September 25, 2008 Wal-Mart goal: cut plastic gabs by one third
New York – "Taking advantage of the Clinton Global Initiative Annual Meeting here today, mega-retailer Wal-Mart at the forum set a goal of reducing its plastic shopping bag wasted worldwide by 33% per store, within five years.
"This is expected to eliminate more than 135 million pounds of plastic waste globally," the company said, specifically committing to "reduce the number of bags given out by its stores, encourage the use of reusable bags and give customers the ability to continue recycling plastic shopping bags."
Matt Kistler, svp for sustainability of Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., said, "If we can encourage consumers to change their behavior, just one bag at a time, we believe real progress can be made toward our goal of creating zero waste." He said the measures outlined could "eliminate plastic waste equivalent to 9 billion plastic bags per year from our existing stores alone."
Gwen Ruta, vp for corporate partnerships at Environmental Defense Fund, a partner in the effort, said, "Plastic bags clog our landfills, litter our roadways, harm sea turtles and other wildlife, and gobble energy in production. With this initiative, Wal-Mart is demonstrating that innovation leads to both business and environmental benefits -- a premise that underpins EDF's work. I look to retailers everywhere to do the same." - by Home Textiles Today Staff
Source:http://www.hometextilestoday.com/article/CA6599567.html?nid=2063&rid=3935574
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Banning plastic bags from retail stores
MANILA, Philippines - "From the swinging city of Los Angeles in California, United States, to the laidback town of San Fabian, Pangasinan, the plastic bag is getting a lot of attention these days—and rightly so.
Foreign wire services reported last week that the City of Angels would ban all plastic bags from retail stores by July 1, 2010. A new regulation was passed to this effect by the City Council. Los Angeles is the second largest American city after New York.
The move follows a similar initiative by another California City, San Francisco. Under the new regulation, after July 1, 2010, customers must bring their own bags or purchase bags made of biodegradable material when they go shopping. The move is expected to rid Los Angeles of some 2.3 billion non-biodegradable plastic bags annually.
A few days after the Los Angeles story came out, I got an e-mail from Andre Abalos who identified himself as a councilor in San Fabian, Pangasinan. Abalos said he was introducing an ordinance in his town to eliminate the use of plastic bags after a certain period. He also plans to conduct lectures to inform his kababayan about the harmful effects of plastic bags.
That certainly demonstrates foresight. I am sure San Fabian's problem with plastic bags is not as huge as Metro Manila's but it is precisely at this point, when the problem is still manageable, that measures should be put in place to avert a crisis.
Though plastic bags can be reused, once they have outlived their usefulness and have to be finally consigned to the trash heap, the problem begins. Plastic can remain in the dump for generations so it just keeps piling up. In Metro Manila, authorities already know that the careless disposal of plastic bags and containers contribute significantly to the problem of flooding..." - By Linda Bolido of Philippine Daily Inquirer
More at:http://showbizandstyle.inquirer.net/lifestyle/lifestyle/view/20080729-151476/Banning-plastic-bags-from-retail-stores
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We produce and use 20 times more plastic today than we did 50 years ago!
Canadians use on average 55 million plastic bags per week.
"Plastic bags start as crude oil, natural gas, or other petrochemical derivatives, which are transformed into chains of hydrogen and carbon molecules known as polymers or polymer resin. After being heated, shaped, and cooled, the plastic is ready to be flattened, sealed, punched, or printed on. North America and Western Europe account for nearly 80 percent of plastic bag use-though the bags are increasingly common in developing countries as well. Each year, Americans throw away some 100 billion polyethylene plastic bags. (Only 0.6 percent of plastic bags are recycled.) In January 2002, the South African government required manufacturers to make plastic bags more durable and more expensive to discourage their disposal-prompting a 90-percent reduction in use. Ireland instituted a 15˘-per-bag tax in March 2002, which led to a 95-percent reduction in use. In the early 1990s, the Ladakh Women's Alliance and other citizens groups led a successful campaign to ban plastic bags in that Indian province, where the first of May is now celebrated as "Plastic Ban Day." Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the Philippines, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom also have plans to ban or tax plastic bags. Supermarkets around the world are voluntarily encouraging shoppers to forgo plastic bags-or to bring their own bags-by offering a small per-bag refund or charging extra for plastic. Challenge: Try to go at least one week without accumulating any new plastic bags. If every shopper took just one less bag each month, this could eliminate ... " - From: www.grvd.ca
More at: http://bringyourownbag.ca/facts_plastic_bags.html |
