We use around 1 billion plastic bags per year and when they get blown into the street they clog our drains and storm water systems and frequently end up in our harbours where they create hazards for our marine life. Plastic bags are frequently eaten by marine birds and mammals who confuse them with food and when the bags degrade they become micro plastic and enter the food chain when they are consumed by fish.
Compare our use with Denmark and Finland. They use around 4 bags per person per year because they have a tax on plastic bags since 1993. Countries that don’t have any measures to reduce use – like Poland for example – average around 466 bags per person per year.
Ireland introduced a levy on plastic bags in 2002 and usage fell by 90% – but crept up over time until the levy was increased. In the USA there are 133 cities or country-wide regulations reducing plastic bag use. Other countries have banned plastic use completely – like in Bangladesh and Rwanda and Botswana. And in Australia about half the states and territories have some regulation to reduce the consumption of single use plastic bags."
https://blog.greens.org.nz/2014/05/28/nz-behind-the-times-on-single-use-plastic-bags/
"According to government data, New Zealanders use 1.14billion of petroleum based plastic bags every year, which equates to almost each person using 1 bag a day."
https://www.zerowaste.co.nz/assets/Kiwi_PlasticBag_survey_report_Feb07.pdf
"Most current plastic carrier bags are made from polyethylene which is produced from ethylene gas which is a byproduct of the petrochemical and natural gas industries."
http://www.plastics.org.nz/documents/PNZ%20Plastic%20Bags%20Info.pdf
"A compulsory charge on plastic bags at supermarkets has been ruled out despite overseas evidence that a small fee can cut their use dramatically. Plastic bag use has reportedly dropped by as much as 90 per cent in Wales in the six months since a law change introduced a mandatory 5 pence charge on every bag, with the proceeds going to charity.
A spokesman for Environment Minister Amy Adams said today the Government did not consider it practical to introduce a charge at this time. 'Instead, we encourage waste minimisation through voluntary schemes and by educating and encouraging industry and the public to take responsibility for their own waste.'
Plastic bags can take hundreds of years to break down in landfills but are generally used for no more than 20 minutes, although most get re-used at home, according to research.
Wanaka Wastebusters project manager Sophie Ward, who worked on a 2009 campaign to get supermarkets to charge for plastic bags, said there was definitely a case for compulsory surcharges. 'It's amazing to see what a small financial incentive actually does,' she said.
Foodstuffs introduced a 5-cent charge on plastic bags at its New World and Four Square stores over four weeks in 2009, resulting in 12 million fewer bags being used - a 60 per cent drop. But after a public backlash against the move, the company quickly dropped the charge.
A Foodstuffs spokeswoman said the company was committed to reducing plastic bag use across its stores nationwide. The company's Pak'nSave stores no longer offered free plastic bags and charged 5c per bag. Foodstuffs had also been involved in a number of industry-led initiatives designed to reduce the impact of bags on the environment.
The Warehouse, which charges 10c per plastic bag, has seen the number of plastic bags people use drop from more than 27 million to almost 7 million - a 75 per cent reduction."
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10798151
"Though efficient to produce, it is crucial that plastic bags be reused and recycled and kept out of natural environments as they do not biodegrade quickly and can cause problems for wildlife when improperly disposed of."
http://www.earth911.com/recycling-guide/how-to-recycle-plastic-bags/
"Why are Plastic Bags a problem? Because they are a waste problem that harms the environment.
Every year 4 million New Zealanders use 1 billion plastic shopping bags.
A person's use of a plastic check-out bag can be counted in minutes - however long it takes to get from the shops to their homes. Plastic bags however, can take between 15 and 1000 years to break down in the environment.
In the marine environment plastic bag litter is lethal, killing at least 100,000 birds, whales, seals and turtles every year. After an animal is killed by plastic bags its body decomposes and the plastic is released back into the environment where it can kill again.
On land, plastic bag litter can block drains and trap birds. They also kill livestock.
The amount of petroleum used to make one plastic bag would drive a car about 115 metres. The 6.9 billion plastic check-out bags we use every year is enough to drive a car 800 million kilometres or nearly 20,000 times around the world.
At least 16 million plastic bags end up as litter on our beaches, streets and parks. New Zealand local and State Governments spend millions a year picking up litter.
Not all litter is deliberate. 47% of wind borne litter escaping from landfills is plastic - much of this is plastic bags.
Over 40,000 plastic check-out bags are dumped in landfills every hour in New Zealand."
http://plasticshoppingbagfree.org.nz/facts-and-figures
"Reuseable bags are bags that are durable and long lasting. They come in all different shapes, sizes, colours, and styles. Reuseable cloth bags are a popular alternative to plastic bags. They are made from a variety of materials, such as calico, cotton, recycled PET, hemp and jute."
http://www.wastenet.org.nz/HomeAndGarden/Shopping/PlasticBags/Alternatives.aspx
Why are plastic bags so popular? These bags provide an easy, cheap, convenient, lightweight yet strong way to carry food and other products. However they are also bad for our environment as they are one of the most damaging form of litter.
Plastic bags end up as litter in our parks, streets and beaches. It is estimated that plastic bags account for 0.25 percent of the rubbish entering New Zealands landfills - but these bags take 1,000 years to breakdown.
The World Wild Life Fund for Nature estimates that more than 100,000 marine life and other animals (whales, seals, turtles, birds) die every year as a result of plastic bags. Plastic bags are often mistaken for food by animals. These bags can also block drains and trap birds.
Avoiding plastic bags is as simple as taking your own bag. Reusable bags, paper bags, biodegradable and compostable plastic bags are readily available as environmentally friendly alternatives to plastic bags."
http://www.wastenet.org.nz/HomeAndGarden/Shopping/PlasticBags.aspx
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