WEEK 3 - ENVIRONMENT

1. Link video: https://youtu.be/CubtcwIZEWc

2. Summary:

This video examines the environmental effects of plastic bags as well as alternatives in
order to consider what kind of options people have as customers in an environmentally
immoral scheme.

It is stated that a clear choice between paper and plastic has significant environmental
implications. Since plastic bags are so prevalent in daily life, it can be difficult to
determine which has the lesser effect. It's quick to forget the harm they've done.

While the first plastic, bake lite, was invented in 1907 and until the 1960s plastics,
especially polyethylene, became affordable and efficient to manufacture. Plastic bags
then became extremely common shortly after the 1960s.

According to a report undertaken by the English Environment Agency, 60 percent of the

environmental footprint of plastic bags is accounted for by resource extraction and raw
material processing. It is estimated that the United States alone disposes of 100 billion
plastic bags per year but just a small portion of this waste is recycled. Most of these bags
end up in oceans. And it's estimated that these plastic bags would take over 500 years to
decay. The bags do not retain their original form, but instead degrade with time as a result
of sun, water, and microbial decay into smaller pieces known as micro plastics, which are
harmful to aquatic organisms.

With the negative consequences of disposable bags, purchasing a cotton reusable bag or
opting for a paper bag makes sense. The solution, however, is not so straightforward. The
true environmental cost of a bag, whether plastic, paper, or fabric, is deeply embedded in
the manufacturing side of the commodity, according to the same study by the English
Environment Agency.

As a result, in order for the longer-lasting bags to have a lower environmental effect, they
must be reused several times. According to the report, paper must be used three times to
equal a single use of a plastic bag, while fabric needs 131 uses. But if people still have
functional plastic bags at home, there's no reason to go out and buy a new reusable tote.
Perhaps further aggravating, since 1988, only 100 businesses have been responsible for
71% of all greenhouse emissions. As customers, people have a lot of power. However,
due to production-side decisions, they still have limited alternatives.

As a result, minimizing the use of plastic bags is a minor change that can be combined
with other measures such as rethinking how much food one purchase from the same
supermarket shop.

In short, the bag people pick is important, but how it got there, what they put in it, and
how they use it are more important.