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Tag Archives: Environmental

Plastic Bag Bans This Week: The Good, The Bad, and The Misleading

Green Issues, Plastic Bag Bans, ,

bagsatlandfillIn a follow up to the blog we wrote about 13-year-old Abby Goldberg, an Illinois plastic shopping bag recycling program was rejected last week. Lawmakers there declined to override Gov. Pat Quinn’s veto of the plan. Earlier this year, Abby successfully lobbied Quinn to veto the legislation that lawmakers had approved in the spring.

The proposal would have required manufacturers of plastic bags and films to recycle more material, but opponents decried the legislation because it wouldn’t let local communities come up with their own recycling programs or even ban the bags outright. The rejection is great news for Abby, who wanted plastic bags banned in her town (the ban has yet to be approved).

For every step forward in increasing reusable grocery bag use, though, there seems to be a step backward…

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Barrington Votes Out with Plastic Bags, In With Reusable Bags

Green Issues, Plastic Bag Bans,

bulletinbagthunderEarlier this month, Barrington became the first town in Rhode Island to ban plastic checkout bags.

The Town Council approved the two-year ban at all retail stores, farmers’ markets, flea markets and restaurants starting January 1, 2013. Under the ban, stores will still be able to use plastic produce, bakery and deli counter bags and retailers will be able to charge a five cent fee for recyclable paper bags. Of course, shoppers who bring their own reusable bags (custom or otherwise!) don’t have to pay anything.

“We applaud the town council’s decision to move forward with this initiative to protect the Bay and local waterways from plastic bag pollution,” said Channing Jones, Program Associate with Environment Rhode Island, a citizen-based advocacy group. “Nothing we use for five minutes should pollute the Bay for future generations.”

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Fighting for Reusable Shopping Bags: If a Teen Can Do It…

Green Issues, Plastic Bag Bans, , ,

fighting_for_reusable_shopping_bagsHave you heard of Activist Abby? If not, take note. Abby Goldberg is an amazing activist (and she’s just 13 years old). She learned about how plastic bags have caused damage to our environment. Instead of leaving school and never thinking about it again, she started a two-year-long school project (to be completed by 8th grade graduation) to make a video convincing her hometown to ban plastic shopping bags.

Seven months into her efforts to encourage reusable shopping bags in her town, she discovered that the oil and chemical industries were ahead of the game. They joined forces with lobbyists and politicians to draft a bill to make it illegal for towns across Illinois to create plastic bag bans.  The bill was thinly veiled as a green environmental bill with requirements for low-volume plastic bag recycling and positioned it as a model bill for all states. It passed in a late-night session without fanfare or press, which made her realize all of her work could be for nothing.

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Sustainability on Campus: University of Maine is Making a Difference

Green Issues, , ,

usgbc_logoThe Princeton Review’s Guide to 322 Green Colleges: 2012 Edition was recently released, in partnership with the U.S. Green Building Council. The guide profiles—yep, you guessed it—322 schools that demonstrate a notable commitment to sustainability. It lists vital stats on eco-friendliness and covers everything from solar panel use and green majors to fair-trade fashion and green options for getting around campus.

In 2011, Green Rating scores were tallied for 768 colleges and universities. Of those, only 18 schools attained top scores of 99. Bulletin Bag [.com], based in Maine, is proud to say that the University of Maine is among this elite group of 18.

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Graduating in a Recycled Plastic Bottle

Green Issues, ,

This year’s Rhode Island College graduates will receive their diplomas in recycled plastic bottles! Not literally, of course, but their traditional black caps and gowns are made from an eco-friendly material called GreenWeaver. The fabric is spun from molten plastic pellets, which are produced completely from recycled plastic bottles (about 23 per gown).

greenweaver

After the ceremony, the gowns will be recycled (again!) into carpet. We think this is an amazing way to keep reusing materials, and yet another reason why recycling is so important. Swapping your disposable bottles for reusable water bottles is best, but if you can’t bear to do that, at least make sure they’re properly recycled!

Reusable Grocery Bags a Must in Portlandia

Green Issues,

We were caught laughing out loud at this Portlandia skit about reusable grocery bags. In the following clip, a shopper is ridiculed for not bringing his reusable grocery bags to Zupan’s Market (a real local Portland, OR chain). It should be mentioned that at the real market, both paper and reusable grocery bags are available.


Even though Bulletin Bag [.com]‘s home base is near the “other” Portland (Maine, that is), we think the theme for this Portlandia skit is right on. A little over the top? Perhaps, but just think about what would happen if everyone reacted this way to a forgetful shopper with no reusable bag.

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Know What To Recycle This Holiday

Green Issues, ,

recycle1.jpg‘Tis the season to give, and we hope that when you’re done giving, you recycle as much as you can. But did you know that exactly what can go in your recycle container is not necessarily cut and dry?

We wrote a blog back in 2009–a guidebook, if you will, of how to recycle holiday waste. It talks about recycling wrapping paper, shipping materials, and more! We suggest reading it now, so it’s fresh in your mind when you stare down your wrapping paper mountains this month.

Did we miss something? Have a great tip to share? Tell us. If not, have a wonderful holiday and we’ll see you in 2012!

MA Says Yes To Reusable Grocery Bags

Green Issues,

About a year ago, we first told you about Massachusetts’ efforts to reduce plastic bag consumption.  According to the Boston Globe, a new report indicated that the state’s 2013 goal to reduce plastic bag consumption by 33% has already been reached.  What does this mean? Simply this: Massachusetts’s residents are taking home their groceries in reusable shopping bags.

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Hailey Students Try to Ban Plastic Bags

Green Issues, Plastic Bag Bans, ,

This week, the Wood River High School Environmental Club lost their bid to ban disposable plastic grocery bags in Hailey, Idaho.
hailey_bag_banThe club spent nine months working on the student-led ballot initiative, which also specified that paper bags had to be made of at least 40% post-consumer material and exempted plastic bags for packaging bulk items such as nuts and grains and for wrapping meat, fish, plants, baked goods and medicines.

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Reusable Grocery Bags Only Option in Ski Towns

Green Issues, Plastic Bag Bans, ,

bagsatlandfillThe Carbondale, Colorado, Board of Trustees voted 5-1 in favor of a plastic grocery bag ban, rather than adopting a usage fee. The ban takes effect in May 2012 and closely mirrors one passed by neighboring Aspen’s City Council.

For now, the new ordinance applies only to bags provided at grocery stores larger than 3,500 square feet. It prohibits the distribution of plastic shopping bags to customers and imposes a 20-cent fee for each paper bag shoppers opt to use. Currently, there is only one grocery store that exceeds 3,500 square feet in Carbondale.

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