People have the opportunity to make a choice every time they make a trip to the grocery store: paper or plastic? Many consumers may wonder which type of bag is better for the environment. To assess the comparative environmental impacts of each material is not a simple matter; it requires consideration of the inputs of matter and energy throughout each stage of the life cycle of each product.

Plastics are produced from the waste products of oil refining. An analysis of the life cycle of plastic bags includes consideration of the environmental impacts associated with the extraction of oil, the separation of products in the refining process, and the manufacturing of plastics. The total environmental impact depends upon the efficiency of operations at each stage and the effectiveness of their environmental protection measures. 

Both paper and plastic bags have to be transported to stores, which requires energy and creates emissions. In this comparison, plastic is preferable because plastic bags are lighter in weight and more compact than paper bags. It would take approximately seven trucks to transport the same number of paper bags as can be transported by a single truck full of plastic bags.

The disposal of bags entails additional environmental impacts. If landfilled, plastic bags are more environmentally benign than paper, as they require less space; paper occupies approximately half of overall landfill volume. Plastics (not just bags) generate 14 to 28 percent of the volume of trash in general, but because much of it can be compressed, only 9 to 12 percent of the volume of waste in landfills. Although plastics do not biodegrade, modern landfills are designed in such a way that nothing biodegrades, because the waste is isolated from air and water in order to prevent groundwater contamination and air pollution. As manufacturers have continued to make their plastic packaging thinner and lighter to save materials, the percentage of landfill volume taken up by plastics has remained steady since 1970 even as plastics have become more widely used.

Plastic bags pose a threat to marine life, because, if ingested, the bags can block the stomach and cause starvation. Sea turtles, for example, mistake plastic bags for jellyfish. 

We at PTG recommend paper or cloth bags!

  Buy Reusable Grocery Tote Bag