Plastic bags have had a lot of fingers pointed at them in regards to their environmental impact. It’s well-established that they have some impact on the environment, but almost everything else does as well. It’s important to ask how much impact on the environment they have, and what ways are they actually greener than some alternative.
Three Environmental Benefits of Plastic Bags
There are three big benefits to using custom plastic bags in terms of environmental impacts. Let’s read further to see what those are, and how they can benefit us as environmentally friendly citizens who are considering buying poly bags wholesale.
Number 1: Easy to Both Reuse and Recycle
Plastic bags are designed in a way that makes them extremely easy to reuse. It’s simple to reuse a plastic bag again and again, for potentially years if they are treated well. They’re exceptionally easy to clean and they can be used for a wide range of things. If that wasn’t enough, it’s also very easy to recycle custom plastic bags, many people won’t even have to switch up their routines as most grocery stores offer a location for recycling them. Between these two facts, plastic bags actually have a fairly low environmental impact if we all do our part to use them to their full potential which is why plastic bag manufacturers in the USA want the facts to be more available to those trying to buy poly bags wholesale.
Number 2: They Take Up Less Space In Landfills
Another benefit of plastic bags over paper is that they take up far less space in landfills. Custom plastic bags only account for 0.4% of landfill space, while paper bags account for 1%. This means plastic bags currently account for less than half of the space in landfills of their paper counterparts. Paper bags also weigh 6-7 times more than plastic bags, many places charge for landfill use based on weight, this cost can add up over time for municipalities.
Number 3: They Cause Much Less Pollution During Production Than the Alternative
It’s easy to neglect the environmental toll of producing these things in the first place. Many people entirely forget to account for the production costs of paper and plastic bags, when trying to decide which is more green. Paper bag production both takes more energy and causes more pollution than plastic bag production. Between the two, this is a huge impact on the planet that is being ignored when discussing the viability of either option.
There are a lot of factors to consider when deciding whether plastic or paper bags are the better choice. Now that you know the facts, you may be considering going environmentally friendly plastic bags from plastic bag manufacturers in the USA. Check out Polypak’s website today for more information.
