 bags per person each year.

 

• ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION

Some nations invest in public advertising for the use of reusable bags.

UK and China announced the big help of their National "no-plastic-bag-day."

In India posters have been placed in public places to educate the public on the ban. Furthermore a women’s cooperative has partnered with St Stephen’s Hospital in Sunder Nagri to further employment opportunities as a result of the hospital looking to source alternatives to plastic bags. The women are paid to sew cloth bags for the pharmacy to package pharmaceuticals for distribution to patients.

Carrefour Malaysia company and the Malaysian Nature Society have partnered to stop distributing plastic bags. Carrefour outlets allow customers who bring reusable bags to take priority at the checkout over those customers without reusable bags. Carrefour has not a environmental policy. In Mexico they use an outrages amount of plastic bags.

 

• BAN ON NON-DEGRADABLE PLASTIC BAGS

Most often a ban is considered and shows an immediate impact to the costumers as seen in China, Ireland, Eritrea etc. Controls with high penalties are effective. Instead of using the long lasting plastic bags, governments promote the use of biodegradable bags. The use of paper bags increased in San Francisco, the first city in the USA which banned plastic bags. Paper bags and compostable bags require more material per bag in the manufacturing process. This means "higher consumption of raw materials in the manufacture of the bags...[and] greater energy in bag manufacturing and greater fuel use in the transport of the finished product. The added requirements of manufacturing energy and transport for the compostable and paper bag systems far exceed the raw material use in the standard plastic bag system." (4)

In Rwanda, the blackmarket for plastic bag increased and allerged instances of corruption. The ban lead to an intense shifting to paper bags.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Differing cultural circumstances will lead to differences in the results. A ban can lead to a effective shifting to non-use bags consumption or the usage of reusable bags. Under some circumstances the costumers shift to a higher use of paper bags. Societies like Germany usually do not offer paper bags at the checkout, societies like USA or Thailand traditionally had paper bags which probably would stimulate a shifting after the ban. Thailand had a tactical change with a new focus on educating consumers about the environmental impacts of plastic bags. The Vice-Governor made the argument that a levy is not consistent with the long-term goal of eliminating plastic bag use through a ban.

Lobbism of petroleum manufacturers and plastic companies is strong. Mexico City introduced a law to use biodegradable bags but the lobby of plastic was strong enough to turn the page. The argument of increasing recycling mentality was communicated. (1‰ of all bags is recycled)

 

The ban on thin plastic bags on supermarkets is the most effective way to reduce reliance. A market-based strategy of bigger and stronger biodegradable bags which acknowledged the occasional use of plastic bags, offers an option for situation a costumer could not plan to bring a reusable bag with him. This just works with a high levy at the checkout. Ireland first struggled before they increased the levy and is considering a next step to double on 0.44€. Reusable bags should be sold additionally. The ban has to be accompanied by an education program for the costumers. 

Shops should be able to sell smaller biodegradable bags or paper bags at the checkout with a high levy if the no-bag option would not be satisfying. Purchasing in little shops is more spontaneous and a plastic ban could cause renunciation if the amount exceeds the no-bag option and reusable bags won't be an option due to price, size and benefit; (if a costumer already has some reusable bags at home he won't like to purchase another one for a certain price). The costumer has to be educated about the environmental impact of the production of paper bags and biodegradable material. Costumers in shops often buy a limited amount of goods which not necessarily need a bag. Furthermore costumers in supermarkets show the same attributes. Particularly the young generations often buy a handful of items instead of a weekly visit. It is commonly accepted to carry few things, store them in purses or other daily used handbags/backpacks. Often an immediate consume follows.

 

The free purchase of thin plastic bags at the checkout lead to a I-do-not-care mentality. The cashier and costumer don't think about the actual use.

 

• Bags are packed in bags.

• Articles are packed a minute before consume or use, the plastic bag lifetime is absurdly short.

• Purchases are packed to be carried not more than between supermarket, car and home.

• Articles are packed in a bag to be immediately pass on in the personal handbag what leads to the nonsensical function of a plastic bag as not more than to be an envelope

 

A better education and ban on thin plastic bags is rational, the costumer does not use the bags for its determination. A levy would ensure a more sensible use to end the I-do-not-care behavior. Controls and high penalties are needed.

 

UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner has recommended that all countries ban thin plastic bags:

 

 "Some of the litter, like thin-film single-use plastic bags which choke marine life, should be banned or phased-out rapidly everywhere. There is simply zero justification for manufacturing them anymore, anywhere."

 

 

 

 

(1) (planetgreen.discovery.com/home-garden/plastic-bag-facts.html)

(2) (Jared Blumenfeld (Director of San Francisco's Department of the Environment))

(3) (www.sprep.org/factsheets/pdfs/plasticbags.pdf)

(4) (Boustead Consulting & Associates report)