To reduce plastic waste and negative effects, recycling programs have been implemented in many parts of the united states, but remain underutilized. This book explores the vitality and complexity of plastic. Plastic bags are a major source of ocean pollution as well. In a 1993 book that claims to reveal the hidden life of groceries and other secrets of the supermarket, journalist vince staten pinpoints the. Even though plastic shopping bags are recyclable, it is always best to bring your own reusable shopping bags or at least to use the same plastic shopping bags multiple times before recycling it. The original plastic shopping bags were designed by the swedish engineer sten. The plastic recycling process is fraught with flaws. The plastic bag problem an article that provides information on the issue of plastic bags, and how people can reduce use and recycle.
Lots of stories, tips, resources, as well as information about the chemicals in plastic, what really happens to your recycling, what compostable vs. Plastic bags, plain black embossed tshirt bag 400 count, plastic bags with handles bulk, plastic grocery bags, retail bags, 12 x 7 x 22 17 mic 0. Packing materials, such as polystyrene, plastic quilting, and similar materials, can be saved and reused again for packing. Christian science monitor news paper theres harsh economics behind bag recycling. Plastic bags are recyclable, but only about 5 percent of them are recycled. Recycle the plastic bags at your local grocery store. That is the reason it is best to reuse plastic bags as much as possible. Analyzing the growing marine debris centers, such as trash islands, can help to understand plastic bags role in ocean pollution. Plastic wraps from drycleaners, newspapers, and many consumer products can be collected with plastic bags. The many benefits of recycling plastic you ought to know. Some states are trying to stop local governments from enacting the bans, and the epa estimates that americans use 380 billion plastic bags and wraps each year. Plastic bags are only recyclable if they have the recycling symbol. Take one last look at the many plastic bags of new york. Another issue is that producing recycled plastic does not reduce the need for virgin plastic.
However, this is still a very novel approach and currently is only used in a. That said, there are ways that municipalities have been encouraging citizens to help them to recycle plastic bags. Unsightly plastic bottles, bags and other trash give just a hint of the largely unseen problem of plastic pollution. The plastic industrys fight to keep polluting the world the intercept. While the number of places with plastic bag bans are expanding in the u. But what happens when a bag breaks or is no longer needed. If you dont have shopping bags, use paper bags instead of plastic because they decompose faster. Much recycling and waste reduction can be done with plastics and other materials in the cafeteria.
Lawrence wrights new pandemic novel wasnt supposed to be prophetic. If you have a load of plastic bags you want to get rid of, check the bottoms for a number 2 or 4 plastic symbol to make sure they can be recycled. However, bags and wrappers, like those that come around paper towels, can be returned to the grocery store for recycling. Recycling plastics reduces the amount of energy and resources such as water, petroleum, natural gas, and coal needed to create plastic. You sort your recycling, leave it to be collected and then what.
Plastic beads from grocery bags, diy how to, recycle plastic bags. The plastic bag is a miracle of design, said susan freinkel, the author of plastic. This is the easiest way to recycle plastic bags family. The second option, incineration, returns some of the energy from plastic production but is known to produce negative environmental and health effects. Plastic bag manufacturer misleads public about recycling. Mar 16, 2018 many people think items such as plastic bags and coffee cups can be recycled when they cant. Bags for life are causing more plastic waste than ever. But you might want to give those bags some thought after all. Plastic scrap that is generated from industrial waste is typically clean, consistent in form and quality and commonly reprocessed, traded and reused across the industry. This stepbystep video shows how the women of njau, gambia recycle plastic bags into beautiful purses and you can learn.
Plastic recycling is a process that utilizes complicated technology and depends on the quality of the incoming material. It cost more to recycle a bag than to produce a new one. Paperboard boxes and tubes paperboard and chipboard include cereal, pasta, toothpaste and beer boxes. Alternatively, use them as garbage bags for smaller bins around your house. Isatou ceesay and the recycling women of the gambia millbrook picture books paul, miranda, zunon, elizabeth on.
Oct 09, 2014 the researchers, from duke university and vanderbilt university, used survey data from more than 600 respondents in 2009 to examine the effects of different recycling regimes on the recycling rates for plastic water bottles. Tiny plastic, big problem science news for students. Our plastic pollution crisis is too big for recycling to fix. Bring your own shopping bags instead of using plastic bags. Some dyes used in creating plastic products can be contaminated, causing entire batches of potential recycling material to be scrapped. Video from trex company about recyclable film beyond bags. As plastic bag bans go into effect, some question the unintended consequences in the u.
Our plastic pollution crisis is too big for recycling to. It is said that removal of one ton of plastic for recycling spares a landfill space of around 7. Books and magazines can be donated to schools, public libraries, or nursing homes. But unlike metal or glass, plastic can be reincarnated a limited. Use of recycled materials in 1996, 27% of solid waste in the united states was recycled. As plastic bag bans go into effect, some question the. Gable top cartons milk, juice, and laundry detergent cartons should be rinsed lightly and have their caps removed and discarded. A universal numbering system for plastic types makes it even easier. In isatou ceesays village was becoming cluttered up with discarded plastic bags, causing problems for animals who choke on them and attracting diseasebearing insects. Lists materials that are and are not accepted in the recycling cart blue cart. In njau, gambia, people simply dropped the bags and. Aug 02, 2007 tips for crocheting with plastic bags cindy of my recycled bags sells her cool crochet bags and products made from recycled plastic bags. Plastic grocery bags type 2 highdensity polyethylene film hdpe and type 4 low density or linearlow density polyethylene film ldpelldpe can be recycled at your local supermarket and other locations.
Home recycling bags and wraps find a drop off location enter your zip code below to find locations that accept plastic bags and film packaging. Kenya joined a growing list of nations that have banned plastic bags, imposing steep fines and jail time on violators. One of the important environmental benefits of recycling plastic bags and bottles is that, it saves animals, birds, and a wide range of aquatic creatures from death due to ingestion of plastic. If the magazine came in a plastic bag, youll want to remove and recycle this separately. Feb 26, 2020 please remove any straw and flatten it before placing in the recycling container. One plastic bag one plastic bag is a nonfiction story about a little girl named isatou. To encourage more recycling, some cities and states are passing laws requiring stores to provide recycling bins for plastic bags. For hardcover books, youll need to remove the cover because it has nonpaper components. A partial list of the good news since 2014 would include, in no particular order. Isatau ceesay and the recycling women of the gambia is an excellent informational text to read to grades 35. Jorgensen offers an accessible and engaging overview of recycling as an. My book is a practical guide to ridding your lifeand the planetof plastic. Her tips open up your creativity to incorporate plastic bag as yarn projects for almost anything. Once the envelopes go to our pulpers and dissolve, any plastic gets extracted out, says shona inglis of the recycling and waste management company ds smith.
Plastic recycling and the plastic recycling process. Reducing, reusing, and recycling plastic bags and wrap a page that provides education on what can be down to reduce plastic bag use and increase recycling. Plastic recycling an overview sciencedirect topics. Avoid black plastic food packaging and the 16 other. Jun 09, 2018 recycling alone will never stem the flow of plastics into our oceans. The curbside recycling in many communities is not meant for plastic bags because they can screw up the plants machines source. Aug 12, 2015 plastic bags generally are recycled into plastic lumber for decks, fences and furniture and into new plastic bags. Here isatou runs into a plastic bag in different parts of her life. Newspapers take up much volume in landfills, and some recycling programs seek to collect them along with other sorted categories of waste, such as organic matter, bones, and plastic. If these plastic bags cannot be collected as recyclables, why do they have the. Pushes to recycle plastics are one element of a massive, industryled. The same goes for sticky tape on wrapping paper although the more of this you can remove, the better. Its an interdisciplinary collection focused on how the presence and recalcitrance of plastic reveals the relational exchanges across human and synthetic materialities. Oct 06, 2008 the more environmentally sustainable solution is to promote recycling.
It is true that recycling plastic bags is problematic. One of the ways that plastic bags can be recycled is to place them in the recycling bin, with one caveat. Finally, reasking the question posed by john tierney in an infamous 1996 new york times article, is recycling garbage. Many plastics can be recycled, and some of the materials used to make plastics can be recovered. For these reasons, many cities do not accept them in the municipal recycling stream. Government bans on lightweight plastic shopping bags have spread in recent years amid fears about plastic s negative impact on the environment. List of books and articles about recycling online research. Clear recycling bags by ultrasac heavy duty 45 gallon garbage bags huge 100 pack wties 46 x 40 industrial quality clear trash bags for paper, plastic, cans, bottles, newspaper, grass, lawn 4. Mar 30, 2018 in addition to a total ban on traditional plastic bags, they implemented a 10cent tax on compostable plastic bags. Goats and soda prime minister imran khans ban on plastic bags in the islamabad area goes into effect on aug.
The material politics of plastic edited by jennifer gabrys, gay hawkins and mike michael 2014. Report to the illinois general assembly on plastic bag recycling. According to a 2009 study by researchers peter gleick and heather cooley from the pacific institute of california, a pintsized bottle of water requires about 2,000 times as much energy to produce as the same. Bags can be recycled into a few products now though. They can be included with the rest of your recyclables. Plastic bags are among the most common sources of marine debris, where they can be mistaken as food by birds and fish. Discover librarianselected research resources on recycling from the questia online library, including fulltext online books, academic journals, magazines, newspapers and more. Newspapers and all inserts, magazines, catalogs, and paperback books. Then i realized that pretty much any soft plastic can go into the plastic bag. Analysis of flexible film plastics packaging diversion systems. Paper bags are still allowed, and local governments can impose a. Much is due to the nature of plastic itself, which often can only be downcycled rather than recycled a torn plastic bag might eventually be transformed into a lunch tray, but it will.
In this project we will explore the amount of pollution plastic bags create in streets and in oceans. While plastic bags, wraps and films cant be recycled in your curbside recycling bins in most communities in the u. To bag your plastic bags, place all your grocery store plastic bags, dry cleaning plastic bags, or any other plastic bags in a plastic bag. Jun 25, 2019 plastic recycling industry associations are the bodies responsible for promoting plastic recycling, enabling members to build and maintain relationships among plastic recyclers, and lobbying with government and other organizations to help create the best possible environment for the plastic recycling industry. Many stores have reusable bags for sale at the register, and some stores. Before recycling bags, be sure they are free of food remnants, and remove any zipper closures. Plastic bags are harmful to the environment, and cities and states across the united states are considering placing fees on them or banning them. Dont think about a plastic bag pdf file iatp smart plastics. Supermarkets boast that stronger carriers are better for the environment, but with 1. The recycling collection supply is abundant, mostly through collection bins at grocery stores. Simple recycling drivers will pick up your full bag and leave you a replacement bag tied to your blue recycling cart handle. Tubes are used for paper towels, toilet paper and wrapping paper.
Scientists have found tiny bits of it throughout the ocean. Isatou ceesay and the recycling women of the gambia is the perfect earth day book for creating ecological awareness in children and inspiring them to be the change. Once the bags are recycled, they are made into lumber, trashcan liners or plastic bags. Sea life cant tell the difference between plastic and food. As far as we try to toss a piece of plastic whether its into a recycling bin or not it does not disappear. Plastic bag and film recycling grew 24 percent in 2006, and is being embraced from coast to coast, from california to new. Recycle plastic bags by reusing them when you are at the grocery store or bring reusable cloth bags with you. Isatou ceesay and the recycling women of the gambia millbrook picture books. They have since added requirements for recycling, labeling, and reuse programs, since plastic bags are on the nogo list of most regular recycling facilities. Wagner, argued in a recent article in plastics recycling update magazine. Learn how to recycle right with our tips, bust popular recycling myths, and become an expert recycler. For paperback books, you can recycle the book whole, including the binding.
Needs assistance customers must call simple recycling at least 24 hours ahead of their regularly scheduled recycling day to schedule a textile pickup. This disappoints her grandmother, because the people in the city use a ton of plastic bags. This text informs its readers of how plastic bags can affect communities, both good ways and bad ways. Plastic bags like those used for bread, newspapers and as cereal box liners, as well as sandwich bags, dry cleaning bags and grocery bags create similar problems for recycling machinery as thin plastic film. Plastic bag recycling rates suck, and recycling is not the answer to the plastic bag problem in the first place. Articles 7 misconceptions about plastic and plastic recycling our oceans are turning into plastic. Dec, 2019 articles on plastic bags displaying 1 20 of 28 articles many australian consumers are concerned at the environmental impact of their shopping habits, especially at christmas.
But the plastics industry continues to justify bag production by insisting that voluntary recycling programs are the solution to plastic bag litter and pollution. Newspaper bags, garment bags and bags sold in bulk, like trash or recycling bags, are also exempt. Recycle and reuse newspaper sleeve bags mnn mother. Apr 22, 2019 in honor of earth day, get the answers to every recycling question you were afraid to ask, including what can be done with plastic bags, if your containers really have to be empty and where you. From cups to plastic forks and spoons to food packaging, you school produces a lot of plastic waste that can be recycled. But unlike metal or glass, plastic can be reincarnated a limited number of times before it is too costly to revive.
A spokesperson for giant said all of the plastic bags that are collected at its stores in the washington area are put on a trailer and sent to the chains own recycling facility, along with. Dont think about a plastic bag pdf file iatp smart plastics guide pdf file. In order to safely recycle plastic bags return them to drop off locations at speciallymarked recycling bins located at the front of most supermarkets, large grocery or. A picture book telling the true story of how one woman in africa began a movement to recycle the plastic bags that were polluting her community. The plastic bag receptacle that the kids painted green and outfitted with. Schools can set up new policies to reduce trash created in the cafeteria. Recycle as many cans, bottles, books, metal, aluminum, glass, newspapers and electronics you. Recycling a ton of plastic bags about 450,000 bags saves 11 barrels of oil. How much energy and raw materials are actually required to make plastic shopping bags, and how much do we save by recycling them. Also, because the bags are so light, they can easily be blown. Fittingly, the collage illustrations make use of colorful papers and plastic bags. The sixth basic food group parts 1 and 2 polymers are forever the plastic sea flyer. The site is full of information and resources about crochet and other crafted recycled bags.
Plastic bags news, research and analysis the conversation. With a new state ban going into effect, we bid farewell to the purple flower, the smiley face and the thank you thank you thank you. A plastic bottle recycled can save as much energy as it takes to light a 60 watt bulb for six hours. But, landfills require space and the chemical constituents and energy contained in plastic articles typically is lost in this disposal route. Plastic bags dont biodegrade, meaning it will take hundreds of years for them to decompose in a landfill. Unfortunately, plastic bags are not confined to landfills.
So, please ensure that plastic bags stay out of your blue recycling container or bin, and use reusable bags whenever possible. Today, 80% of americans have easy access to a plastics recycling program, whether they participate in a municipal curbside program or live near a dropoff site. Workers removing plastic bags from clogged rollers at a recycling plant in westborough, mass. Some large grocery stores offer plastic bag recycling options on site find a recycling center near you. Generating plastic bags creates great amounts of air pollution and environmental waste. Although for the most part, plastic takes less energy to recycle than paper, plastic bags are a frustrating recycling dilemma. In the years since, other states have responded in different ways. The colourful picture book tells the true story of isatou ceesay, a gambian woman who became known as the queen of plastic recycling.
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