Ironically, our recycle co. wants us to put newspapers into paper grocery bags inside our bins. Since I have reusable grocery bags, I don't get the paper anymore. So far the recycle hasn't refused loose paper piles, but it illustrates the conflicting practices.

Follow Up: The 15 cent tax on plastic shopping bags was voted down. Kind of predictable I think. But time to take another look locally at how to approach this thorny problem.

Whether or not local groceries should charge for plastic grocery bags is going to be an item on the ballot in the next local election where I live. it will be an odd situation because if passed, it will only apply to the largest stores. Many people reuse these grocery bags for lining small garbage cans in their homes. So, I wonder if the net result will be much different. Will we cut down on plastic bag usage overall, or will the stores just sell more small can liners?

When Ireland levied a .15 cent cost to the plastic bags used in grocery stores, usage decreased by 95 PERCENT. That's all it would take here. Start charging for these bags. We will see how quickly people switch to reusables....

AMEN!

Let's face it, until the government steps in to penalize manufacturers and/or consumers for plastic use, this ugly trend will continue. Like gasoline use, nothing is gonna change in any significant amount until the wallet is affected.

For Bulk Items, if you live in the Northwest, try Winco. They are great bulk items store. And some items at Costco are good for saving waste. Bring your own bags to use for veggies at the store. I will buy some reusable food ware. And I didnt know GUM was bad for you! Good lessons to learn,

Many of the ways that the author of this article points out might work, if you're willing to try them. However, much of the plastic produced today can be recycled, including those plastic bags that produce come in, bread wrappers, and the plastic bowls that frozen dinners are prepared in. Ramp up your plastic recycling, and you'll be surprised at how much you use (I was!!), but you'll also be doing good for the environment, and cutting down on the amount of waste going to the dump. If your town doesn't

Great ideas but some are not going to work in ordinary stores (which most of us HAVE to shop at...this may come as a shock but not everyone lives near a Whole Foods or Trader Joe's) No way are grocery stores going to reuse containers a customer brings into the store. I tried bringing a reusable bag for my produce and the lady at the counter dumped the contents into a plastic bag to weigh the produce for me, then dumped the bag and my bag into the grocery bag. Also, I'd be careful about recycling