Fundamental changes in behavior vs. "recycling"

The issue of bags at stores is more about waste and how we use resources than it is about recycling. Sure we can recycle bags, but better to not use either a paper (which is worse for the environment than plastic, see the third page of this article "The Green Issue - Climate Change - Environment - Energy Efficiency" from the New York Times Sunday Magazine) or a plastic (which uses up that limited natural resource, oil) bag at all.

Better to use a bag or backpack that you already have, one that will last for many years. Of course, you have to remember to carry such bags. (There are small rollup bags you can carry that when you open them up they can be quite big.) And this can be a problem if you are on foot or bicycle and don't have bags "in your car" and for whatever reason you don't have a bag.

But in the end, it's no big deal, and it's probably not even worth writing a letter to the editor of the Washington Post about. Now, Corinne Smeriglio of DC did write a letter (as did Andy Shallal of Busboys and Poets, in favor), see "Paper, Plastic -- and a Price" and in it she betrayed that she doesn't understand that this isn't about "recycling" bags but about how we use resources more generally. From the letter:

Sure, politicians like to posture as friends of the environment. But wouldn't more be accomplished by expanding existing recycling programs? The D.C. government should work to raise awareness of these programs and to partner with local businesses. Regular community cleanups are another opportunity to boost recycling.

The fact is, people need bags when they shop. And considering that the recession is causing hardships for so many people, now is not the time to increase consumers' costs. The District should find a better way to ensure a clean environment.

As the U.S. moves from an economy built on using more (what I call an extensive use of resources) and on waste to a more parsimonious and efficient economy (what I call an intensive use of resources), not using bags when you don't have to is one of the many small changes in every day behavior that people will have to make.

Note to Ken, no I still don't have panniers on my bicycle. So when I buy groceries and carry them home, eventually the bag straps tear and break (I often use those bags you pick up at festivals, they're pretty cheap).

In Baltimore at this cool store called Red Tree in Hampden, Suzanne found an amazing bag made out of recycled tire tubes. Sure it was $52, but it will likely never break. Unlike those bags from Trader Joes...
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David writes:

I suspect that Corinne Smeriglio is not writing as a concerned citizen but as an industry rep with an interest to protect. I've been googling and haven't found the connection. She seems to work at Venturehouse.

I don't see a young white zeta tau alpha sister being particularly concerned about the poor having to pay a nickel for a bag.

The Washington Post consciously posts letters to the editor by industry insiders without noting their financial interest in the matter.