Drop The Plastic Bag

1. Reduce or STOP Altogether using plastic bags
2. Just say NO THANKS when you are offered a bag
3. Tell the shopkeeper every single time NOT to give out plastic bags unless it's asked for
4. Bring your OWN cloth bag; everywhere
5. Reuse or recycle, DON'T let it end up in a landfill
6. Start your OWN ADVOCACY and convince your family first, friends then strangers to also take up a similar stand

Environment - Pollution

Plastic bags are handed out for the simplest of reasons and in the millions. We love them. They are cheap to make, lightweight, waterproof and convenient.

But with this convenience comes the simple truth that plastic bags are practically indestructible.

Each year tens of thousands of plastic bags are dumped as landfill, or litter. 21% of all landfills in general are made up of these bags.

There they will remain for thousands of years! Or they fly and float out into drains, creeks and rivers, costing money to clean up, blocking drains and ending up in the marine environment, killing marine life.

We have to stop this. All of us.

Some facts:

1. Each year, an estimated 500 billion to 1 trillion plastic bags are consumed worldwide. That comes out to over one million per minute. Billions end up as litter each year.

2. According to the EPA, over 380 billion plastic bags, sacks and wraps are consumed in the U.S. each year.

3. According to The Wall Street Journal, the U.S. goes through 100 billion plastic shopping bags annually. (Estimated cost to retailers is $4 billion)

4. According to the industry publication Modern Plastics, Taiwan consumes 20 billion bags a year—900 per person.

5. According to Australia’s Department of Environment, Australians consume 6.9 billion plastic bags each year—326 per person. An estimated .7% or 49,600,000 end up as litter each year.

6. Over 100,000 birds, whales, seals and turtles worldwide are killed by plastic rubbish every year

7. Plastic bags don’t biodegrade, they photodegrade—breaking down into smaller and smaller toxic bits contaminating soil and waterways and entering the food web when animals accidentally ingest.

8. According to David Barnes, a marine scientist with the British Antarctic Survey, plastic bags have gone "from being rare in the late 80s and early 90s to being almost everywhere from Spitsbergen 78° North [latitude] to Falklands 51° South [latitude].

9. We are collectively using about 12 million barrels of oil to produce the plastic bags that are used each year.... 12,000,000!