Earth-friendly Living & Crafting: Forum Report #1

Plastic Grocery Bags

One green-living movement that has been picking up steam these days is to bring your own reusable bags to the grocery store. I've seen handmade canvas totes, bags of heavy-duty plastic that last longer, and even the logo-printed kind that some stores are selling next to the check-out counter. This week I'll be talking about why plastic bags are so bad for our environment and our economy, as well as the many benefits of using reusable bags. Next week I'll share some creative tips on what to do with all those plastic bags that you already have lying around.

The prevalence of plastic today has become an ever-growing problem. It's almost impossible to buy anything that is not either made from plastic or wrapped in plastic packaging. Rachel has some good posts on A Touch of the Past about using less plastic in her life, and I enjoy reading this woman's blog as well about her quest to live plastic-free for an entire year! It's a daunting challenge, one that I'm sure would require a lot of will power and patience.

We've all seen those sad pictures of animals with plastic rings caught around their necks, and we've all seen roadways littered with bottles, bags, and other plastic junk. And if you haven't seen the news story about the island of plastic trash larger than Texas that's floating in the Pacific Ocean, you can find a lengthy and enlightening, though somewhat disturbing, article here. While plastic grocery bags are not the only plastic products adding to the problem, they do make a pretty hefty contribution. It's estimated that one million plastic bags are consumed worldwide every minute. And since all those bags can't decompose, they have to go somewhere, right?

Even ignoring all the environmental impacts, there are major economic benefits as well to using reusable grocery bags. If Americans stopped using plastic bags at the grocery store for one year, we would save 12 million barrels of oil that would have been used to make those bags, and retailers would save $4 billion. What could we do with an extra $4 billion dollars floating around in the economy?

So where can you find some of these eco-friendly reusable bags? Most large grocery stores sell their own for only a couple dollars, and you can also find inexpensive and sturdy canvas totes that smaller shops print their name on. You can even make your own out of old clothing or other fabric. Or, if you want to support other crafters, check out my recommendations that I've found on Etsy:

Kootsac: Reusable bulk food bags made from ripstop nylon.
Remarket: Reusable mesh produce bags.
Fashion Green T Bags: Shopping totes made from recycled t-shirts
Weather and Noise: Canvas totes printed with "I Exercise Ethical Consumerism"

Thanks for reading!
Sarah