British research discovers that fabric bags are more harmful than plastic bags
In the past decade, it can be said that the plastic packaging industry has given up, if not to let the science field smear in many ways including mobilizing social classes to boycott. Use plastic bags (shopping bags).
Many urban areas around the world have carried out crusades to ban “no bags” in an effort to protect the environment from what is known as the evil of plastic bags when shopping and imply eliminating the dangers of plastic. However, The Atlantic recently published an article showing that fabric bags – reused over and over again – can have worse environmental consequences than plastic bags.
To really protect the environment, use plastic bags
In the past, the author reflects on the germs of a myriad of germs that can grow in grocery bags as a result of bringing home meat, fruits, and vegetables. the fruit has not been washed from the market, and pathogens are the inevitable result of this process. Currently, The Atlantic is revealing a study published in 2008 by the UK Environment Agency (UKEA) – which looks at “resource costs for different types of bags: bags recycled paper, plastic, fabric and polypropylene bags. Surprisingly, the authors found that in typical motifs of use and treatment, consumers seeking to reduce pollution and carbon emissions used plastic bags and then they reuse them at least once – for garbage or other secondary purposes. “
The study also found that “conventional plastic bags made of high-density polyethylene (HDPE, plastic bags found at grocery stores) have the least environmental impact after each use after the end. even tests. Paper bags, on the other hand, show the potential for the highest and most severe warming of the earth’s atmosphere. Simply because they require more resources to produce as well as in the distribution process.
Paper bags decompose faster than plastic bags, but their production generates large amounts of waste
For all those working in the plastics industry with a scientific understanding of the production of plastics and various polymer derivatives, this fact should not be surprised. Everyone understands that plastic manufacturing then processes this raw material into everything from plastic bags and sandwich bags to car bumpers or anything else, which is more eco-friendly. compared to cotton cultivation (which requires a lot of water, spraying insecticides, followed by spraying the defoliants, so cotton balls can be picked automatically by large, gas-powered machines). Furthermore, the environmental cost in papermaking is also very expensive, as it requires a large amount of water and other resources including bleach (white paper), according to industry leading experts.
For the plastic industry, therefore, the most important job today is awareness education. This should start with elementary schools and develop an educational curriculum on the eco-friendliness of plastics and the value of recycling plastic products at the end of their already useful life cycle. them. In fact, many parents have shared stories about their children that they will no longer be able to use plastic sandwich bags for their lunches, or even laugh at their parents. when bringing home a pile of plastic bags after going shopping and shopping. Turns out, the things they’re learning in school are just the flip side of plastic! So what about the right side, or the benefits of plastic? Meanwhile they still have to live on plastic, thanks to plastic everyday!
“The UKEA study calculated that the cost of an HDPE plastic bag requires less than 2 kg of carbon. Meanwhile, for paper bags, it takes seven times the amount of carbon to achieve the same rate per use. The recycled polypropylene bags are 26 times more, and the cotton bags are 327 times more ”. However, Noah Dillon’s article has the theme, “Are Cotton or Cotton Hand Bags Really Good for the Environment?” pointed out that now handbags are becoming so popular that they view as a disposable commodity and are being thrown into the environment almost as often as plastic bags, ruining their true purpose. they are inherently very ideal.
“This distracting loss of control originally meant to prevent an ecological catastrophe seems to be being oppressed – more harm than good, it’s a problematic argument for environmental protection,” says Dillon emphasize. This encourages consumers to start thinking about the entire production and distribution chain when considering what’s really good for the environment, and noting that “biodegradable plastics are multiplying. proliferation such as disposable packaging and utensils, with so-called green cleanliness filling up demand and disposable goods without further questioning.
As for portable canvas bags, according to The Atlantic article, to users it is almost a fashion that gives users an image of “health”, a sense of waste and eco-responsible, diverse technical flexibility, carefree but efficient, connected, rich, tolerant, adventurous, optimistic. At first glance, it seems like they are moral people. ”
However, a 2014 study found that while only 20% of respondents said they prefer to use plastic bags, nearly half of respondents said that they “usually do not use reusable bags. use even if they are easy to use or cheaper. And in fact, this number could be even lower, with handbag usage estimated at around 10%, ”the paper said.
So there are a few things we in the plastics industry can do to overcome this challenge. First, educate our children in the science of plastic versus paper bags or cloth. Then ask schools if they can develop practical, applied science courses on plastic’s environmental friendliness. Third, when we (the management community, the plastic industry staff) go to the grocery stores, we need to gesture, boldly communicate about plastic bags, especially their benefits compared to other types. other materials. And don’t forget to show them their pride in plastic!
Source: According to World Plastic Magazine