Reasons We Should All Immediately Stop Using Plastic Bags

1. They kill marine life!

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There are thousands of reasons we should not be using plastic bags, and one singular reason alone that should make us quit using plastic bags for good is that they kill marine life! Hundreds of thousands end up in the sea and kill sea life by getting tangled or by fish swallowing them.

2. They never actually completely break down

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Plastic bags create microplastics when they break down. These microplastics don't ever disappear. So if we are constantly generating single-use plastics we can't ever get rid of them because they'll create more and more microplastics that we cannot get rid of.

3. They contribute to pollution!

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In a world where we are facing the biggest crisis to humanity, climate change, instead of trying to tackle pollution we continue to create more and more. Plastic bags contribute to pollution so one thing we can all EASILY do is to stop using plastic bags!

4. They take hundreds of years to decompose

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You grab a plastic bag from the grocery store and you get home and it either ends up in your cupboard to use once more or it ends up in the garbage because it's broken already. They then take HUNDREDS of years to decompose. That bag you used one time has outlived you for numerous lifetimes.

5. It's using non-renewable energy

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To create plastic bags it takes up a LOT of energy and worst of all, that energy isn't renewable. So we are wasting energy sources with a limit on creating a plastic bag that if it isn't single use, it will be used a maximum of a few times. Now that doesn't seem like a good way to use resources, does it?

6. It contributes to your carbon footprint

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We all have a responsibility and a personal carbon footprint. Your carbon footprint is the amount of greenhouse gases that are emitted by your activities. So it's essentially the negative impact you have on the earth. A very simple way to help is not to use plastic bags.

7. They take up a lot of energy

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Plastic bags aren't actually that useful if you compare them to other bags made from other, more sustainable materials. But the energy required to make one is huge - it is equal to driving one kilometer! Imagine the billions of plastic bags produced all of the time around the world, the impact is massive!

8. The life use of a plastic bag is around 12 minutes

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It is shocking to think that all of this energy and all of these resources go into something that lasts one single time. The average life of a plastic bag is 12 minutes! Using plastic bags and single-use plastic products is one of the most wasteful things we can do!

9. It could disrupt your hormones!

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Here's a reason we should all stop using plastic bags that is not very well known at all. Plastic bags and many other kinds of plastic products contain harmful chemicals. One of these chemicals is thought to be a chemical that mimics estrogen, and so exposure to plastic may disrupt hormones!

10. There are SO many other options

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Why would we use plastic bags when there are SO many other options that we could use, and that are actually better and don't threaten to break on us as soon as we put something remotely heavy or spiky inside it? Plus, we can use them over and over again.

11. They go to a landfill

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Landfill isn't a solution, it's something that we are struggling with globally because landfill sites fill up rapidly and when we create landfill, it is harmful to the earth and the local area. We can't put landfill everywhere so we have to reduce our waste before the earth turns into one huge landfall site!

12. We use around 885 plastic bags a year!

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It's shocking to realize that as an individual we use around 885 plastic bags each and every year. In the USA if a household used a reusable bag instead we could get rid of 102 billion plastic bags. It's an easy trade for us and a crucial switch for the earth!

13. They're designed to be single-use

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What's shocking to realize is that plastic bags aren't designed to last. They are designed to be single-use so they are created with thin plastic that will break and will not last. This is so that we keep on buying more, because the companies who create them, earn money from us using them!

14. They clog sewers and drains

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Plastic bags don't just cause damage that we can see, they cause unthinkable damage to drains and sewers too by clogging them up when they have been discarded. When sewers or drains become clogged with plastic bags they overfill and they have created numerous floods!

15. They create litter in our streets

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How many plastic bags or pieces of plastic bags do you see when you walk down the street or walk around town? Probably numerous. If you go to a place with litter it automatically gives you a certain distaste and a bad image of the place. There's one option...we don't use them.

16. It contributes to important change and creates awareness

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As soon as we see people using reusable bags and moving away from single-use plastic bags, it creates awareness for other people who realize that they could be doing the same. Not only are you contributing to change personally, but you'll inspire other people to do the same.

17. The environment is ALL of our responsibilities

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We can blame other people and we can wait for change from governments and huge companies, but we can also be doing things ourselves. It is also our responsibility as people of the planet, to look after it. One of the simplest ways we can do this is to ditch the single-use plastics i.e. plastic bags!

18. You will be helping to protect your future

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We all have to live on the earth, and it's our future we have to protect as well as future generations before we do too much irreparable damage. If we want to protect our own futures, we have to look after the earth now and make changes to the way we live.

19. Governments are getting stricter

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Governments around the world and policymakers and lawmakers are all getting stricter on matters involving climate change. And so, we may as well be ready to accept these changes and to get on board with the changes that we will have to make, sooner rather than later.

20. We can support local economies by buying reusable bags

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Huge companies make money from creating plastic bags and harming the planet. There are lots of smaller companies, local businesses, and individuals who are making reusable bags as a better option to carry our goods. Would we rather support these or the corporate giants who are profiting from damaging the earth?

21. We can put pressure on policymakers

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We see pledges and promises made all of the time about how companies and governments are going to implement important changes to help save the planet. But really, we are not acting fast enough. We can make changes ourselves such as ditching plastic bags, to help put pressure on policy makers.

22. We need to conserve our biodiversity!

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Plastic bags are also wiping out biodiversity for several reasons because they contribute to climate change. We need to keep our biodiversity to help nature, animals, and ourselves, and the future. Who knew doing such a simple act could help so much?

23. It affects developing countries more who suffer from pollution

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Pollution doesn't affect everybody equally. In developing countries, they are much more affected by pollution. To help protect people globally we can switch from using plastic bags to reusable bags. It's not a solution, but it certainly helps a LOT if we all get on board.

24. They are very difficult to recycle

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Plastic bags cannot be recycled in most places, they are very difficult to recycle. So the majority of plastic bags end up going straight to the waste that goes to landfill. And so, it is not even as though we can make something useful from the recyclables because they are so difficult to recycle.

25. Live more guilt-free

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It can be difficult to know what to do to help the planet and to live more guilt-free. Yet, not using plastic bags is one way that we can all live more guilt-free because we know we are at least taking one step to help create less waste and reduce our impact.

26. Save your own pennies

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They may not cost a lot, but do you really want to be throwing away your hard-earned pennies? It all adds up and if you save your pennies you could buy something much better and much more rewarding down the line rather than paying to use something for 12 minutes before throwing it in the trash.

27. They can harm our health

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Plastic bags and many plastic products aren't good for our health. We don't want to be surrounded by plastic bags which contain harsh chemicals and we definitely do not want to be in a world full of plastic where we cannot escape the dangers of plastics.

28. It can reduce our oil dependency

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Plastic bags use oil in their creation. Oil is a very controversial topic as people over the globe are petitioning to ban oil altogether due to the harm that it is causing the planet. A very simple and easy way to lessen oil use is to switch from single-use plastic bags to a sustainable bags.

29. Plastic is now in our BODIES

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Plastic is now INSIDE us. It's a horrifying thought that right now there are microplastics inside our body. We consume plastic in the fish we eat as the fish have consumed plastics from all of the waste we have thrown into the ocean. Plastic inside our bodies is not good, and the more plastic we create the worse it will get.

30. If there's no demand there's no supply

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Sometimes it's easier to have the mentality that we can't change things as individuals. But everything has to start with an individual. If you, me, and other people begin to think the same then eventually the supply of plastic bags would diminish as the demand starts to plummet.