Charge for plastic carrier bags

[mlfc]

We spend a lot of time in Wales and it has worked brilliantly. I'm pretty sure that the 5p for a basic bag goes to charity too (CarolW, can you confirm?). The shop keeps the cash if it's for more expensive bags

[CarolW]

We spend a lot of time in Wales and it has worked brilliantly. I'm pretty sure that the 5p for a basic bag goes to charity too (CarolW, can you confirm?). The shop keeps the cash if it's for more expensive bags

 

I don't think it's universal that the 5p goes to charity, some stores advertise the fact, but others don't!!! :)

[peterky]

I can recycling plastic bags, I have build a small machine. It turning any plastic to heating oil or any other fraction like diesel or cerosine, depend on settings.

But is too small for business use. If any one can help build bigger one, is welcome.

I getting 8 litres from 10 kilo of waste plastic.

 

Any one with good contacts can contact me by email: peterkyjovsky@gmail.com

[LeMaquis]

I bought one for 5p at a Sainsbury's in Wales last week. It was a lot stronger than the free ones you get at supermarkets here. You could reuse it but I doubt it will last more than a few weeks.

[Minimo]

Americans seem to have brown paper sacks for their shopping. Why don't we have them here?

 

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Edited June 19, 2014 by Minimo

[barleycorn]

Americans seem to have brown paper sacks for their shopping. Why don't we have them here?

 

---------- Post added 19-06-2014 at 10:31 ----------

 

 

---------- Post added 19-06-2014 at 10:32 ----------

 

 

Firstly because they are crap, secondly because they are no more environmentally friendly than plastic ones.

 

jb

[tzijlstra]

I think it is about time, what the charge will do, hopefully, is make people more aware of what impact plastic has on the environment. This is not a progressive thing by the way, China, India and many African countries are way ahead of the UK in taking steps to cut plastic waste. The number of times I see people walk out of shops with ONE item, in a plastic bag.... drives me to despair, you can say no, but too many people don't even think about it.

[horribleblob]

The thing is, it's not just about the waste going to landfill. The other environmental impact is the amount of energy used to make, and transport these bags up and down the land. Paper bags use more energy to manufacture and transport and can be reused less than a plastic bag, so paper isn't automatically better than plastic just because it can be recycled.

Why this obsession with disposable bags? The reusable bags Morrisons sell are only 50p and will last a lifetime.

Next step should be to tackle all those little flimsy bags that the cashiers insist on putting meat, veg etc in.[/QUOTE]

 

You're right. I was going on the premise that, for a variety of reasons, not eveyone will have a bag with them everytime they buy something. Personally I use medium-weight canvas bags, bought 15 years ago and still going strong, but even those had an environmental impact when manufactured, and they continue to do so as they need washing every so often.

 

I think "bag for life" is a bit of a misnomer. Yes, it'll last for the life of the bag (obviously), but not necessarily in a usable state for the life of the user.

[Uptowngirl]

The thing is, it's not just about the waste going to landfill. The other environmental impact is the amount of energy used to make, and transport these bags up and down the land. Paper bags use more energy to manufacture and transport and can be reused less than a plastic bag, so paper isn't automatically better than plastic just because it can be recycled.

Why this obsession with disposable bags? The reusable bags Morrisons sell are only 50p and will last a lifetime.

Next step should be to tackle all those little flimsy bags that the cashiers insist on putting meat, veg etc in.[/QUOTE]

 

You're right. I was going on the premise that, for a variety of reasons, not eveyone will have a bag with them everytime they buy something. Personally I use medium-weight canvas bags, bought 15 years ago and still going strong, but even those had an environmental impact when manufactured, and they continue to do so as they need washing every so often.

 

I think "bag for life" is a bit of a misnomer. Yes, it'll last for the life of the bag (obviously), but not necessarily in a usable state for the life of the user.

 

I've fallen foul of the reusing of bags. There is nothing worse than walking along with 2 bottles of scotch in a carrier bag only to find the straps come off.

[natjack]

I think "bag for life" is a bit of a misnomer. Yes, it'll last for the life of the bag (obviously), but not necessarily in a usable state for the life of the user.

Didn't it originally mean that when you bought the first bag, if you took it back to Tesco when it was damaged, they would give you another free of charge, and so on - so it was effectively, a 'bag for life'?

 

I'm sure I remember that.

 

ETA:

I don't accept that shops should be expected to buy and have the extra work of charging and accounting for bag sales, and then be expected to give the money to the Government, ostensibly for charity but really as a form of tax?

Edited June 19, 2014 by natjack