Do you agree with the 5p bag charge in England?

I remember watching an American film where they used paper bags. Surely if the US could do this, we could do it too? 1p paper bags and 10p plastic bags.

Reply 21

annarchy.

13

I think it's great. I work in a shop and it's shocking how many people expect a bag for like one item. Way too many bags are used, and the 5p going to charity is great :smile:

Posted from TSR Mobile

Reply 22

Lady Comstock

14

5p per bag is nothing. If it was £1 people would listen and actually change their behaviour.

OP

Original post by Mehrdad jafari

I thought they found a solution of disposing of plastics by making combustible bags. I don't know why they are charging plastic bags for?

hehe that is actually a good idea, they could burn them and get the energy from them for fuel

well plastic bags are really bad for the environment, basically they don't break down in the environment for thousdands of years as they don't rot. this means they pollute the environment easily due to the sheer quantity of bags we use. they srangle marine life and if injested can poison animals. the charge is meant to reduce the amount of plastic bags being used and encourage people to use bags for life (reuse). this saves crude oil (non renewable) as well which we need for other things.

OP

Original post by Lady Comstock

5p per bag is nothing. If it was £1 people would listen and actually change their behaviour.

this is what is said to another poster who said a similar thing, just my opinion:

Original post by CoolCavy

i don't really think it is the price so much that is intended to stop people using them. Nowadays everyone is in such a hurry that if someone asks 'do you want a bag' most people just say yes out of ease, if the person says 'have you got 5p for a bag please?' i think imo people would be more inclined to say no as it would require more effort to find 5p than say no. i am quite shy and a bit awkward so it would put me off (i don't use them anyway but hypothetically) as standing there rooting in my purse for 5p would be embarrasing for me :colondollar:

i can see where you are coming from tho and maybe a larger sum like 50 p would make more sense :smile:

Reply 25

Absent Agent

21

Original post by CoolCavy

hehe that is actually a good idea, they could burn them and get the energy from them for fuel

well plastic bags are really bad for the environment, basically they don't break down in the environment for thousdands of years as they don't rot. this means they pollute the environment easily due to the sheer quantity of bags we use. they srangle marine life and if injested can poison animals. the charge is meant to reduce the amount of plastic bags being used and encourage people to use bags for life (reuse). this saves crude oil (non renewable) as well which we need for other things.

Oh, soory! I meant to say compostable bags :colondollar:

. Almost all the plastic bags are now compostable, meaning that they degrade naturally in the environment over a very short period of time to form carbon dioxide and water.

(edited 8 years ago)

OP

Original post by Mehrdad jafari

Oh, soory! I meant to say compostable bags :colondollar:

. Almost all the plastic bags are compostable, meaning that they degrade naturally in the environment over a very short period of time.

oh no worries :h:

true and it is good to burn them for energy. I suppose this helps to put people off them even more and any steps are good :smile:

also i suspect that some people don;t always recycle their bags (i.e send them to be burned) so are still polluting places. Also then there is the issue of polluting gases released from burning what is essentially oil

sorry my fault, didn;t reald it properly :colondollar:

Reply 27

steepling

Original post by Lady Comstock

5p per bag is nothing. If it was £1 people would listen and actually change their behaviour.

I think 25p is a good figure, with a 20p refund if you return the bag.

The profits should be given to research organisations looking to make bags more environmentally friendly, and organisations who want to clean up UK.

OP

[QUOTE=steepling;59739949]I think 25p is a good figure, with a 20p refund if you return the bag.

The profits should be given to research organisations looking to make bags more environmentally friendly, and organisations who want to clean up UK.

that is a fab idea! :yep:

Reply 29

Absent Agent

21

Original post by CoolCavy

oh no worries :h:

true and it is good to burn them for energy. I suppose this helps to put people off them even more and any steps are good :smile:

also i suspect that some people don;t always recycle their bags (i.e send them to be burned) so are still polluting places. Also then there is the issue of polluting gases released from burning what is essentially oil

sorry my fault, didn;t reald it properly :colondollar:

No, you don't need to burn them, they are biologically degradable. This is the new generation type of bags. Almost all the plastic packs are now of this type. They are charging plastic bags for a different reason

Reply 30

seaholme

19

I dislike paying for plastic bags but I do think something needs to be done to change behaviour and waste. I mean I waste plastic bags. Unlike some I don't dump them in the countryside... but I do fail to recycle them and get pretty bag-happy. So I guess I'm all for it. People clearly aren't doing much about it themselves, myself included!

Reply 31

ChemicalBond

16

Original post by CoolCavy

hehe that is actually a good idea, they could burn them and get the energy from them for fuel

That's a nice idea, but burning certain types of plastic bags could open up an entirely different can of worms, such as dioxins and halogenated gases. I just wish I had a TARDIS and prevent the production of plastic bags, single use straws and those rubber things that you get in packs of beer and cider. They're dreadful.

Warning: this picture is grim.

Spoiler

OP

oh you mean the cornstarch ones?
this was my reply to another user who said a similar thing:

Original post by CoolCavy

well, i have studied this briefly in product design and apparently corn starch can be incorporated into some polymers. Some disposable forks and knifes are already using this. It dosen't break the plastic (polythene) down completely rather into timy bits that are mixed in with soil. in some ways tho this is worse as it is easy for the little particules of plastic to enter the food chain and poison creatures so i am in favour of reducing out usage of bags if posssible :smile:

(edited 8 years ago)

OP

Original post by ChemicalBond

That's a nice idea, but burning certain types of plastic bags could open up an entirely different can of worms, such as dioxins and halogenated gases. I just wish I had a TARDIS and prevent the production of plastic bags, single use straws and those rubber things that you get in packs of beer and cider. They're dreadful.

Warning: this picture is grim.

Spoiler

true that, yeah i forgot about the gases released :colondollar:

and same, plastic bags are a blight on the environment

Reply 34

Absent Agent

21

Original post by CoolCavy

oh you mean the cornstarch ones?
this was my reply to another user who said a similar thing:

@Mehrdad jafari

No, that's definitely not the one. The compostable bags degrade to form carbon dioxide and water.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biodegradable_polymer

Reply 35

United1892

12

Original post by TimmonaPortella

5p won't affect anyone's behaviour. If they really wanted to do something about it they'd make it 50p or £1. Then everyone would start using those perfectly cheap and serviceable 'bags for life'.

edit: although it seems to have in Wales, which I find surprising. I suppose I'm in favour on that basis, but it still seems a little half-hearted to me.

5p on every bag would soon add up. Also you underestimate how tight some people are with money.

Reply 36

Howard

5

If the object is to deter people from using plastic bags I think it should cost more. 5p isn't going to deter anybody.

Reply 37

Gears265

5

Original post by CoolCavy

I was just wondering about this, personally i agree with the charge as hopefully it will deter people from using plastic bags when they don't need to. Plastic bags are unsustainible and are terrible for the environment as they don't degrade easily and can harm wildlife. Personally i always carry a rucksack or a bag for life and hopefully these new measures will ensure people do this and if they really want a bag it is only 5p which hopefully won't bankrupt anyone. I am also glad to hear that all the proceeds from these charges will go to charities and good causes.
:h:

everything you need to know about the changes is here:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-34346309

feel free to vote on the issue as i am interested in what everyone thinks about the issue

Of course, in fact they should raise it, it doesn't take much to buy a reusable bag, like 10p at sainsburies, they easily fit in a handbag or pocket. It's laziness. The British public are very lazy so no surprise if they moan about it.

OP

Original post by Howard

If the object is to deter people from using plastic bags I think it should cost more. 5p isn't going to deter anybody.

i think it will tho imo as now people will presume that you don't want a bag unless you ask them rather than assuming you do (some places even put your shopping in PBs without even asking). this will reduce the amount being used. Also even tho i don't use them, awkward people like myself would prefer to quickly decline and get out of the way rather than fumbling around looking for 5p. However i think that perhaps it is too small and something like 25 to 50 p would be better/have more impact :smile:

Reply 39

Gears265

5

I fail to understand why they need to put so much plastic on the fruit and veg these days. You rarely see it in the markets. Supermarkets are very guilty of this though. Why they need all that plastic for a few apples or kiwis (@RainbоwKiwi are you happy?) is beyond me. How the environment could improve if we simply abandoned these stupid habits. Since recycling over the last 6 years or so I am astounded by how much recyclable material we actually throw away on a weekly basis, it is scary.

Do you agree with the 5p bag charge in England?

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