Inside America's plastic bag recycling problem | Nightline

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  • Опубликовано: 24 ноя 2024

Комментарии • 315

  • @hgo883
    @hgo883 Год назад +124

    It seems as if the rep for the American Chemistry Council was expecting some softball questions. He had his points ready but wasn't prepared for pushback. The journalist was patient but not backing down. Excellent journalist.

    • @NazriBuang-w9v
      @NazriBuang-w9v 4 месяца назад

      Lies again? Prime Cups Reduce Reuse Recycle

  • @LouisWing
    @LouisWing Год назад +80

    As someone who tries to recycle just about everything, this breaks my heart 😢 I actually make an even bigger effort to collect all of the plastic bags we use in our house and walk them to Publix to deposit them in the plastic bags recyclable drop off bins..where I have always assumed they would be turned into new products and keep them from landfills. This is a sham played on us by the people we buy products from, who all need to take responsibility for the trash they created.

    • @BrickandIvyMedia
      @BrickandIvyMedia Год назад +4

      Me too 😢

    • @tactik5903
      @tactik5903 Год назад

      I wonder how many other lies have been told under the guise of ‘humanitarianism’. Very easy to manipulate peoples good intentions.. if you’re a psychopath.

    • @HarrisCrey-ig2qt
      @HarrisCrey-ig2qt Год назад +1

      I think the only thing that gets probably recycled is metal.

    • @dbuc4671
      @dbuc4671 Год назад

      exactly. i am super environmentally conscious like u r are are recycle/compost literally everything. not american, but i hope the recycling programs in my country do what they say they do, and not fckn decieve and lie to the public. its not just a broken promise, its quite literally a crime against humanity and the planet as a whole.

    • @heidichalfant5643
      @heidichalfant5643 Год назад +1

      That is why I now use reusable bags when I shop.

  • @Sparkysings2
    @Sparkysings2 Год назад +101

    It’s ridiculous how bad our recycling is in this country

    • @Hubbs04
      @Hubbs04 Год назад +4

      Sadly

    • @hydropeppers
      @hydropeppers Год назад +6

      Not just our country, every country. It’s all a joke.

    • @happydog8072
      @happydog8072 Год назад +13

      It’s just plastics that’s a joke, it’s worthless. Now, the cans and paper products have value and can almost always be recycled infinitely which is what usually happens

    • @dynamicduo222
      @dynamicduo222 Год назад

      *research operation mockingbird + sinclair soldiers* (spread the message to awaken the collective consciousness)

    • @Sparkysings2
      @Sparkysings2 Год назад +1

      @@dynamicduo222 what does it have to do with recycling programs?

  • @koneko_469
    @koneko_469 Год назад +80

    When I worked at Winn Dixie I had to take the trash out, we had recycling and regular trash cans. Both of them went into the same garbage dumpster behind the store.

    • @briannec2016
      @briannec2016 Год назад +3

      😔

    • @speclt
      @speclt Год назад +2

      I have worked at a place like that . In fact I work a a place like like now

    • @alexcisneros2980
      @alexcisneros2980 Год назад +3

      All because of Winn Dixie

    • @SmallPaul.
      @SmallPaul. Год назад +4

      Same at my work we have recycle bin and normal bin bothe go in the dumpster out the back recycling is an illusion

    • @beyondfossil
      @beyondfossil Год назад +1

      Sigh. The blue and black bins just made people feel better but just duped them in the end.

  • @briansmith2163
    @briansmith2163 Год назад +82

    I don't know. Maybe we should stop blaming consumers. We WANT to reduce plastic waste.

    • @houchi69
      @houchi69 Год назад

      Consumer is still part of the problem. Americans do not reuse. You are wasteful.

    • @gregcollins3404
      @gregcollins3404 Год назад +3

      Not the people I know. At my garbage area, we provide recycling options and the people just ignore it.

    • @HarrisCrey-ig2qt
      @HarrisCrey-ig2qt Год назад

      @Greg there are Recycling initiatives and investment over here but no one actually takes part in it.

    • @briansmith2163
      @briansmith2163 Год назад +5

      If the consumer sorts the plastic carefully into bins, guess what ? Only less that 9% gets recycled. It is a ruse by the petroleum companies. 91% of it is burned or put in landfills.

    • @kewa3682
      @kewa3682 Год назад

      I'd say consumers are exactly the problem. Simply supply and demand. It's impossible to reduced plastic waste if the consumers are demanding plastic. There will be reduction in plastic waste when there's less demand from the consumers.

  • @Gandalf22476
    @Gandalf22476 Год назад +60

    This is great reporting! Thank you for the investigation. I've been wondering about where my bags go when i take them to these bins.

  • @lhead7226
    @lhead7226 Год назад +24

    I can remember when the government thought that Paper bags were the problem back in the 70's and early 80's and they told us how much we needed plastic bags and that we didn't need to reuse glass pop bottles, we needed single use plastic ones...... and look where we are now. At least paper bags you could use them for other things, plastic bags can barely make it home before they rip.

  • @melindamcafee1728
    @melindamcafee1728 Год назад +20

    The $0.10 we pay for each bag we use at the grocery store, retail stores were suppose to deter us from using anything but recycle bags.
    Where does that money go? What is it used for?

    • @dxithlord5897
      @dxithlord5897 Год назад +11

      They owners keep it. Is just another source of income.

    • @beyondfossil
      @beyondfossil Год назад +7

      I wish that money would be forced to go to research and infrastructure for truly biodegradable plastics or alternatives.

  • @hydropeppers
    @hydropeppers Год назад +5

    This is the type of reporting we need in USA, not stoking the flames of a cultural war. Expose these liars for what they are.

  • @brucewayne-cn4vd
    @brucewayne-cn4vd Год назад +7

    I work at target and one of the issues with our recycling bins is that customers will throw more than just plastic in the bins and we do not have the staff or time to sort through all the trash. Unfortunately in our store it all gets thrown away.

  • @garygatto3410
    @garygatto3410 Год назад +26

    I was involved with replacing the flooring in one of the largest international airports in America three different times over my career. Each time they claimed they were recycling the old removed carpet there idea, recycling. It was shipping it to an incinerator and burning it. Can you imagine what pollutants burning carpeting would put into the air I can’t.

    • @ctgottapee
      @ctgottapee Год назад +5

      Many entities use carefully worded lawyer talk and add 'hints' that don't jive with that lawyer talk. I'd wager their official line was they were not landfilling the carpet and/or repurposing/reusing it. Unofficially they'd throw around the recycle word. Technically they were correct. They didn't landfill and reused it as fuel.

    • @alexcisneros2980
      @alexcisneros2980 Год назад

      Stinky feet pollutants

    • @Lori-lp6uc
      @Lori-lp6uc Год назад

      Disgusting

  • @unsolvedmystery1111
    @unsolvedmystery1111 Год назад +44

    I'm really glad ABC is looking into stories like this & shining light on the truth.
    The Seattle Aquarium has been working to reduce sources of plastic pollution in the environment-in 2020 we helped pass the Reusable Bag Bill to eliminate thin, single-use plastic bags in Washington state & the manufacturers of plastics are taking credit for Seattle's idea to make themselves look better so they can continue to make plastic bags & whatnot. Great research & reporting on this topic.
    Please do a story on Lithium fracking and its environmental impacts, child labor involved, and look who owns over 85% of Lithium plants, China. Water pollution is caused by the process and how much water is needed. This would be a head turning news story. You would be surprised to see who is lining their pockets in CA. Selling people on the idea of a cleaner environment by pushing electric vehicles even though it's straining the power grid and depleting water in areas already lacking in water. How is a Lithium car battery recycled???
    Check this out if you're curious.

    • @jbortega1178
      @jbortega1178 Год назад +3

      Facts... got a fam member that fracks lithium in Nevada... true story...

    • @unsolvedmystery1111
      @unsolvedmystery1111 Год назад +1

      @Jbortega I believe you. That isn't the only place here in the United States. They are normally in places lacking water. You should see how much water it takes to produce this Lithium and what it does to the water.

    • @herrwahnsinn4229
      @herrwahnsinn4229 Год назад

      Abc and shining light on the truth do not belong in the same planet.

  • @jessicathomas4306
    @jessicathomas4306 Год назад +13

    I have been reaching out to Walmart in every way possible with my idea on reducing plastic bag use and I have received no response. Walmart Pickup orders should NOT come in plastic bags and the items should be transferred from the baskets to reusable bags in the person’s car. This should at the very least be an option and if Walmart actually cared about the environment it would have been done already.

    • @AmyKaylasVegas
      @AmyKaylasVegas Год назад

      Yes!!! I do Target drive up and I hate that using your own bag isn't an option!

  • @SoberBangBangVeteran
    @SoberBangBangVeteran Год назад +8

    About time. I hope corporations have to pay.

  • @chadevans4922
    @chadevans4922 Год назад +5

    This is disappointing. All local Wal Marts have large cardboard boxes for plastic bag recycling. The signs say to put any type of bag in the box even non-Wal Mart ones. They are shredded and made in to new bags. So the signs said. When I last worked at a Wal Mart Supercenter, there were huge plastic bags that were wrapped in products like furniture. These bags were collected in the back and once a month, a "plastic bale" was made in a compression unit just as we did with all the cardboard waste. I never dealt with the plastic bags out front. A third party collected those. But I now question where that plastic bale went to and where the plastic bags I dropped in to the box at Wal Mart goes. I have had people tell me for years that plastic recycling is a con. I resisted because the alternative was that the plastic went to a landfill. Turns out, the plastic bags I dropped in that box at Wal Mart IS just going to a landfill. George Carlin was right. Humans suck.

  • @fyrwerx4485
    @fyrwerx4485 11 месяцев назад +2

    I take a few cardboard boxes to the store. I put a big one in the bottom of my cart to keep my items from touching the dirty cart. I don't bag anything at checkout. It all goes in the box. When, I get to the car, I transfer items into smaller boxes that I can easily carry into my home. Before I started this, we were trashing hundreds of bags per month.

  • @tarkov_6
    @tarkov_6 Год назад +13

    My old job used to collect recycling with seperate bins for cans and plastic, only for it all to get thrown into the trash. Its easy to make it look like you do the right thing but hard to actually do it.

  • @LouRegla
    @LouRegla Год назад +9

    Over 30 years, sorting one’s garbage has became cherished ritual. I’m sure many would do it instinctively at this point.

  • @Goolienpackingbags
    @Goolienpackingbags Год назад +23

    Recycling bags is difficult. Our factory has been making degradable and recyclable plastic bags for 23 years. We also hope that people will take action to reduce plastic waste

    • @briannec2016
      @briannec2016 Год назад +1

      I used a plastic bag from Meijer today for the first time in years and I'm feeling really guilty about it. I was a shipt shopper for 5 years and I pretty much refused to use plastic, all my customers got paper bags and I never used those horrible produce bags either.

    • @Goolienpackingbags
      @Goolienpackingbags Год назад +3

      @@briannec2016 Yes, using paper bags seems to be an environmentally friendly way. But it's more difficult to recycle, and making paper bags brings other pollution. And our factory produces 100% degradable and recyclable plastic bags

    • @offgrid-goo-roo
      @offgrid-goo-roo Год назад +1

      ​@@Goolienpackingbags
      Please show us a company that makes something out of your bags.

    • @Goolienpackingbags
      @Goolienpackingbags Год назад

      @@offgrid-goo-roo Our bags are mainly used in clothing, footwear, luggage, toys and other plastic packaging. Our main cooperative customers are Midea, Adidas, FILA, Asics, COSCO and other well-known customers.

    • @d-meth
      @d-meth Год назад +1

      ​@@Goolienpackingbags that doesn't answer his question.
      Are all those bags home compostable?

  • @AmyKaylasVegas
    @AmyKaylasVegas Год назад +3

    Love this reporter! Way to push back!!!!

  • @j-yazzie
    @j-yazzie Год назад +15

    I have a huge bag of grocery store bags that I've been trying to recycle. I'm glad I saw this video before I took them to Walmart.

    • @ThatsSheShe
      @ThatsSheShe Год назад

      They have groups that recycle those bags to make waterproof blankets for the homeless. There are videos on RUclips to show you how to make them. Which I thought was a good idea.

    • @d-meth
      @d-meth Год назад +1

      ​@@ThatsSheShe feel good projects that don't actually solve anything =/

  • @peacewillow
    @peacewillow Год назад +8

    which is why we need to ban the use of plastic bags and limit the use of plastic in other products.
    does clothing really need to be made from plastic?
    no, of course not.
    this fight starts with consumers caring enough to pay attention to what they're buying, and how much of it they're wasting.

  • @helenamensah7274
    @helenamensah7274 Год назад +1

    This reporter is not taking no for an answer! He wants solid facts and figures anything else he pushes back! I love it- lets hold them accountable. Many retailers want to "appear like they care for the enviornment" but its just PR points and not being actually followed through in most instances as it should.

  • @gaylemora1390
    @gaylemora1390 Год назад +4

    All they think of is MONEY. Everyone is full of it. The world has really changed and greed had a big part of it

  • @cameronholman6483
    @cameronholman6483 9 месяцев назад +1

    Maybe the sorting equipment detected the metal airtags inside, which lead them to an alternate route instead.

    • @jerryyu7270
      @jerryyu7270 7 месяцев назад

      Honestly this. These guys just showed how they compromised the ‘investigation’ before it even started. Most if not all automated sorters have a metal detector as the initial stage

  • @twopianomanGAB_D
    @twopianomanGAB_D 6 месяцев назад +1

    What about that nasty plastic foam? What is the future for recycling it.

  • @PaulyFlores-w4k
    @PaulyFlores-w4k Год назад +1

    Oh my thank you thank you ❤❤

  • @HariOm-dp7um
    @HariOm-dp7um Год назад +4

    Time for the USA to ban single use plastic... Like so many other countries have already done

  • @mro4ts457
    @mro4ts457 Год назад +5

    The recycled system in our country has been a joke since its inception by the very companies producing the plastics

    • @pennycaldwell8141
      @pennycaldwell8141 Год назад

      Mr O4TS, Yes, Yes, Yes! And those ♻️ on plastic bottles and containers, indicators of recycling potential, is just that. The potential can't be tapped because there's little or none of it done because of the $$$ it costs to develop the technology... The general public has been duped, scammed, lied to.
      The ♻️ narrative by Big Business is a way to keep the greenbacks flowing back...

  • @mschlund1
    @mschlund1 Год назад +1

    Stop buying items sold in plastic, opt for other options, manfctr. Will eventually change their packaging

  • @mschlund1
    @mschlund1 Год назад +1

    Stores out west charge 10cents per brown paper, and the plastic ones are gone all together....

  • @lzeng78
    @lzeng78 Год назад +3

    So sad. Reduce, reuse, recycle. I think for me i still try to reduce and reuse as much i can before i recyce because i have very little confidence that anything i put into the recycle bin is being recycled now days.

  • @wemcal
    @wemcal Год назад +3

    Great video and extremely informative.. I have started reusing all my plastic bags to seal foods and items around the house. It’s better than just throwing them away or ending up as shown in your video. I’m my area recycling is really bad an you spend too much time sorting and placing in the recycling bins just to see the recycling items dumped with the regular waste.. I’m trying to do what I can in helping the bags issues.. everyone take care and have a great week

    • @Lori-lp6uc
      @Lori-lp6uc Год назад

      I made a nifty cat bed for a friend's kitty. I just sewed together two fluffy soft squares (2ft×2ft)Turned them right sides out. Stuffed it with clean plastic bags and sewed them shut. Her cat loves it. She even kneads it with her paws😄

  • @perladelao
    @perladelao Год назад +2

    Ways i use plastic bags- diaper disposal bags, garbage can liners, shower caps

  • @GabrielaMilda
    @GabrielaMilda Год назад +1

    RECYCLING business is a stable and profitable business since years now I have been going more deeper in investing in recycling digitalise business company that I am really doing very great in

  • @mschlund1
    @mschlund1 Год назад +1

    Simple, do your part, STOP using the plastic bags, use reusable bags only

  • @JaRule6
    @JaRule6 Год назад +5

    I could have saved you a lot of time and trouble. I asked many years ago what Target did with the plastic bags and a gentleman told me they go in the garbage 🤷 and on another subject, batteries, I have been trying to find somebody who recycles those four decades. The only thing I can find is online vendors who say that they will send me a five gallon bucket and I send the batteries back to them in the five gallon bucket. How do I know they're not just throwing them in the garbage and taking my money

    • @periel
      @periel Год назад +1

      I believe Goodwill takes used batteries and other “e-waste”

    • @HarrisCrey-ig2qt
      @HarrisCrey-ig2qt Год назад +1

      Used batteries and metals are probably recycled. I have been into an online recycling initiative for two years. I earn instead of paying money to Recycle, that is how you know those truly Recycling.

  • @andycastleberry5153
    @andycastleberry5153 Год назад

    Appreciate ABC News doing this.

  • @theblahbutinihead1504
    @theblahbutinihead1504 Год назад +4

    It's a worldwide problem

  • @offgrid-goo-roo
    @offgrid-goo-roo Год назад +1

    Reporter, please show us a company who has mastered manufacturing a viable Product made of Non-Virgin Plastic. Please show us a Research University that has found a workable process to produce goods out of used plastic.

  • @brucemacmillan9581
    @brucemacmillan9581 Год назад +2

    A lot of greenwashing going on with plastic and supposed plastics recycling. We have a drop off for plastic bags and other types of plastic film at the London Drugs store down the street. They say it gets recycled, but who knows where it actually goes. I don't know if there's a verification system to back up their claims.
    I try and use as little throw away plastic as possible, and when I go grocery shopping, I bring my own reusable bags. Plus I reuse paper bags I have that are still in good condition when I'm grabbing fresh produce like mushrooms or green string beans. I also go to a store that has a lot of bulk items they keep in bins, like rice, dried beans, herbs, spices and such. I bring my own containers for most of that. I do the best I can, which is more than most, but it's hard to totally eliminate single use plastic.

  • @d-meth
    @d-meth Год назад +1

    I was told at my local key food that they just toss those bags in the trash

  • @davedave4232
    @davedave4232 Год назад +3

    Recycling is Not the answer... plastic needs to be replaced with something new

    • @IgorAlexeyM
      @IgorAlexeyM 25 дней назад

      Or... Something old: glass

  • @tylerjones7263
    @tylerjones7263 Год назад +2

    I would tell people who brought them into my store and tell them they are just going in the trash. They didn't want to believe me lol.

  • @indigowolf556
    @indigowolf556 Год назад +2

    This was an interesting bit of information. Living in Washington which is a pretty big recycling State there are Ben's in grocery stores and other retail stores to bring in your plastic bags and recycle them.
    Living in Washington state when you go to the grocery store there are no plastic bags. You have to bring your own. They heavy duty plastic bags that some retailers were using and grocery stores cost $0.08 and you could actually wash them I never tried doing that but that's what it said on the bag. I found other uses for those plastic bags.

  • @mikealvarez3651
    @mikealvarez3651 Год назад +1

    Some real journalism for once. I hope this promotes positive change

  • @LaurenPaulTV
    @LaurenPaulTV Год назад

    wow, this is depressing.. I have been recycling bags since 2011…. now what do I do?

  • @blahco4tt
    @blahco4tt 10 месяцев назад

    That's great that they did this investigative reporting. It made a difference!
    It also validates my leariness over using big box stores for recycling. I have my go-to sources that I trust, but people shouldn't have to research whether or not a place claiming to recycle is actually recycling; the companies (and government entities) should simply be doing it if they advertise it.

  • @TheNecessaryEvil
    @TheNecessaryEvil Год назад

    We have recycling receptacles at work and the janitors just throw everything in the dumpster 😂

  • @sharkscrapper
    @sharkscrapper 11 месяцев назад

    It's easy to show that something is broken. The hard work is fixing it. So what is ABC doing to help fix this?

  • @teleiosdawyz4044
    @teleiosdawyz4044 Год назад +5

    Part of this issue is habit of cashiers.
    I carry a backpack daily. Except for establishments I frequent often whom I've told multiple times that I don't need a bag the cashier will automatically grab a bag and place my items in it. I'll promptly remove the items ro my bag and leave the bag on the counter.
    Many cashiers are kinda happy I do this not only for sparing the trash, but for sparing the owner the cost of the bag as well.
    Get in the habit of reusable bags folks!

  • @triciax79
    @triciax79 Год назад +2

    Maybe I’m just stating the obvious but maybe we should just stop using those bags….

  • @Melissa0774
    @Melissa0774 Год назад +2

    Why don't they spin the plastic bags into rope? It's not hard to do. You can do it yourself at home with the bobbin on a sewing machine. Lots of people make plarn. How hard could it be to do it on an industrial scale? They could use it to make all kinds of products.

  • @HarrisCrey-ig2qt
    @HarrisCrey-ig2qt Год назад +2

    The world is moving into digitalizing recycling, it feels amazing to earn through investing in recycling businesses and initiative.

  • @jb888888888
    @jb888888888 11 месяцев назад

    One could argue that the recyclers found the trackers. Since they're (a) not plastic and (b) glued into the bag, that makes the bag non-recyclable. So they sent it to an incinerator/garbage dump. Also I've seen lots of those plastic bag recycling bins being used as regular garbage bins by people, like food and stuff. That contaminates the whole box worth of bags.

  • @erichhitchcock3368
    @erichhitchcock3368 Год назад

    At 8:20with them side by,side, I was laughing...I kept picturing the guy in blue grabbing the interviewer by the collar, "Listen you little twerp!...just believe what I say!, or else!.." --watch his left hand.

  • @patgibsonguitar5000
    @patgibsonguitar5000 Год назад +1

    it's clear the idea of production of plastics leans heavily on the ASSUMPTION that the consumption end is well regulated. It is not.
    But the proof of concept pretty much failed.
    So production ought to make itself part of ( not 3rd party) the recycle/consumer part to reclaim the stuff, recycle it themselves.

  • @agf1700
    @agf1700 Год назад +1

    Why can’t a system be put in place like in most European countries. There you PAY extra if you need plastic bags for your groceries. Most people bring their OWN Bags for groceries etc. It encourages responsibility by consumers to reduce the use of plastic bags. Such a common sense and easy solution to implement. Just takes a bit of backbone by each State’s legislators.

  • @mrtunapie6653
    @mrtunapie6653 7 месяцев назад

    Plastic bags have been banned in most stores where I live, which is too bad, because I used to save them for reuse.

  • @ShalomGardens
    @ShalomGardens Год назад

    What were the two issues that he brought up and you cut out?

  • @joycefuller4366
    @joycefuller4366 Год назад +2

    The truth is the consumer will use what's available for carrying goods so simply
    stop creating plastic bags and as I recall plastic bags were created to save the tree's .. The challenge is to create something to carry items without it being a burden on the environment or resources .. Someone could really make serious money for this remedy 🤓

  • @mitcwill
    @mitcwill Год назад +2

    This is why people need to burn their trash.

  • @barowt
    @barowt Год назад +1

    Even just recycling these to make cheap planting pots, that can then be recycled again and again into new planter pots .

  • @hydropeppers
    @hydropeppers Год назад

    Thanks for confirming everything we already knew.

  • @HealthyAndrew
    @HealthyAndrew Год назад

    Please change the loud ending at the end of all these videos!

  • @ahanna4396
    @ahanna4396 Год назад

    A lot of people don't know how to properly recycle. The recycling program should be eliminated.

  • @1201zj
    @1201zj Год назад +1

    My fam uses grocery bags etc to recycle items. We all know the truth. But every penny counts and trash bags cost money when grocery bags are free. Either way we all know its going to the same place. But again every penny counts.

  • @rishalsonkhongtani4036
    @rishalsonkhongtani4036 Год назад

    I am from Meghalaya and i want to construct like this but by my side i can't stand any sugestion sir. Pleased

  • @michaelwells1783
    @michaelwells1783 Год назад +9

    STOP MAKING THEM.

  • @jonny-b4954
    @jonny-b4954 Год назад

    It's quite obvious why it's not working. There's no money in it. The recycled plastic isn't really any cheaper than new plastic. By time you add in the recycling process, the pickup and collection, the sorting process, then reselling it to manufacturers of plastic goods... well, there's not really any profit left over to make it worthwhile. It's all a "feel good" kind of thing anyways. It always has been, since it's inception.

  • @debrapierce515
    @debrapierce515 Год назад

    Matt Gutman, please look into plastic to oil pyrolysis. I believe that this is the solution. I also believe that these ideas are being thwarted by the oil and gas industry. Just saying.

  • @mschlund1
    @mschlund1 Год назад

    I roadtripped along the gulf coast, i dont think i saw a single recycle bin... seriously

  • @selah71
    @selah71 Год назад

    When I was growing up no one used plastic bags. We used paper sacks from the grocery store.
    First time I ever saw plastic bags was while living in Spain from a store like the old small Walmart.
    Plastic trash bags are so unnecessary.

  • @victoriarose4506
    @victoriarose4506 Год назад +1

    The US is too focused on $$$$ at all times, if there's no profit to be had, they aren't interested. Stores should be refusing to use or offer single -use plastic bags and force people to bring or buy reusable bags. People will grumble and bitch, but they'll get over it and adapt. I saw this saying:
    When the last tree is cut, the last fish is caught, and the last river is polluted; when to breathe the air is sickening, you will realize, too late, that wealth is not in bank accounts and that you can’t eat money.
    Truer words were never spoken.

  • @danb6838
    @danb6838 Год назад

    Almost every grocery store in America offers re-usable bags as an option for their customers.
    But you have to buy the bag and remember to bring them for EVERY trip to the supermarket. Consequently, NO ONE uses them!!

  • @marylyn3081
    @marylyn3081 Год назад

    I really wish you defined what the heck plastic film was/is.
    I have no tell you I am utterly confused what happens to this plastic....

  • @creaturecore13
    @creaturecore13 Год назад +2

    There's no point in recycling plastic, 91% of all plastic isn't recycled even if you put it in a recycling bin. Most plastics are not recyclable. Cardboard and aluminum is much easier to recycle. The answer is to try and stop using plastic as much as possible. It's not too waste people's time and money by having them recycle plastics just to feel good.

  • @jimScienceNerd
    @jimScienceNerd 20 дней назад

    1. Reduce 2. Reuse 3. Recycle. I bring my cloth bag with me and put as much as I can in there. It's crazy to see shoppers with 1 item per bag. That's how we get to 100 Billion bags per year

  • @nicolenew1708
    @nicolenew1708 Год назад

    THANK YOU

  • @ayanayanchy383
    @ayanayanchy383 Год назад

    We the common people of Bangladesh know that America fought for democracy and helped ensure the voting rights of the common people. Our voting rights were taken away by the current dictatorial government in 2014 and 2018. We could not vote in 2014 and 2018.

  • @pandabear1341
    @pandabear1341 Год назад +1

    Big plastic has already been exposed as knowing full well that recycling plastic would never work. We can switch back to truly recyclable containers. Fabric bags, netted bags for produce can be carried into stores making plastic bags unnecessary. Our coop stopped providing plastic bags for the bins. Granola can go in a fabric or paper bag until at home it’s put into a big glass jar. It doesn’t take that long to condition oneself to always bring your own bags into any store.

  • @Arafingol
    @Arafingol Год назад

    I live in British Columbia, Canada, which has the best recycling infrastructure in the country. I work in recycling. The amount of single use plastic the facility I work in is terrifying, not because it won't get properly recycled, (it will), but because this crap shouldn't be made in the first place, and because money in politics prevents nearly half of plastic here from ever entering the recycling system. I see only "residential" single use plastic, which the government has mandated to be recycled. However, "commercial" single use plastic has no such boundaries. It usually goes to local landfills or incinerators, or to Southeast Asian landfills and incubators. Why? Because BIG OIL wants your money. It's that simple. Politicians at every level are tempted by, and often succumb to, bribes by big oil. It's called "lobbying". What's the best way, and ONLY WAY, to fix this world killing mess? Get the money out of politics NOW. We're running out of time.

  • @MattWolfe1019
    @MattWolfe1019 5 месяцев назад

    On New Year's Day of this year a city that I live about 20 minutes away from here in Maryland they made all plastic bags illegal in every single store in the city limits. That includes Walmart and big chain grocery stores such as Weis. The reason they made plastic bags illegal in the city limits is to help reduce plastic waste and that sord of thing. I think that was a smart idea on their end. Now as far as take out restaurants in the city limits go those restaurants might be allowed to use plastic bags but I'm not 100% sure on that. The grocery stores in the city limits give you the option to either use paper bags for small lose change or you can bring your own reusable bags or the groceries can be put back in the cart like Sam's Club after the items have been scanned and paid for. The city I'm talking about by the way is called Frederick, Maryland for those who are curious about what city I'm talking about.

  • @danb6838
    @danb6838 Год назад

    Here is something the American public needs to get through our thick skulls. Plastic recycling is extremely doable! We just have to also be content to spend $6-7 Dollars for a plastic bottle of water!
    The ONLY reason we aren't recycling most everything plastic is because you and I REFUSE to pay the price! This isn't even debatable.
    This has been a fact for 30 years!

  • @Arafingol
    @Arafingol Год назад

    To be fair, the US is probably way more green compared to the majority of the world when it comes to recycling plastic. I believe Denmark and The Netherlands are at the top. Many countries in the world have little or no recycling system. No government regulations. No recycling facilities. No market connections to companies that buy used plastic in order to make new plastic. I have heard from visitors from one southeast asian country that, "At night we just take our stuff down to the beach, and in the morning it's gone." Making new plastic from oil and gas is cheaper than making it from old plastic. In other words, corporate greed.I believe that IF a sound recycling system is available to everyone and every commercial enterprise, and IF plastic producers, (read "BIG OIL"), are forced to make new plastic EXCLUSIVELY from old plastic, and IF money is out of politics, ........ whew ........... then we may survive as a species.

  • @danielschannel701
    @danielschannel701 Год назад

    He was like, let me go back and change my story.

  • @danysanerd2383
    @danysanerd2383 Год назад

    Dang! 👏 A) great journalism
    B) Shame on these companies for pretending to recycle then clearly not doing so. Why did they do it? Just for an illusion of... what???
    C) I'm feeling pretty good about always using reusable bags, or utilizing them for bathroom garbage trash bags. At least I was aware ahead of time where they were heading.
    D) screw the 'big guys' who make all these kinds of decisions to pretend to recycle, and not the good kind of screw either.

  • @rodrigotrejo9232
    @rodrigotrejo9232 Год назад

    Damn what a reporter!!!

  • @johnsky1009
    @johnsky1009 Год назад

    I’m giving up to save plastic bag it’s going in to the trash to save me time 😂

  • @LillerThatIsMe
    @LillerThatIsMe Год назад

    I really want to know what the people with “plastic bag recycling programs” are actually doing with them. How are they being recycled?

  • @Emmanuel_Rivera1
    @Emmanuel_Rivera1 Год назад

    You father enough bags together, you can put them in a pillow case to use as a pillow. May have a little crunchy sound, but your head won't be on laying on a flat surface.

  • @shpickey
    @shpickey Год назад

    In 10 years when no plastic is burned they will advise us that we need more carbon for the trees.

  • @Anderson_Se7en
    @Anderson_Se7en Год назад

    We will never recycle our way out of our plastic problems.

  • @melindamcafee1728
    @melindamcafee1728 Год назад +1

    Ok, they need to pay a fine!

  • @davebloggs
    @davebloggs 11 месяцев назад

    The point to remember is that just because something can be recycled does not mean that it is. what makes something recyclable is there has to be a profitable market for the end product , sadly the problem is that there is still way more profit to be made using virgin plastics than recycled ones. and that is where the actual system fails.

  • @kareltracy
    @kareltracy 11 месяцев назад

    Are any companies working on methods to break down plastic bags into the basic hydrocarbons again? There is at one company doing this for polystyrene.

  • @sherrienale9974
    @sherrienale9974 Год назад

    Wow...a consumer does the right thing thinking they are helping our environment by recycling...We have a big recycling area here and I would love to see where they end up..Plastic/ cans/ glass/ paper...Who do I ask??

  • @TwoEggsOverEasy
    @TwoEggsOverEasy Год назад

    He says he wants to make it "Easy, simple and convenient for consumers..." What does that mean with your use of "sustainable"?

  • @heidichalfant5643
    @heidichalfant5643 Год назад

    A few companies turn plastic into fuel. This could be an idea for the short run as we switch to electric cars. One company even makes jet fuel out of plastic.

  • @anitawelch2711
    @anitawelch2711 Год назад

    Why go after the consumer and not the manufacturer?