Disposable garbage bag case study

Alternatives

 Invest in biodegradable trash bags.

 Reusable bags - There aren’t a lot of reusable trash bag alternatives on the
market yet. Canadian company Kwik Bagit makes reusable, washable bag models
meant to collect your recycling and yard waste. Kwik Bagit also offers an
adjustable telescoping bag holder that allows nearly any size of bag to be secured
with retainer clips that hold the bag in place while being filled.
Their blue recycling bag is made of RPET mesh to allow recycling to air dry and
has a reinforced base so it doesn’t leak. Their green bag is a nonwoven
poly/cloth blend and intended for hauling yard waste to the compost collection
site. They also offer a black bag intended to hold sports equipment. These
reusable bags can be sprayed with a hose to clean and reused dozens of times.
Reuse is always better than single-use products and eliminating plastic waste
destined to be trash is a big win!
 Plant based bags - Reusable bags won’t work for regular curbside trash
collection. However, you can lessen your Earth-impact by making use of plant-
based trash bags, even if they are single-use. Using plant materials instead of
plastic is a good choice as there is a smaller environmental impact in growing
crops as opposed to mining for oil. Plants are a renewable resource while fossil
fuels, which are used to make conventional plastic, are nonrenewable. There are
many offerings on the market including bags made of sugar cane, surplus crops,
corn starch, GMO-free plants, and plenty more. Many of these plant-based bags
claim to be compostable, which brings us to our next greener trash bag
alternative.
 Compostable bags - Compostable bags are meant to break down into organic
material after a certain time. This is ideal if you are hauling yard waste to a
composting facility or moving food waste destined to be composted. For your
landfill trash, compostable bags are also beneficial, especially since you are
cutting out your plastic waste. The contents of modern landfills do not
decompose nearly as well or as fast as a compost heap but organics do break
down a bit. Film plastic trash bags will eventually turn into microplastics after a
very long time stewing in the landfill. Compostable bags help reduce this
microplastic pollution even if they are contained within a landfill. There are
many compostable bags on the market, most have some sort of plant-based
content. Check out well-reviewed UNNI ASTM and ProGreen compostable bags.
 DIY your trash bags - Perhaps the greenest alternative to a standard plastic trash
bag is to make your own trash bag. Find some folding directions for many sizes
of bags on the Make Your Own Zone. These directions instruct crafters to make
use of newspapers but you can also make bags out of mailer ads (similar to a
newspaper) or leftover craft paper. Of course, paper bags can only be used for
 dry waste so this option is best for an office or bathroom waste bin. Reusing
what you already have on hand and have already used is one of the greenest
options for waste bags!
 Skip the liner - What are the bagging rules for your waste hauler? Perhaps you
can skip the trash can liner altogether! Trucks that dump the waste directly into
their compactor may allow you to nix the bag. We do recommend you inquire
about this alternative before putting it in place. Most recycling is supposed to be
unbagged but it’s not the same in every community and very unusual for trash. If
you do need to bag your waste, consider only lining one large trash bin in your
home and dumping all bins into that one bag. You can cut down on bag usage
considerably if you only use one. Even if your home is zero waste, you do still
need to collect compost and recycling. Choosing a greener option for your waste
collection bag is one way to make your life gentler on the Earth.

Things to consider while buying eco friendly trash bags :-

Plastic bags are pretty durable, but are not biodegradable and lead to
environmental pollution. Nowadays, there are various environmentally
friendly alternatives to plastic garbage bags, such as biodegradable and
compostable garbage bags. But, here are some things to consider while
buying nature-loving trash bags.

Correct materials

Nature-loving garbage bags are designed with sustainable materials such

as plants. Plant-oriented bags act as the best option when picking up eco-
friendly trash bags. Proper use of materials releases fewer greenhouse
gases and doesn’t lead to landfill waste, and this makes it the greatest
alternative.

Leakage

Do you want to make your surroundings clean? Make sure to purchase

garbage bags with proper sealing properties. This would make your trash
bag leakproof and properly contained. A trash bag without leakage acts as
the best trash bag.

Carrying capacity

Ensure to purchase the trash bag with the right size as per your needs.
Don’t waste your money on trash bags that lead into landfills. Lessen the
carbon footprint and make your trash bag more productive.
A more practical look

biodegradable trash bags : -

At first glance, it might seem that biodegradable trash bags are a great choice for the
environment. The reality though is that this is tantamount to greenwashing. After all,
the trash in the bag won’t biodegrade and the bag itself is unlikely to biodegrade in
normal landfill conditions. Those biodegradable bags are also almost always made with
synthetic polymers that are petroleum-based, meaning more microplastics in the
environment. All this means is you’re paying more for a product that required more
energy and resources to produce than most plastic trash bags.

Plant based bags :-

Plant-based can mean that some of the materials used to make the bags are sourced
from sugar cane, corn starch, and other plant-derived materials. This sounds good, but
it’s often the case that these bags are also made with virgin plastic. The result may be a
bag that sounds more eco-friendly but actually performs worse than a bag made with a
mix of recycled plastic and virgin plastic. And if you have to use two bags or more to
handle your trash, the eco-friendliness really starts to fade rather fast.

Compostable trash bags :-

In contrast, compostable trash bags are a great option as an alternative to single-use

plastic trash bags. These bags are 100% plant-based and are designed to break down
very quickly under certain conditions (typically high heat and moisture). This might
meant they take longer to break down in landfill conditions compared to home
composting, but when they do, they will not result in microplastics entering the
environment. Compostable trash bags are a good option for hauling green waste to a
composting facility or for hauling or storing (temporarily) other dry items such as
newspaper, straw, clothing, and so forth. Just be careful not to get these bags wet or to
expose them to humid or hot conditions as they’ll start to break down regardless of
what’s in them. And check for certifications when buying compostable bags.

Case study by :-

Ridhi Gupta