Town votes to keep plastic bags

I'm proud of these students for their efforts. I am doing my personal best to have rusable bags in my car to bring into the store, but I have not yet made it a habit. I will keep trying and I hope the students do too.

Visiting Nantucket, I never saw plastic bags. Is there a ban on the island or are they voluntarily eliminating plastic bags

What's with the outright ban as a solution? Why not put a surcharge on bags like Ikea does. Charging people 5 cents / bag makes them think about it more. And that money could be donated to recycling efforts.

Last night I went to Stop & Shop and I carried in two canvas bags that I keep in my trunk ... I came out with both of these bags filled and I had to use only 2 plastic bags from the store, as opposed to probably 10. I working on changing my ways.

I've expressed my skepticism of this ban to Whole Foods. I bike everywhere (saving a LOT of gasoline, CO2, etc). And if I don't remember to bring bags --- or don't bring ENOUGH bags for what I happen to buy --- then I really need a plastic bag on my bike. Paper bags don't cut it, unless you like to chase Grapefruits rolling across Mass Ave.

It seems to be it's a lot better for the environment to ride your bike and use a plastic bag now and then, than to drive to Whole Foods and use a paper bag when you forget to bring your own.

Unfortunately, Whole Foods did not even justify my letter with a polite response. Nothing. Nada. Clearly, I need to shop elsewhere.

In everyone's rush to go green, there is no substantative conversation on this issue. But there needs to be.

People need to wake up from their selfish sleep. This was a great opportunity to do the right thing and set a precedence and the people of sturbridge failed. Plastic is a poison to our environment. Why is it such a big deal to use paper or reusable bags? Lazy, selfish, unconscious people! And shame on the big corporations, Stop and Shop, Shaws ect. for not taking a stand and being a leader...shame, shame, shame...

I am not trying to hurt the environment but everyone needs to think really hard about the options. 1. As mentioned by Peggy and Anne, I really hope you wash or wipe down your reusable bags (which will cost you more money and energy via Clorox wipes or your washing machines cost, and that’s not helping anything), if not you will be cross contaminating your food week after week. 2. Marc, are you saying that we cut down more trees and go back to paper? 3. I don't know about you but I am a 70%'er when it comes to re-using my grocery store bags. I use them for my small trash cans, and that reduces the amount of trash can bags I have to purchase and through away. That helps the environment and my wallet. 4. If everyone of you researched the topic in detail you would see that in land fill studies it compressed paper (heady duty reusable grocery bags, magazines, junk mail, etc.) take as long as or longer to decompose then the thin plastic film your local grocery store supplies. 5. The grocery retailer always brags about doing their part to go green. They are not trying to go green they are trying to o cheap. The Grocery stores spend millions per year providing you with a bag to carry your goods in. If they can transfer that cost to you via the "gowning green" with reusable bags that they make you buy, they can increase their profits by millions. The solution is to push your local store to buy compostable bags. A few of the grocery store style bag (t-shirt bag) manufacturers sell this bag. It looks just like your normal bag but is made using corn starch and decomposes to nothing in 6 months. The bag cost more of course so the stores first goal is to make you buy and bring your own bag. Don't do it, make the supermarket provide you with the environmentally friendly bag, besides, how much do you spend on groceries a month? I think they could at least give me a bag to carry it out in!

Cahill: You want to make an effort to use reusable bags, when you DRIVE IN YOUR CAR to the grocery store. Get a grip. This is just green psychosis. Carbon is a life gas. Trees breath it. It makes a large part of the atmosphere and it is not the root cause of climate change. Don't feel guilty, but dont be a hypocrite either. Ride a bike.

My company has the solution to this problem, Paper Vs. Plastic.

www.goriseup.om

We have closed the "Loop" as we provide reusable bags, plastic bag collection bins, recycling education, as well as work with municipalities/businesses/schools to collect the bags and have them recycled into composite lumber in the United States.

we need plastic bags! think of what we'd use if we didn't have them. we'd have to use material ones that break easily. if a student is going on a excursion, brings her water bottle, the water bottle spills and goes everywhere in the bag. each time this happens it leads to wasting water to wash the bags!!! i say we keep them and in victoria southland, targets bags are 10c each and they break so easily its just a rip off!!!!