Recycle plastic bags
Why This is Green
Nearly 1 million bags are used each minute worldwide. Recycling rates of plastic bags hover near 10 percent (only about a third of paper bag recycling). Suffice it to say that we have a long way to go to reduce the number of plastic bags that are thrown in the trash and wind up in our waterways as well as our overstuffed landfills.
Unfortunately most curbside recycling programs don’t currently accept plastic bags. If this is the case where you live, seek out a grocery or retail store near you that will accept them for recycling. If you’re fortunate enough to be able to recycle them curbside, make sure your bags are properly secured within the bin. They won’t get recycled if they blow away.
Reduce the amount of plastic bags you need to recycle by not taking them at stores in the first place—use a reusable bag instead. Reusing the plastic bags you do have stretches the considerable resources that went into making them.
Learn More
How To
Check with your town or municipality to see if they recycle plastic bags. If they don’t, ask them to start.
Look online to find a store that accepts plastic bags for recycling near where you live. Double check to see what kind of plastic your bags are; some stores only take back plastic #2 and #4 bags. See if they take produce bags as well as shopping bags.
