Sunday, May 1, 2011

With big growth in use, reusable bags may not have the environmental benefit once thought

 

http://articles.philly.com/2011-04-22/news/29463321_1_reusable-bags-plastic-grocery-bags-reusable-water-bottle

 

It's not clear the reusables have done that in any significant way. Indirect measures suggest that plastic bag production has remained relatively steady.

 

Not every reusable bag is environmentally equal. A nonwoven polypropylene bag, for example, would have to be used just 11 times to make up for the negative effects of a plastic bag used one time, according to a British Environment Agency study that compared bags. A cotton bag, however, would have to be used 131 times.

 

Reusable bags have taken on such cachet that a just-released book celebrates them as an art form. The Tote Bag, by the British designer Jitesh Patel, even has a jacket that doubles as a reusable bag

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