Recycling Plastic Bags
I thought I heard on TV that plastic bags can't be recycled, is that true?
Forum Discussion
About 50% of them are used in plastic decking like Trex. The rest end up in the landfill dumps and it is not unusual for them to end up floating in the ocean where turtles and fish that feed on jellyfish ingest them in error and die as a result.
It is a convenience that is bad for the environment. Not a big deal to carry reusable shopping bags. We like the heavy reinforced plastic ones from Costco and the cooler bag version from Trader Joe's.
Recycling is largely a PR stunt. It costs more to transport glass and recycle it than it does to create a new glass container. Plastics may get shredded and end up in clothing or decking but it is not like a plastic milk bottle gets recycled and turned into a new plastic milk bottle. It does not happen.
The only real recycling where the material is reused is with metal. For beverage containers we should be going back to using reusable glass bottles and having them actually go back to the bottling plant and washed and refilled. This is what they do in Costa Rica but then they are more advanced than the USA in many ways.
It is a convenience that is bad for the environment. Not a big deal to carry reusable shopping bags. We like the heavy reinforced plastic ones from Costco and the cooler bag version from Trader Joe's.
Recycling is largely a PR stunt. It costs more to transport glass and recycle it than it does to create a new glass container. Plastics may get shredded and end up in clothing or decking but it is not like a plastic milk bottle gets recycled and turned into a new plastic milk bottle. It does not happen.
The only real recycling where the material is reused is with metal. For beverage containers we should be going back to using reusable glass bottles and having them actually go back to the bottling plant and washed and refilled. This is what they do in Costa Rica but then they are more advanced than the USA in many ways.
