The other day I was at the store. The man in front of me told the sales clerk that he didn’t want paper bags but only plastic. He proceeded to pack only three items in each bag. By the time he was done shopping he had about twenty plastic bags. I was amazed at this. He wasn’t an old man (I can understand he might not have been able to carry all the items in less bags due to weight). He was young – around the age of 25. Maybe he had a dog? Or a couple of dogs? 20 dogs? Who knows. But it made me wonder about people and recycling. I don’t think that people realize how just one plastic bag effects the environment. A regular disposable plastic bag can last up to 1000 years in the Earth and poses a great environmental hazard. We use approximately 500 billion plastic bags annually. That is about 1 million plastic bags used per minute!
I am not saying that I am a mad eco women in any way, but I do try to do my part. I have been trying to make some pretty big strides in my effort to tread more lightly on the earth. I can’t remember the last time I accepted a bag at the store in spite of the checkers that look at me like I’m crazy as I pull out 10 different kinds of eco bags to bag my own groceries. I still do have a plastic bags or two in my house -.not saying its a bad thing just that we need to cut down.