Paper or Plastic?
When you go to the grocery store, do you prefer paper or plastic bags? Paper might seem like the environmentally-conscious answer, but is paper really that much better? Are there things we can do to lessen the impact? What are alternatives?
What are they made from and how are they made?
Plastic: Plastic bags are made of polyethylene, a petroleum product. All plastic products are created from tiny plastic pieces called nurdles. Nurdles are put into an extruder (a machine that melts the nurdles into a tube shape. This tube is filled with air and stretched to the desired thickness. It’s then cooled rapidly. Dyes can be added. The bags are cut to the specific size.
Paper: (Most) paper bags are made out of wood. (I say most because there are initiatives to make paper products from other sources, like bamboo.) To make the paper bags, different parts of the tree and water are turned into wood pulp and then cooked at a high temperature to make the pulp less rigid. Calcium carbonate is added to make the bag brighter and smoother. The mixture is spread onto sheets and pressed between huge rollers and then dried and cut to the specific size. Any prints are added at this point.
Environmental Impacts
Plastic: In production, waste products go into the air, polluting the environment. Additionally, nurdles have been known to escape and are one of the main contributors of microplastics. The only “good thing” about plastics is that they are a by-product of petroleum. As long as petroleum is being used for an energy source, ethylene will be produced. Before plastics were created, ethylene just went to waste. Additionally, as most people know, the “worst part” about plastic bags is what happens when they are tossed. Because they aren’t biodegradable, they sit in landfills.
However, it’s not all negative! Some factories are reusing scraps and ripped bags by re-melting them and putting them back into circulation to become another bag.
Paper:
Paper bags take trees. It takes twenty-four trees to make one ton of paper! It takes water, used for irrigating the trees and in the pulp-making and paper-making processes. Additionally, the whole paper bag-making produces pollutants that go into the air and water around the factories.
What You Can Do:
Plastic: Reuse them! Who says single-use shopping bags have to be single-use? Put them in a small garbage bag, use for pet waste disposal, or for dirty diapers (especially if you’re on-the-go). Use them for a dirty clothes bag or a shoe bag when you travel. They also make great packing-fillers. Alternatively, some stores accept plastic bags back.
Paper:
Paper bags hold up longer than plastic bags do, as long as they don’t get wet, so they can be reused a few times. They can be used also for crafting (paint protection if you don’t have drop cloth) or cut up and turned into gift wrap. Any 90s babies who remember covering text books with paper bags?
They’re also great in the garden. You can use them as planters or to cover a garden bed that you want dormant for a while. It will decompose, and, in the meantime, keep the weeds away!
Having cloth bags on hand is always a great alternative!
Here are my sources if you are interested in reading further:
Step-by-Step Guide: How Paper Bags Are Made - KETE GROUP LIMITED & KETE MACHINE
How Are Plastic Bags Made: A Comprehensive Guide
Thanks for reading!
💜
Laura
