Do you rely on free plastic grocery bags? A majority of Brownsville, Texas residents do. Three out of four shoppers say they use plastic bags as their primary method of bringing food home from the store.
But now, the Brownsville City Commission is poised to implement a ban on plastic bags that will not only affect YOU but will also cause a ripple effect that will hurt struggling families and create job loss across Texas.
Don’t let this bad ordinance affect your community. You can TAKE ACTION and make a difference. Here's what you should know about plastic bags:
Plastic Bags Are More Earth Friendly Than You Might Think
Plastic grocery bags are an extremely resource-efficient. And in Brownsville, they can be recycled at many grocery stores. Plastic grocery bags require 70% less energy to manufacture than paper bags, and produce half the amount of greenhouse gas emissions in the process.1
- For every seven trucks needed to deliver paper bags, only one truck is needed for the same number of plastic bags, helping to save energy and reduce emissions.
- Plastic bags generate 80% less waste than paper bags.
- It takes 91% less energy to recycle a pound of plastic than it does to recycle a pound of paper.
Recycle
Most large grocery stores, including Wal-Mart and HEB, take back bags at convenient drop of locations at the front of the store. And, in addition to grocery bags, other plastic retail bags, newspaper bags, dry cleaning bags, and plastic wraps from products like paper towels and bathroom tissue can be included wherever plastic bags are collected for recycling.
In fact, in 2008, over 832 million pounds of plastic bags and wraps were recycled in the United States. And that number continues to climb every year. According to the EPA, the national recycling rate for plastic bags and wraps has doubled since 2005 and now totals 13%.
Reuse
88% of Brownsville residents say they already reuse them around the house for things like lining waste baskets, picking up after pets, and toting dirty or wet clothes. Think about the dozens of ways you reuse plastic bags around your house and the money you save by not having to buy other bags for the same jobs.
Texas Manufacturing Jobs
Plastics bag manufacturers directly employ more than 2,600 people in the state of Texas. These are family-wage jobs and these hardworking Texans make most of the plastic bags you get from the store. The majority of reusable bags are imported.
What can you do?
Take Action NOW! Contact your city commissioners and urge them to bag the ban.
Brownsville City Commissioners:
1Boustead Consulting & Associates Ltd. Life Cycle Assessment for Three Types of Grocery Bags – Recyclable Plastic; Compostable, Biodegradable Plastic; and Recycled, Recyclable Paper. 2007.