Monday November 9, 2009, 1:22 pm
I soooooooo hate plastic bags, plastic milk jugs, water bottles and so forth.

Big Gorilly Hugs

Monday November 9, 2009, 4:02 pm
Our grandparents & all before us lived &
died without this damaging stuff,
and so can we..................

Knock on wood-Plant trees for life.......................

Monday November 9, 2009, 7:23 pm
I'm really glad to see that not only individuals, but states are beginning to take action against plastic. Not only is it found now in the gullets of animals (birds, reptiles and mammals), where it punctures, lacerates and damages digestive systems and kills.

With an island composed of the stuff floating around in the Pacific, ya'd think that we should have figured out by now that enough is enough and quit furthering our support of oil companies as plastics are petroleum based...

Monday November 9, 2009, 8:30 pm
Well, we have to reuse plastic bags until they tear or break, and then recycle them.
We have to use cloth (reusable) bags instead of either plastic or paper - we leave with them, why not use our own after all?
The article points out that paper bags are not better for the environment than plastic - but I suggest that we should stop using any of those at all, and reuse the cloth ones over and over.
"According to Keith Christman, senior director of market advocacy for the American Chemistry Council (ACC), plastic bags may actually be the better choice.

“They reduce greenhouse gas emissions [...] they use half the emissions and use half the energy and create 80 percent less waste than paper bags,” he told Earth911.

But why do bags have such a lower environmental footprint in manufacturing? According to Christman, one of the factors that accounts for this is the difference in weight between a typical paper and plastic bag, with paper bags weighing 10 times as much as their plastic counterparts on average.

“That goes along with the fundamental law of reducing – using much less material in the first place,” he said."

Tuesday November 10, 2009, 1:44 am
use cloth bags

Wednesday November 11, 2009, 2:47 am
We use cloth bags when shopping too.
At this moment, there's a plastic bag flapping in the wind at the top of a tree in the woods next to our property and it annoys the heck out of me seeing it! Grrrrr... as I try and figure out how to retrieve it

Wednesday November 11, 2009, 4:12 am
We recycle everything we can, plus use the bring along bags for the market. It seemed like I was the only one in my community doing either, since recycling here is still "voluntary". I called my City Hall when I first arrived, and also sent an email to who is over things like that in our local offices. I also suggested they advertise about the recycling program, such as a note on our monthly water bills, stories in our local newspaper, postings put up on bulletin boards, cards placed at various stores etc to get the word out. They make it very simple. We have to go to the water dept, which everyone just about does monthly to pay their bill, and pick up large yellow recycling bags. We can put everything together, so there is no separating items. We can recycle all plastics, tin cans, food cans, paper of all kinds, which includes the rolls from foil, toliet paper, paper towel rolls, gift wrapping and its rolls, all kind of cardboard, from large boxes we cut down, to cereal and other types of food boxes, egg cartons, milk cartons and plastic milk jugs, they also take medication bottles, which I use a Sharpie and mark out all of the information on it. I also shred many things during a month's time, like junk mail etc..so all of that goes into our recycle also. They pick up the bags, once a month, on the 2nd Wednesday of the month. So, you put them at the curb the night before, and voila, recycling and being kinder to our trees, etc. Now I have noticed my neighbors just began recycling also. Plus now I see more people in the market with their reusable bags. It is catching on finally, and it is just a matter of those like myself, sitting a good example and others will follow. My next goal is to try and get city hall to begin a mandatory recycling program so glass and other things can go also, with the different bins etc. Our town is large enough, recycling should be a part of our lives. Just my husband and myself sack up 10 to 12 bags a month and that is just two of us! I can see how beneficial it would be to get everyone here on board, and quickly reduce our needs for larger landfills! Hopefully my efforts may help enact more recycling for all. If not, I certainly will continue to do my part, and encourage others to recycle also.

Wednesday November 11, 2009, 5:29 am
Thank you Pam.........Already sent you a star!!!!!!!

Knock on wood-Plant trees for life..................

Thursday November 12, 2009, 5:06 am
Using cloth bags is SOOO much better. They hold much more than those tiny plastic bags - which means less trips to the car.