Plastic bags have a number of distinct environmental benefits compared to paper and cloth bag options. Consumers should learn these facts about plastic bags so they can make the right choice at counter-payment.
Benefit #1: Ideal for Reuse and Recycle
Plastic bags are known for their durability. They are less prone to tearing and are more resistant to many chemicals. Plastic bags are better than paper or cloth bags when it comes to protecting the contents inside from rain or water. Use them for lunch boxes, trash can liners, home storage and creative crafts designs. People can wash them off and use them over and over again, possibly for years.
After four or more uses, reusable plastic bags are superior to all types of disposable bags — paper, polyethylene, and compostable plastic, across all significant environmental indicators. There are many benefits of plastic bags and by recycling them thoroughly, both consumers and businesses can benefit from using them in an eco-friendly way.
Benefit #2: Plastic bags take up less space in landfills
Any waste that we do not recycle goes to local landfills. That includes both paper and plastic shopping bags. It is easy to see that plastic bags are much more compact than paper bags. In fact, plastic bags make up only 0.4% of the landfill area, an extremely small amount. In contrast, paper bags take up 1.0% of the landfill area, more than double the landfill area used by plastic bags.
In addition, paper bags weigh six to seven times more than plastic bags. Most cities pay a fee to use local landfills based on the weight of the trash they send. Higher weight means higher fees. That means the regular use of paper bags instead of plastic bags can generate higher costs for cities, towns and counties. Typically, cities pass these costs on to customers through taxes and other forms of revenue.
Benefit #3: Making plastic bags is much less polluting
Many consumers and business owners don’t think about the environmental production costs of paper and plastic bags. It is important to know the environmental impacts of producing paper and plastic bags when choosing which bags to use.
According to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has verified that the production process of plastic bags saves energy while the percentage of solid waste is less. Plastic bags consume up to 40% less energy to produce and produce 70% less solid waste than paper bags. In addition, research shows that manufacturing paper bags causes 50 percent more water pollution and 70 percent more air pollution than plastic bag production.