No More plastic Bags?!

Where I live the supermarkets still provide free plastic bags for their customers. I personally agree that we should reduce plastic bags usage for a better and healthier environment.

Well, in my country all plastic bags cost from 15 to 30 cents, which is about 0.07 to 0,16$. So I am quite used to this thing. But I usually bring a shopping bag with me as well, therefore I don't pay for these bags.

At the supermarket where I shop there are free plastic bags. But lately they have sold at a small price bags that are sturdy and can be recycled. I wish that plascics would be fewer. Plastic bottles will take over the planet if we don`t put a stop to it.

We've had this ban for decades already. Ours was the first state to implement it at a state level. The idea came from a sea-side local council implementing the ban for a number of years due to all the sea birds, etc getting entangled in the rubbish. I'm not sure if the whole country has banned them now. We were so upset when it happened at a state level because it meant we had lost our source of free bin liners! Everyone else must have felt the same way, because ever after that bin liner bag sales went through the roof!. The farce of the matter is that they replace these free bags with ones they charge a dollar or so for which we're supposed to use over & over again, but in the first instance, this is unsanitary & in the second instance these expensive bags take much longer to break down when they go into the environment. It's just all about supermarket profits here!

We still have plastic and paper here, but if we bring our own bags we get money off of our orders.

Yes we have here in my place in Bay, Laguna, Philippines. I think it has been going for over three years now. It started as a campaign project of graduate students from my university, University of the Philippines Los Banos campus. It was called B.Y.O.B. which mean "bring your own bag" whenever you go shopping because stores will not issue plastic bags anymore. This was an environmental advocacy turned into community law and has been implemented to 3 neighboring towns now. The success of the campaign was tantamount in the sense that companies introduced "eco bags" that shoppers can buy instead. This project, and now is a result of never-ending problem of plastic waste. Waste management is such a problem that two community landfills have already been closed because of too much waste, plastic waste. Additionally, our community is starting to implement waste segregation, which is separating recyclables to non-recyclables. However, paper bags were made as a replacement of the traditional plastic containers. And I fear that this is another problem. We need trees to produce paper and the more paper we need the more trees should be cut. So even though we don't have a lot of plastic waste by using paper bags, we are also cutting down trees. Still can create environmental problems. Hopefully, Philippines can have that most effective, low maintenance, economical waste management solution. Thanks for the discussion ShepherdSpy :)

well, we have had a bring your own bag policy in a number of stores for several years now. if you need a bag, the store will charge you 5 cents for one but there always seems to be plastic bags available. i would want to ask a store clerk if this a permanent thing.

Austin has passed a "no single use bag" ordinance and I'm NOT happy. I saved most of those "single use" bags and reused them! I would put them in small trash cans, my client used them too. I've actually threatened to take my shopping out of town because of this... hasn't happened yet, but it might.

I think it's very inconvenient. They do that back in my hometown, it charges you to get a plastic so we have to bring our recycle bag; I like to have plastic bag when I shop grocery then I recycle them as trash bag at home.

When I stayed in Dublin with Mum in the summer of 2005 I noticed there weren't any plastic bags anywhere. I can't remember the name of the store (but it's big and sold food as well as clothing) but we came out of it with these ace thick brown paper bags like the ones you see in US movies lol. They haven't caught on here in England yet but I wouldn't mind if they did. We shop in Morrisons and ALWAYS forget to take our bags in but never get charged for plastic bags. Some other stores do, however.

It's an effort to help save the environment. We have that drive here also but it seems like it's broken most often. People can't get used to bringing their own bags when shopping. The shopping malls have to use plastic because of this. I know. I have eco-friendly bags at home but I do not always bring them with me so I end up using plastic bags again which get thrown into the garbage most often.

My concern for the reusable bags is how many germs and how many bugs are being brought into the grocery store. When I see the lack of personal hygiene in many people I see in the stores, I can only imagine what their houses look like, and how many germs they are bringing back into the stores in the reusable bags. I have been recycling my plastic bags at Walmart for years. This way I leave the store with a new bag, and I bring it back and put it in the recycling bin the next time I come to shop.

i have been carrying a shopping bag in my bag for almost two years. the supermarkets here charge 10 euro cents for a plastic bag. it is a law here in italy that shopping bags should be biodegradale and they are costly. they are not as tough as the old plastic bags and they easily get torn.

I used to live in South Carolina and there were some stores that gave you a discount on your purchase if you brought in your own bags, even if the bags came from their competition. A bag tax is just crazy, you are being penalized for helping the environment? That's just plain backwards. Have you thought about finding a new regular place? That might be a good idea. Sometimes it may not be. Is there a big difference in how much you are spending now? Or does it balance out?

I am using cloth bags and here plastic is banned and most people uses cloth bags. I think it is good to avoid plastic bags as far as possible.

When I go shopping I carry my jute shopping bags with me. I have bought these at supermarkets and on E Bay. They have shop names or slogans written on them. I believe it is a very good idea of a health food shop that I know to only offer paper bags. Plastic bags are bad for the environment. It is a superb idea no more free plastic bags will be available. I suggest that you buy your own jute shopping bags.

I believe that plastic bags would take hundred s of years to decay and I wish the whole world would stop using them. I live on an Island and people will dump the plastic bags in the sea or rivers and the fish eat them and die. It is awful. I wish that they could be completely banned and everyone should use their own shopping bag made from preferably recycled material

This has been implemented in many cities here in our country. So, it is better to bring our own shopping bag everytime we go for groceries. Thu, some supermarkets are still giving free plastic bags- but there certain days that they don't.

Its really a roll of idiocy. Here in Trinidad every grocery or shop you went to provided you with a bag when you bought something and they still do except for Pricesmart where you can only get the rejected cardboard cartons for use that they want to throw away when they get their own stuff in. Its appalling. How can it be easy for anyone to drop in somewhere and shop when they have to provide their own bags ? I'm surprised that in Ireland, which is supposed to be a more advanced country than Trinidad which is a Caribbean island charge people a tax for bags ?

I actually think this is good even though this means I will have to pay more! This is good for the environment and will encourage people to bring their own bags or at least reuse plastic bags. But though we are encouraged to do this currently, free plastic bags are still given out so you hardly see anyone bringing their own.