Why We Should Be A Fee On Plastic Bags

Landfills are filling up with more and more trash every day and are expanding. Just by separating our trash everyday into plastics, cardboard/paper, cans, etc., we can minimize what we put in the landfills. Even if recycling was mandatory, I think this would help a lot. I spent some time in Germany and was able to participate in recycling more in depth. They recycle almost everything and have strict trash rules. Food that was not consumed goes in one small bin and cans, boxes, paper, etc., were sorted into separate bins as well. If you had something that was not in the proper bin or if your trash bag had something that could be recycled they do not take the trash that day. Some of the food that was not consumed was buried, the cardboard/paper, etc., was sent out to be recycled and reused. All of this helps keep Germany green and clean. Maybe we should follow in Germany’s footsteps to help keep our landfills clean of items that can be recycled and used again. According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency, in 2006, only 32% of the trash that was picked up was recycled in the United States. This leaves 68% of trash that is still going to the landfills and not being recycled. Although this recycling average is low, The Environmental Protection Agency hoped by 2019 the recycle percentage would reach 75%. The amount of trash that one person generates is astonishing. According to the EPA from Green Waste, in a single day 4.5 pounds is thrown out, which is about 1.5 tons of solid waste a year per person. The EPA estimates that 75% of solid waste is recyclable, but 30% is actually being

People are constantly throwing trash outside their window when they are driving down the street or throwing trash on the ground when they are walking. As minor as littering is, there are long term effects. Trash that ends up in the storm drains, eventually make it’s way into the ocean. Once the trash is in the ocean, it can eventually make its way into a whales blowhole, or can be consumed by an animal; which could harm them. Also, trash that makes it’s way into lakes and oceans is very difficult to remove. If you cannot remove the trash, how are you going to prevent these animals from getting

The objective of this report is to illustrate the effect of the implementation of a plastic bag tax in Australia. By providing a brief overview of issues, correlated with plastic bag consumption in conjunction with current and proposed changes to policies in Australia. Through the application of economic theory, it can determined whether a tax would decrease consumption and through supporting evidence indicating its efficiency when applied in practice.

The topic of banning the bag has been talked about across Australia for a while now as our waters become more and more polluted and our streets dirtier. However people are still clinging onto these plastic bags, fighting for them, even though they won’t look at the damage they’re causing. Plastic bags affect the environment the most. That includes ours and the many animals in the area. These plastic bags end up in our drains or floating around carparks, even ending up in our waters and lodged in the throats of poor turtles and birds. Plastic bags fill our landfill and take years to decompose meaning that we are producing and distributing more rubbish than we can get rid of. There is nothing to be proud of using plastic bags and it’s about time we, the nation agree on banning the bag.

I vaguely remember the bag tax that was short-lived in Dallas. While the ban and 5 cent tax on plastic bags was created with an environmentally friendly goal, the execution of the plan would not work, just as what happened in Dallas. Plastic bags are a portion of pollutants that are present. The tax and ban would also have to apply to other types of trash that people use and throw away on a daily basis. Some consumers will just pay the tax, especially if they are using few bags or forgot that the tax was established. If someone wants to use plastic bags without paying the tax, they will go out of their way to visit neighboring areas that do not have the policy. Stores that are obligated to abide by the policy will lose customers and, in turn,

We, as a whole, have put a detriment on ourselves and our enviroment. The consequences of the industrial revolution and beyond are beginning to show. Our beautiful rolling hills and plains have become a place for us to dump our garbage. Our kin can no longer enjoy many of the places that the world has offered us. It is up to us to stop this process of destroying our enviroment. A simple tax would be a step in the right direction. A tax on plastic bags being used in the stores and markets would do many things, of which are, deterring people from using them, aiding in federal funds, and consequentially making people want to advance in their careers and job opportunities.

Found on “34 Facts about Pollution”, the text says 14 billion pounds of garbage are dumped into the ocean every year and most of it is plastic. It makes you wonder why people do it? To act cool or to act like a complete idiot? As a result for oblivious behavior, we won’t be able to drink anywhere without some kind of trash in our water. And we won’t even be able to shower ourselves with out some plastic coming out from the faucet.

Plastic bag waste has become a huge issue in our state and must be put to an end. I believe that enforcing a bag tax is the best way to do this. Along almost every street or highway, you will find plastic bags strewn about carelessly. This is very unsettling and unattractive for the people coming in and out of our state. If we were to place a bag tax, people would be more likely to save their bags, or use less, limiting

It’s an eight cents tax on every single shopping bag that is plastic. She goes on to say how other place such as Denmark, Bangladesh, Rwanda, and California have made some type of move in recent years to encourage shoppers not to use plastic bags. Kajekal went on stating about Denmark, “(Denmark) introduced a tax as long ago as 1994 to encourage stores to charge for plastic bags. By 2014, Denmark had the lowest plastic-bag use in Europe, with each resident using an average of just four a year.” Bangladesh took a more aggressive approach as they just banned plastic bags all together to get people to stopping using them. This was because of nine million plastic bags that were found to be the cause backed up sewers and deadly flooding. In the African country of Rwanda, “In 2008 instituted a ban so strict that officials confiscate plastic bags at airport customs and issue $150 fines to people caught using them. Smugglers selling bags on the black market risk fines of over $400.” Stated by the author Naina Kajekal. Finally, the article by Kajekal moves onto the United State stating that California, “Was due to introduce the U.S.’s first statewide ban on plastic bags in July, but opponents in the plastics industry secured enough signatures to put the ban on the ballot in November

As Lee Califf has made clear “ Bag fees also have negative environmental side effects. For example, alternative products such as reusable bags, produce more waste and consume more resources than plastic bags. The popular thick plastic reusable bags generally imported from China are made from oil and often make it to landfills when they are thrown away because they are not recyclable.” Lee Califf point is that putting a fee on plastic bags is not going to achieve anything because reusable bags produce more waste and consume more resources than plastic

Another reason why there shouldn't be a fee on plastic bags is amount to additional taxes, The author Lee Califf in upfront magazine explain “The fee amounts to a tax will make people hard to make end meet, A recent study suggests that the total number of plastic bags used in Washington, D.C.,* has actually increased since 2010, when a 5-cent fee went into effect.” The amount of additional taxes for plastic bags would cost it more than the taxes of plastic bags now and will make people to think not to buy plastic bags in stores just because of the taxes. If there will be more additional taxes than five cents human in the place that had taxes on the store that had more than five cent would not be getting the bags in that store that had more

stores they go to. When we are finished with the plastic bags we either use them or throw them away. This is controversial because most people believe its a problem that we should or should not pay for it. There should be a fee on plastic bags because plastic cannot decompose, wildlife is dying and it damages the ocean.

I strongly disagree about paying 25cents per bag just to put some groceries in a plastic bag. I understand that recycling is important and you don't want people to throw away the bags ,but no matter what it's still going to happen . Paying money for bags is just crazy the money that we are wasting for bags could go to something more important like homeless people, orphanage homes ,charitys ,animal shelters ,natural disasters etc. other then going to the government which I think it is very selfish. I think paying for bags should be banned because, paying for them are putting people out of good jobs. Californias , Washingtons, New Yorkers, etc. 50% of people have lost their jobs due to the government making us having to pay for bags and

Many of these issues however, can be addressed and even resolved in several ways. Nowadays, a number of countries have begun to impose taxes on plastic bag consumption, with few even banning the use of plastic

Plastic bags cause a massive amount of pollution to the earth. It lets out lots of CO2 into the air with the production of it. CO2 is a greenhouse gas that if let out too much at one time can hurt the planet. Not only do plastic bags produce pollution while being made, but also when they are decomposing. Plastic bags go on to last for up to 10-1000 years. That is possibly 1000 years that a plastic bag goes on to add the huge amount of trash in the world. Although plastic bags take so long to decompose they do eventually break down. Exposure to a lot of sunlight and wind will also speed up the process of the decomposition of plastic bags. The breaking down of plastic bags seems like a good thing, however it is the complete opposite. Plastic bags are broken down into microscopic particles that are toxic. Those toxic particles then go on to hurt the environment. An articles states, “They break down into tiny toxic particles that contaminate the soil and waterways and enter the food chain when animals accidentally ingest them.”. This goes to show that those