June 15

Should We Ban Plastic Bags

Imagine yourself as a fish. You see a weird thing that is clear. You try to eat it and you suffocate. Later you become a shark’s dinner which means that the shark is now polluted too. Think of all the creatures that eat plastic and die. I think we should ban plastic, especially plastic bags. Plastic trash ends up in the ocean and can really harm marine life.  Another reason for banning plastic is all plastic bags can also contribute to global climate change.

To begin with plastic trash often ends up in the ocean. Have you ever heard of a trash island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean? This  island is made up of trash that is the size of Texas that is still growing in size. Trash island is estimated to be about 5,800,000 square miles!  For instance plastic bags are usually only used for twenty minutes and then begin the journey to the ocean through the sewers, because most owners of the bags just leave them in the street to be blown away into the sewers. Did you know that more than 17 billion pounds of plastic trash ends up in the ocean each year?

Second, plastic bags can be harmful to marine life. For instance in Norway 30 plastic bags were found in the stomach of a beached whale.  Plastic bags consumed could lead to death by suffocation which is very sad. Did you know that at least 1 million seabirds and 100,000 mammals die each year from plastic materials.

Third, plastic bags can also contribute to global climate change.  Plastic bags are made out of a material that will release greenhouse gases when they decompose. Which is a very big core material in global climate change. The amount of trash that is burned each year in the dump will make massive impact on global climate change. Climate change will heat up the earth melt all of the ice in the world and make more water which will consume all the land in the world.

I think we should ban plastic bags. Did you know that California banned plastic bags last November? I say every state should do that. It’s easy to think plastic bags do not do any harm to the environment and can be recycled, but most don’t recycle them and put them in the regular trash or let them blow away. When you face the facts really plastic bags add to global climate change, harm marine life, and end up in our oceans or landfills. In the end you are sacrificing creatures to your benefit to live in your everyday life. Next time you go to the store think twice about your plastic bag or paper bag choice.

Photo credit: https://nuscimag.com/the-ocean-needs-you-not-your-trash-7d5967aa9e83

Category: Environment, Student Posts | 2 Comments on Should We Ban Plastic Bags
May 2

Lets get rid of plastic bags!

Imagine an island of trash the size of Texas! That’s 268,597 square miles of trash! It’s not really a solid island but still, it’s a big blob of floating garbage in the middle of the ocean. I think we need to get rid of plastic bags once and for all. First of all bags take forever to decompose, second of all it pollutes the ocean, and finally, you have other options besides plastic bags.

It takes time to decompose

You may think that plastic bags don’t do anything to the land but they do. People throw away plastic bags and plastic trash every day. It takes about 1000 years to get rid of the plastic bags on our planet and there are 100 billion plastic bags thrown away every year. If it takes a long time to decompose plastic bags, there could be a lot of trash on our planet, for a very long time.

It pollutes to the ocean               

Another reason why plastic bags should be banned, many other bags wash into the sewer drains and end up in waterways.  Did you know that scientists in Norway found 30 plastics bags in a whale’s stomach, that’s crazy how so many plastic bags get polluted in the ocean and land! More than 17 billion pounds of plastic bags ended up in the ocean. Plastic trash is harmful to animals because the animal can get trapped in the plastic bag. It can also eat the plastic bag which can cause it to die. Plastic bags can be polluted in rivers, lakes, and farms.

You have other options

Why do people even need to use plastic bags for groceries? Khalea Jai Hoggs from India thinks, “People have other options at stores. They can use recyclable paper bags or buy cloth bags, which they can use over and over again.” Khalea makes a good point. When you go to a grocery store the cashier worker should give you only two options–a paper bag or your own bag. Although paper bags are not the best option, it’s still better than a plastic bag.  You could choose a paper bag to help the environment, or you could always bring your own cloth bag.

In conclusion, polluting plastic bags is a bad choice as it’s invading our world, and making it into the food chain. To sum up, first It takes a long time to decompose, second it pollutes the ocean, and finally, you have other options other than a plastic bag. Although paper bags are not the best option, it’s still better than a plastic bag. Where I stand, I think that plastic bags should be gone forever.

            

Category: Environment | 1 Comment on Lets get rid of plastic bags!
January 22

Ban Plastic Bags

Plastic Water Bottles Mountain Ice Hunger Takes Flight KFB May 20, 20107
Photo Credit: Steven Depolo via Compfight

People over the word are using plastic bags….Plastic is convenient but is it worth it? Plastic should be banned! When plastic starts decomposing it releases toxic gases,wastes natural resources that could be used for something else,and millions of animals die from it.

Plastic pollutes and is bad for your health

When plastic starts decomposing it releases toxic gases that are harmful to people,animals,and the environment,it is bad for plants,and pollutes a lot. Sometimes the plastic gets loose and goes to the ocean where it pollutes and kills animals. Some people even get cancer and other diseases from the gases released by plastic! If you eat a fish that eat plastic you might get parasites,besides who knows where the plastic has been any way,the toilet,the sewers?

Plastic kills animals

Did you know that an average family kills about 100 to 200 animals and more? When animals eat plastic, plastic makes the animal suffer a long  painful death. Animals like plankton-eating birds,whales,and some fish have a tough time telling plastic apart from its food. Did you know that the word makes 288 million tons of plastic each year and only 1% of the plastic is found in the sea,and that 100,000 animals die each year.

Plastic wastes natural resources and is unfair!

Making plastic wastes natural resources that could be used for something else and why bother making something that harms others and yourself.Did you know that an average family uses 60 and more plastic bags in 4 trips to the store and that 12 million barrels of oil is required to make plastic.

Conclusion

Using reusable bags can spread diseases. But that’s not a problem, you can wash them out every now and then and label the bags ,if you use one for meat you can label it only for meat.Therefore, plastic should be banned.

Category: Student Posts | 1 Comment on Ban Plastic Bags