by Maria C Collins

Created on: September 19, 2009   Last Updated: January 09, 2011

There is an awful lot of hype and rot talked about "new" green shopping bags. It is plastic carrier bags that are the new phenomenon, before their advent all shoppers took their "green" shopping bags, or baskets, every time they went shopping. It is a matter of returning to those thrifty and more thoughtful days.

In France, plastic carrier bags are only available for a charge. This has been so in France for more than 8 years. It is time the rest of the world caught up.

Plastic shopping bags are unsustainable; making them uses up precious resources and causes greenhouse emissions. Plastic shopping bags do not bio-degrade. In countries, where they are free, people do not value them and they, therefore, end up in landfill sites. One often sees them floating around the roads, where they have been carelessly thrown away, causing unsightly litter and danger to wildlife, and drivers. In France, one rarely sees litter, and never plastic carrier bags lying around on roads, or in beauty spots. You have to pay for plastic shopping bags and so they are precious.

It is a small matter to take your re-usable shopping bags with you when you go shopping. You just have to remember to do so. A handy tip to remember is as soon as you unpack your shopping, collect the bags together, and immediately put them in the boot/trunk of the car, ready for your next shopping expedition.

There are many reusable shopping bags, and baskets, available to buy. Some supermarkets sell them at very reasonable prices. The rush type bags, and baskets, that our grandmothers used are still available, and these have the added advantage that they are made of natural materials. They tend to be more expensive than supermarket plastic bags, but remember that these bags are used time and time again, and prove less expensive in the long run. The large rush bags also hold a good deal more than the plastic carrier bags, which are given away by supermarkets. Cloth, or other shopping bags, are also available. It is a question of individual choice and preference. Local outlets should have a good selection.

Whilst there are many things that governments need to do to save our planet, we cannot leave all action to governments. There are things that ordinary people can do. Using re-usable shopping bags is one small thing that everyone can do for the planet. Perhaps by doing the small things, we can shame our governments into the necessary big actions before it is too late and using reusable shopping bags is such a small thing. Using re-usable shopping bags will not save the Earth but it will help.

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