Recycling Plastic Bags

Moving toward Type One civilization...

Moderator: Super Moderators

cherry
Pirate
Posts: 5704
Joined: 05-28-2004 05:15 PM

Recycling Plastic Bags

Post by cherry » 06-06-2011 08:15 AM



Why Are Plastic Bags So Bad
For Your Recycling Bin?



Keep plastic bags out of your home recycling - plastic bags can cause big problems when placed in your kerbside recycling bin.


The first level of sorting at recycling stations is done by hand.

Workers at the recycling station are sorting through tonnes of material an hour and don't have time to open bags to find out what’s inside. Your plastic bags could be filled with recyclable material like glass or plastic bottles or aluminium cans. Or they could be full of contaminants like food scraps, plastic wrap or unwanted wine glasses. Even worse, they could be full of dirty or dangerous material like dirty nappies or medical equipment.

Since it's too dangerous and time consuming to open and sort the bags, they have to be removed from the recycling stream and thrown into the rubbish. That means valuable resources will not be reclaimed. Instead they will be wasted in landfill.

The next issue with plastic bags is that they interfere with the automatic sorting machines.

Conveyor belts feed the recycling into rotating tunnels, onto spinning wheels and past magnets and eddy currents to separate the plastic, glass, paper, aluminium and steel cans. Plastic bags cannot be sorted from other materials by existing machinery. Instead, they get caught in the conveyor belts and jam spinning wheels and can bring the entire sorting station to a halt. The bags then need to be found and removed by hand - a time consuming and often dangerous process that reduces the overall efficiency of the recycling station or materials recovery facility (MRF).

When you're next putting out your recycling, remember the problems that plastic bags can create and make sure you keep them out of the recycling system. Better still, if you see a family member, friend or neighbour putting plastic bags in their kerbside recycling bin or crate, tell them why they shouldn’t!

Plastic bags can be recycled, just not in your home recycling bin. Instead, you can drop them off at specially-marked recycling bins at the front of most supermarkets. For information on what can and can't be recycled in your area visit the RecyclingNearYou.com.au Website

http://recyclingweek.planetark.org/recy ... icbags.cfm

User avatar
Sinner
Pirate
Posts: 1193
Joined: 11-06-2003 02:28 AM

Post by Sinner » 06-06-2011 02:03 PM

Although I admire your enthusiasm , if I told my neighbor to not put his recyclables in plastic bags, he would first look at me like I lost my mind and secondly tell me to mind my own business and not worry so much about his garbage, or anything of his for that matter.
-Sinner

User avatar
Fan
Lady with a
Posts: 5307
Joined: 05-09-2011 02:18 PM
Contact:

Post by Fan » 06-06-2011 02:11 PM

I understand we are not supposed to recycle our bags, but the question then becomes why can supermarkets handle it but our main recycling facilities cannot? If you want people to recycle, make it EASY.

In my town they have banned plastic bags entirely (but you can buy them at checkout for 5c a bag, and the new ones are way bigger and thicker than the old free ones). Don't get me started on the hypocrisy of that. As if that tiny amount of plastic is going to make a difference when all food bought there has 10x the amount of plastic as packaging, the bags they want you to use (those "reusable" huge woven plastic with plastic coating) have like 1000x the plastic in them, and most people will use them maybe 10-50 times then throw them out, etc.

Token environmentalism is almost worse than none. It makes people think they are "saving the earth" and forget about the real things we should all do.

User avatar
BenSlain
Pirate
Posts: 3419
Joined: 09-14-2000 02:00 AM

Post by BenSlain » 06-06-2011 11:09 PM

I confess I use my bags to pick up the poop while walking the dog.:messedup:
Put in a prison cell, but one time he could-a been The champion of the world.

User avatar
BenSlain
Pirate
Posts: 3419
Joined: 09-14-2000 02:00 AM

Post by BenSlain » 06-06-2011 11:10 PM

Uh.......That would be the poop from my dog. Not picking up random poop.

Just in case you read it that way.
Put in a prison cell, but one time he could-a been The champion of the world.

User avatar
Fan
Lady with a
Posts: 5307
Joined: 05-09-2011 02:18 PM
Contact:

Post by Fan » 06-07-2011 08:43 AM

lol well at least that is re-using... and that is the second R so you are actually doing better than recycling it.

User avatar
Sinner
Pirate
Posts: 1193
Joined: 11-06-2003 02:28 AM

Post by Sinner » 06-07-2011 08:47 AM

I am so happy I don't own a dog, there is no way I am carrying around a bag of dog crap. hehe.
-Sinner

cherry
Pirate
Posts: 5704
Joined: 05-28-2004 05:15 PM

The Monkey Wrench Gang -- Edward Abbey

Post by cherry » 06-08-2011 11:36 AM

They put signs in the park about a month ago reminding everyone about their dog ...... I picked up all the signs and put them in the TARGET dumpster. :D :D :D

User avatar
Dale O Sea
Rogue Wingnut Pirate
Posts: 17339
Joined: 04-19-2003 10:10 PM
Contact:

Post by Dale O Sea » 06-08-2011 11:52 AM

Agree that the heavy plastic reusable grocery bags make no sense in solving the problem they claim to be designed to fix. They still end up in the landfill eventually. Use a repurposed canvas bag if you feel the need to be green with your grocery toting.

What's wrong with paper? I thought it was acceptable to use as it is a green, renewable resource that helps the agro-economy and not petro-chemical plastic industry.

I disapprove of the adjective use of the term "dead tree" too..:realmad:

User avatar
feetsie
Pirate
Posts: 407
Joined: 01-02-2004 06:22 PM

Post by feetsie » 06-08-2011 04:24 PM

Am I just showing how old I am if I say that I remember paper bags and people who packed them for you? and that it was a fine art to fit things in there properly so nothing got smushed and the bag didn't topple over.
What was that in the other thread about customer service?


Back on track, I'm a plastic bag person. With one dog and four cats those bags get repurposed pretty quickly around here.
God is

User avatar
Patty
Pirate
Posts: 2057
Joined: 05-09-2000 02:00 AM

Post by Patty » 06-08-2011 07:08 PM

feetsie wrote: Am I just showing how old I am if I say that I remember paper bags and people who packed them for you? and that it was a fine art to fit things in there properly so nothing got smushed and the bag didn't topple over.
What was that in the other thread about customer service?

:D I'm right there with you then! And I think they were trained how to pack those bags. I lived in Trenton when in HS and I remember it was proper to tip the bagger who bagged and brought the bags to your car. Ah....the good old days, huh? ;)

User avatar
Patty
Pirate
Posts: 2057
Joined: 05-09-2000 02:00 AM

Post by Patty » 06-08-2011 07:30 PM

Ask for paper bags, if you have a choice, as we do. We need to help revive our economy after so much of our wood and paper industry has been destroyed by extremists who don't know a thing about sustained management of our forests. Trees are a sustainable resource and the products produced are much more environmentally friendly than plastic. Want to help protect the Amazon? International demand for forestry products plays a large role in the process of deforestation. We could stop importing so much of our paper products if the courts and environmentalists would stop interfering with our wood products industry. :(

User avatar
BenSlain
Pirate
Posts: 3419
Joined: 09-14-2000 02:00 AM

Post by BenSlain » 06-08-2011 09:44 PM

AMEN SISTER!:wave: :headbang:
Put in a prison cell, but one time he could-a been The champion of the world.

cherry
Pirate
Posts: 5704
Joined: 05-28-2004 05:15 PM

Post by cherry » 06-10-2011 07:38 AM

Keep a couple of extra repurposed bags in the car just in case you need them. I put the cloth bags inside the classic Sun Harvest off white bleached bag. After bringing the groceries home, I put the bag on the front door handle so that I'll remember to take them out to the car the next time I leave the house. It works just fine!

User avatar
Dude111
An Awesome Dude
Posts: 2999
Joined: 02-16-2011 09:28 PM

Post by Dude111 » 07-26-2011 10:50 PM

BenSlain wrote: I confess I use my bags to pick up the poop while walking the dog.:messedup:
A good use for them indeed :)

Post Reply

Return to “Awakening of global consciousness”