Five Facts about Plastic Bags and a Fantastic Alternative to Help
“We humans have become dependent on plastic for a range of uses, from packaging to products. Reducing our use of plastic bags is an easy place to start getting our addiction under control.”
- David Suzuki, Canadian academic, Science Broadcaster and Environmental Activist.
Plastic bags have been used in supermarkets since the 70´s and much longer in other industries. They are used every day for multiple purposes and most times they end up in the garbage.
Despite interesting and varied recycling and clean-up efforts, most plastic bags end-up polluting our oceans and causing great damage to marine life and the entire ecosystem.
The World Knows Plastic is Bad
Plastic makes up about 80% of all the debris found in the oceans. There is a vast amount of documented research clearly explaining the negative impact and heartbreaking effects that this plastic has on the environment. Gladly, many governments and private companies, as well as caring individuals like you, are taking action, among other recycling and awareness initiatives, to reduce their use of plastic bags and promote the use of green alternatives.
Here are five shocking facts about plastic bags you might or might not have heard of:
- 160,000 plastic bags are used around the world every second. This adds up to about 5 trillion every year. Enough to orbit the earth seven times.
- Plastic bags have a useful life of about 12 to 25 minutes. A product that is used for only a few minutes and takes about 1,000 years to degrade is a terrible design atrocity.
- Plastic bags take from 500 to 1,000 years to degrade. No plastic bag ever produced has yet degraded.
- Over 260 marine species have been affected by plastic debris. They are killed by asphyxiation or due to eating the plastic.
- Plastic bags are produced using petroleum. This production process produces toxic and harmful side effects to the environment. And we all already know petroleum is a finite resource.
The list could continue and get even scarier. However, the idea is to spark your consciousness, not to scare you. So, the question that naturally pops up in your mind is the obvious one:
What can individuals and business owners do to help?
As an individual, there are numerous ways to be more eco-friendly. For instance, you can remove about 22,000 plastic bags from the environment in your lifetime by using reusable and recyclable bags. You can also support government initiatives to reduce the use of plastic and make it a habit to prefer companies and businesses which encourage and practice the use of green alternatives. You can also share this information with friends and family so they too can be part of the solution.
As a business owner, you can introduce green practices into your business by reducing the use of plastic products in as many areas as possible.
One of the easiest and most cost-effective ways to reduce the use of plastic bags and other plastic packaging products is by switching your e-commerce shipping solutions to environmentally friendly products.
These solutions are not only friendly to the environment, but they are also a way to better brand your business. You’ll not only offer a great product, but you will be helping the environment while giving your customers a unique experience when they receive your products and notice you care about our planet as much as they do.
As you can see, there are a number of actions you can take to make your business sustainable and eco-friendly. Find 5 tips for making great sustainable choices here. Or contact us and we will be more than happy to help you in this process as we’ve done for other businesses before