Plastic Bags:
- “The average American family takes home almost 1,500 plastic shopping bags a year” (NRDC)
- According to the WorldWatch Institute Around 4-5 trillion plastic bags was created in 2002.
- According to a report in 2004, roughly 80 percent of those bags were used in North America and Western Europe. Every year, Americans reportedly throw away 100 billion plastic grocery bags. (WorldWatch Institute)
- Approximately only 1-3% of plastic bags are recycled every year.
- Millions of dollar per state are spent to properly recycle or dispose plastic bags. (ecowatch)
- We only recycle 50% of the plastics we use. (ecowatch)
- Millions of barrels of oil are used to produce plastic each year in the United States alone. (EPA)
- The average family accumulates 60 plastic bags in only four trips to the grocery store.
- Plastic bags currently dominate commercial package markets. (National Geographic)
- Majority of the plastic bags from petroleum are not bio-degradable and take around 700-1000 years to just break down. (World Counts)
Paper Bags:
- Paper bags are able to decompose in a landfill
- Papers bags take more energy to produce than it take to produce plastic bags.
- Americans use around 10 billion plastic bags each year, which is equal to cutting 14 million tree each year. (Earth911)
- It cost more to produce paper bags than it take to produce plastic bags.
- The recovery rate for paper bags and sacks is around 50% (EPA)
Tote Bags/Recyclable Bags:
- A reusable bag can save over 22,000 bags (ReuseThisBag.com)
- The total distribution of Tote bags has been steadily increasing
- By using a tote bag, it is possible to save spaces that would have been occupied by thin plastic bags instead.
Sources:
Earth911: http://www.earth911.com/home-garden/360-reusable-bags/
EcoWatch: http://ecowatch.com/2014/04/07/22-facts-plastic-pollution-10-things-can-do-about-it/
EPA: http://www.epa.gov/learn-issues/water-resources#our-waters (links refer to a different address, unsure why)
NRDC: http://www.nrdc.org/media/2008/080109.asp
ReuseThisBag: http://www.reusethisbag.com/25-reasons-to-go-reusable.php
World Counts: http://www.theworldcounts.com/stories/interesting-facts-about-plastic-bags
World Watch: http://www.worldwatch.org/node/5565