Paper, plastic, or neither

Going green, even in small ways, helps the environment

April Reiter

Mast Editor-In-Chief

Paper, plastic or a reusable tote? While it might seem easy to give up plastic and paper bags in favor of a reusable, greener alternative, is our society culturally and financially ready for such a shift? If the rest of the U.S. isn’t, younger generations are and they should take the helm, armed with their ability to be attitudinally—and financially—flexible.

Greenness isn’t really a new question. People of the U.S. have been worrying about their green quotient since the ‘60s and ‘70s with movements to reduce pollution, use cloth bags, and even stop using dyed papers. But, at least in the battle of bags, we’ve amped it up a bit within the last few years.

Take Seattle. In an effort to promote sustainability and combat waste, mayor Greg Nickels proposed a fee of 20 cents for every bag—the first fee of its kind in the U.S. (and a fee that has existed for years in Europe.) His plan would also include issuing one free reusable tote to every household.

“The answer to the question ‘Paper or plastic?’ should be ‘Neither,’“ Nickels said at a news conference as reported in the Seattle Times April 3.

San Francisco also answered the outcry against wasteful, one-use-only grocery bags, but they did so with complete ban March 2007. This meant 5 million fewer plastic bags per month littering streets, lining garbage cans and filling landfills, NPR reported March 27.

Why the big hullabaloo about the cultural fixture of free bags at the end of the grocery counter?

The 100 billion plastic bags used in the U.S. annually require 12 million barrels of precious fossil fuel to make, according to a report by Minnesota Public Radio April 8. Additionally, they must be shipped, then transported (which requires more oil) simply to be picked up, thrown away, and spend the rest of their existence slowly (or never) decomposing into tinier plastic particles that pollute earth’s soil, water and air.

Reducing the amount of bags seems the only truly helpful and sustainable grocery sack solution.

Yet, the benefits don’t seem to outweigh the cost for some citizens.

Although it may seem strictly an issue of convenience, the grocery bag ban or fee could create a frustrating situation for poverty-stricken families who struggle to afford enough food as it is.

A single working parent might not have the time or money to make multiple trips to the store when the one bag allotted is not be enough to carry their food home. Additionally, if a family member forgets their cloth carriers, forcing a choice between bags to carry food and more nutritious food seems a bit ludicrous.

This pressure, however, is not felt by the vast majority of U.S. citizens, especially many students at college campuses across the country. We usually have to buy food only for ourselves, making it easier to carry one larger reusable tote. We also often have convenient food markets within walking distance, so shopping more often for less becomes a possibility.

Forgetting the bags seems a reasonable excuse, but this can be solved with spending time to make it a habit. Make grabbing a canvas grocery bag as important as grabbing the keys or yourcell phone before you head out the door.

Also, try placing them in unforgettable places: in the trunk of the car, in your backpack or purse, or in your bike’s basket.

Using a canvas bag won’t solve the sustainability problem in the U.S., but it is one of the many very small things each student can absolutely do to help be more sustainable.

And it might get everyone thinking about what goes inside the bag, too. Buying things with less packaging or foods that take less resources and energy to grow, like vegetables rather than meat, will also help sustainability efforts.

Visit www.reusablebags.com for a great selection of reasonably priced (around $6 each)reusable grocery sacks, like the popular ChicoBag, which costs $3.95.

Many stores offer reusable bags for purchase (in-store bags usually cost $1). Some stores, like Trader Joes, offer discounts for using them. Wal-Mart also has receptacles to recycle old plastic bags.

The only problem that arises for this editor is figuring out what to use to line those pesky, small garbage cans.