EaRtH WaRrIoR

What's the simplest thing you can you do to save a sea turtle, stop the need for oil wars, preserve a river, protect our children's future? Bring a reusable bag to the store!

Plastic is a major toxic pollutants on earth. It contains non-biodegradable substance, composed of toxic chemicals, and most of all it pollutes our earth, air and water.

• Plastic bags are made of polyethylene
• Polyethylene is a petroleum product
• Production contributes to air pollution and energy consumption
• Four to five trillion plastic bags are manufactured each year
• Americans use over 380 billion polyethylene bags per year
• Americans throw away approximately 100 billion polyethylene bags per year
• Of those 100 trillion plastic bags, 1% are recycled
• It takes 1000 years for polyethylene bags to break down
• As polyethylene breaks down, toxic substances leach into the soil and water source, and enter the food chain
• Approximately 1 billion seabirds and mammals die per year by ingesting plastic bags
• Plastic bags are often mistaken as food by marine mammals. 100,000 marine mammals die yearly by eating plastic bags.
• Plastic bag choke landfills

One of the many ways which you can help the environment is by decline a plastic bag whenever you are offered one. Put the item straight into your own bag or let it share with something you bought earlier.

Countries all over the world are slowly becoming aware of the threat plastic bags present to our world. Many have enacted laws aimed to decrease the use of plastic bags, while others have, or are, planning to impose taxes on the use of plastic bags. Some businesses have stopped offering their customers plastic bags, and many communities are either considering a ban on plastic bags or have already implemented one.

Lately “No Plastic Bag” campaign has been an issue in Malaysia to create awareness among the public. In fact minority of people are practicing the habit of bringing their own recycle bag to hypermarkets or even shopping malls. Some will bring lots of recycle shopping bags and toss them into their car. While some prefer to bring a few into their shopping bag in case they wanted to make any purchases. For those customers who insisted on plastic bag, they will have to pay RM0.10 per bag, while some places are charging RM0.20 per bag and RM1.99 for reusable bag. If such a tax was introduced people would soon get used to using their own bags or swallow the small charge if they forget.

The momentum towards reducing the numbers of carrier bags has increased enormously; I have found that I am no longer regarded as weird for not wanting a carrier bag in most shops now. A great victory. All we need now is for all shop assistants to ask if you need the bag, rather than you having to say that you don't want the bag.

The only way out of the deadly and lasting danger of plastic is to cut down the use of plastic. In the meantime, every time we decline a plastic bag we are making our own little contribution to reducing material waste. Little planning’s will make big changes to save our earth or else we are really in big trouble in the near future.