Plastic Bag Ban Facts

Here are some plastic bag ban facts. The full effect of the plastic bag ban has been set to take place sometime this year. The federal government seeks to put a ban on single-use plastic items, such as bags, cutlery, and straws to help eliminate plastic waste to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. There is a goal of achieving zero plastic waste by 2030. According to CBC News, Environment and Climate Change Canada will be formulating a draft of proposed regulations which will be published and allotted for public opinion.

Plastic Bag Ban Facts and their Implications

At Danshar Polybag and Resin Inc., we believe in finding alternatives rather than completely banning plastic. Plastic bag ban facts implicate that overturning of the plastic bag ban in Toronto depends on finding a viable alternative. We are of the opinion that the convenience and cost-efficiency of plastic bags cannot be replaced.

Banning plastic bags is similar to banning computers. As technology progresses and life continues to offer new information for increased advancement, there is no going back. Just as the Internet often brings about negative influences, its positive uses cannot be substituted by any other known method.

The goal now is to find ways to recycle plastic bags because recycled materials are often used in plastic manufacturing plants. Drawing up plans to find simpler ways to recycle material would be the first goal. A second step would be to find a solution that easily disintegrates plastic bags found in landfills.

In the United States, you will often find bins for plastic bags in supermarkets. If we could have a by-law that encourages returning one-time use plastic bags to these bins in the supermarket, we would solve most of the problem of excess plastic in our landfills.

We have begun to recycle plastic bags in Toronto:

“Retailers are still required to provide carry-out bags that are compatible with the City's recycling program, which means no biodegradable, compostable plastic bags or bags with metal grommets, string, cored, cloth or non-plastic material can be provided.” [1]

Further, we know that biodegradable bags may be more damaging to the environment than regular bags. Read more about this at the Guardian by copying and pasting the following link:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/cif-green/2009/jun/18/greenwash-biodegradeable-plastic-bags

The answer is simple. Like recycled paper, we have to continue to encourage people to recycle their plastic. This is the only advantageous way we can uphold our goal in cleaning up our environment. Once we have several programs in place along with advertisements to encourage the public to recycle plastic, we can continue to enjoy the advancements the plastic industry has provided—and we can keep our computers too! We can make plastic bag ban facts a thing of the past.

[1] "No More Plastic Bag Fee as of July 1." No More Plastic Bag Fee as of July 1. N.p., 29 June 2012. Web. 28 Nov. 2012. <http://wx.toronto.ca/inter/it/newsrel.nsf/7017df2f20edbe28852566190-04e428e/05612aecf140d5f185257a2c005e67a4?OpenDocument>.

Plastic Bag History and FAQs