Plastic or Paper Bags? What Do You Use?

We can't deny the fact that plastic bags are contaminating soil, littering landscapes and polluting sources of water all over the world. Thousands of marine mammals mistake floating plastic bags for food and choke to death. The fact that plastic bags buried in landfills take almost 1000 years to break down, it has become essential to promote the use of reusable bags when shopping. Even if plastic bags break down after thousand years, the separated toxic particles further pollute water and soil.

The present need is to overcome the concept of 'use and toss' and support recycling and reuse of items. As consumers it is our responsibility to ensure that disposable items are consumed in a conscious manner. Plastic bottles or bags cannot be considered the only factors causing hazard to the environment. More than the negative effects it is our out of control consumption of plastic items and disposables that has caused destruction to the environment.

Paper bags have been considered a better alternative to plastic bags by consumers across the world. But if experts are to be believed, various environmental problems are also associated with this alternative. If the bags are not made from recycled paper, it will result in cutting of more trees thereby contributing to climate change. So, what are consumers to do? The answer is reusable bags that are made from materials that don't cause any damage to the environment. There is no need to dispose these bags after every use. One can keep using these bags every time they go shopping to grocery stores or even malls. But the problem lies in remembering to take these bags and bringing them back every time you go out shopping. In order to solve this issue, companies like Bagnesia have come up with a reusable bag kit that will remind the user to take the bag from the house, carry it to the store and bring it back again. The kit consists of a reusable bag, a door hanger, wrist lanyard keychain, carabineer clip and a steering wheel strap. Its time consumers start supporting ethical consumption and opt for reusable bags that will cause less damage to the environment.