Comments on: Speaking Out For Tougher Plastic Bag Laws

By: Amy

Amy — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 23:41:43 +0000

Also as supporters of a plastic bag ban it is important to listen to the arguments from the other side. For a dose of pro – plastic bag information click over to http://savetheplasticbag.com

You might even find some interesting information. For instance, there is a problem with lead in the some of the reusable bags sold in stores. Save the plastic bag sees this as a reason to keep plastic bags. I see this as a reminder that plastic bag bans are but a starting point for much greater changes. No one said that plastic bags had to be replaced by cheap synthetic reusable bags. Instead, mainstream grocery stores could decided to provide paper and reusable bags made from hemp. If more US grocery stores demanded hemp fiber, then we would need more farmers to grow hemp, so the US government would finally have to see the wisdom of legalizing the growth industrial hemp. Oversimplification…yes….idealistic….yes….possible…..YES!

After you are done at the Save the Plastic Bag website, click on over to the North American Industrial Hemp Council’s website http://naihc.org/hemp-information/286-hemp-facts

By: Amy

Amy — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 21:12:08 +0000

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors is voting on the expanded plastic bag ban on Tuesday, Dec 6. Please express your support for the ordinance by sending a letter to Mayor Ed Lee and the Board of Supervisors. Environment California has a letter ready to sign and send at
https://secure3.convio.net/engage/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=3879

By: John Vonderlin

John Vonderlin — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 19:09:25 +0000

Ooops. Proofread too late; that should be ,”If anything interests you (or anybody else who reads this)…. Though, truthfully, being somewhat self-absorbed, it probably was a genuine Freudian Slip, as most everything I do is about me and my enjoyment of Life, even when it has an altruistic veneer. Enjoy. John

By: John Vonderlin

John Vonderlin — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 19:02:29 +0000

Hi Beth,
John Vonderlin here. I have extensive online resources regarding Marine Debris, freely available, including tens of thousands of pictures of my highly organized collection of 50K items (flotsam and sinksam) and my multi-year collecting adventures acquiring it, viewable at this link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/johnvonderlin/ Because my account is so large and varied, I recommend clicking the “Collections” tab along the top and selecting one of the collages that comes up. By clicking on the desired collage, only those Sets will come up. It’s all linkable or downloadable for non-commercial use. I correspond with various scientists and marine debris artists and have extensive offline resources about my obsession, also freely available. If anything interests me, drop me a line or websearch my name (I have very few Googlegangers) and get a read on me and some of my other online efforts.

By: John

John — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 13:33:17 +0000

This is really awesome post and really strong enough. Yes we must stop using plastic. This post is really a good reminders to everybody.

By: Krysta Radder

Krysta Radder — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 07:19:44 +0000

The Images above speaks for themselves!

Tell me one thing, Aren’t most current plastic bags used in grocery stores (bin liners after shopping) degradable anyway? Also, If using paper over plastic significantly raises the cost of doing business how are they going to manage the costs? they will be charged to the customers only.. isn’t that right??

I am aware the paper at least does not or hasn’t been linked to causing tumors in people who are using it. whereas we are aware that plastics have the tendency to release cancer causing agents in the environment and they also immediately impact the reproductive organs in living things..

By: Amy

Amy — Sun, 20 Nov 2011 03:52:11 +0000

This is such a good reminder on how important it is to take the time to make public comment in person.

The plastic bag ban was a good start, but this amendment is a huge improvement since it charges for the allowable bags too.

By: kanishka

kanishka — Sat, 19 Nov 2011 17:03:18 +0000

i’ve been gaining momentum on lowering my personal waste and plastic usage, but i do feel a bit alienated, the further i get with it. even making people aware, who i consider somewhat open to environmentalism, about my actions to not take disposable plastic packaging, get strange reactions. there is a huge disconnect between reusable shopping bags which seem accepted, and general avoidance of plastic packaging which has almost no awareness.

the university i attend for graduate studies is a nationwide leader in sustainability. from my limited viewpoint, they do pretty well, but it is discouraging when i want to get a snack at one of their food stands, and everything there is packaged in plastic and i have to walk away.

@clif , sorry you got discouraged by the local jerks. great job bringing up the issue.

By: lisa

lisa — Sat, 19 Nov 2011 04:02:55 +0000

Really impressed!!!

By: Cheryl

Cheryl — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 18:21:28 +0000

Excellent!! And thanks for the reminder about public speaking. Five minutes before I read your article, I was asked to prepare for a small work-related presentation. The ‘butterflies’ started immediately, but I really do feel better after reading what you wrote. If we know our stuff and need to educate others, then we need to relax and speak out!