You should be less worried about Big Brother and more worried about the plastic island of trash the size of Texas in the Pacific, as it works its way through the food chain to your table.

This is GREAT but why wait until 2015? Here in Solana Beach we got rid of the bags last month and it works just fine. I have been using the SAME reusable bags for years and it works just perfect, I don't see why all the complaints.

China was the first the ban the plastic bag from stores. Glad to see Hawaii taking the right steps.

So we are planning on cutting down more trees then? Go time to invest in the paper companies, well until the change their mind and want plastic again.

@T Melora, I've NEVER heard of anyone advocating the use of plastic bags over paper. They were advocating the use of reusable bags over paper.

Seriously. It takes so little, and people can't be bothered.

Who is advocating the user of reusable? The manufacturers and Greedy people making money off of them or the brain washed thinking they are actually doing something of value?

Because it was the environmentalist that started the plastic bag craze in the first place. (Because it saved trees)

I use them for my bathroom garbage bins! So techinally I reuse them at least once. lol

Now if we can just get rid of the other non-biodegradeable plastic like beverage bottles, perhaps the plastic continent that is forming to the Northeast of Hawaii will stop growing.

The problem is improper disposal, however, if you don't have it, you can't toss it, so no more plastic for you. At least glass and metal eventually sinks and is essentially inert.

This is the best idea I have heard all year. Plastic does NOT biodegrade...it is killing the Condors and many fish. There is a place the size of New York in the Pacific ocean that is TOTAL PLASTIC. Good job Hawaii...hopefully the rest of the world will take notice.

It is a great idea! NOT doing anything is the stupid idea!! Plastic bags are now everywhere, especially in the Pacific Ocean, with an island of plastic that is larger than our largest STATE, just floating around the ocean, getting larger each year, and killing marine life.

the best thing to do is get rid of the plastic bags and use the reusable bags. They hold more than the little plastic ones, and make bring in supermarket purchases far easier. Reusables aren't expensive either. The ban makes perfect sense to me.

One further comment. One of the reasons that getting a ban on plastic bags is so difficult is lobbyists???? WHAT, do we not have a few HONEST politicians somewhere in this country of ours?? ARE they ALL on the TAKE?? Grow balls politicians and do the right thing for a change, and just turn down the influence peddlers for once in your life???

Hawaii should dump all it's trash in lava. That would be some true reclamation.

This is idiotic. How will it before the envionmentalists are screaming about all the trees being cut down to make paper bags again now that they have gotten rid of plastic. It is time to stop with the ill thought out knee jerk reactions to these stupid enironmentalists. There is no perfect solution, so stop looking for one.

Good job Hawaii. I wish some other States would follow suit. That would be a good way to give people some savings. No plastic bags: Cheaper groceries. There are some grocery stores doing that already. They have very low prices basically because they save a lot of money on plastic bags.

Wal-Mart needs to do that. They have way too many plastic bags around.

bluthunder, comment #1.17: sounds like you're pissed because you'll have to go buy a beach bag, and probably freaking suitcases now, because you are used to traveling with your belongings in plastic bags. Grow up, will ya?

Oh, and what's this about your wife calling you at work to ask if she can buy more reusable bags? Wow, sounds like you run your house like a real dicktaster! And, you're ok with building homes on wetlands? Forget the birds that live in wetlands for a minute, what about the people who buy those homes and wind up with flooded property and basements? It sounds like you're ok with that too? Is your plan to give everyone who buys one of those homes a free canoe? Gimme a break, will ya?

How will it before the envionmentalists are screaming about all the trees being cut down to make paper bags again now that they have gotten rid of plastic.

The idea is that you take your own bag, perhaps made of cloth or other matierial, every time that you go to the store. It is not meant for people to use paper bags instead.

I know it is confusing, but it is actually a good idea, to eliminate so many plastic bags floating on the ocean.

I knew it would take long for someone to make foolish statements complaining about the ban. HI should absolutely not let the mainland or anyone else destroy the beauty that isolation has blessed them with.

Excellent passage Hawaii!!

I am poor but have been using washable cloth bags for a few years now..... I just stick them in the laundry with the whites. Then I use them to bring the clean laundry home.

Never ever did like those plastic bags as I live near the city and see them all over the street, in the trees, the gutters, the roadside, the stream 50 miles away from where I live when I'm fishing, the State Game Lands where I hunt... (**insert where you see them here**)etc...etc.

And to the person who complains about using plastic bags for their dog droppings..... I expect since you were a responsible pet owner in the first place, you will continue be so, and purchase your own plastic bags for your doggie-doo-doo. You want the freedom to use what you want? Here it is on a platter. Pets come not just with a moral responsibility, but a financial one as well.....

PedestrianinSF – maybe you shouldn’t be so lazy and read more. The CDC suggests washing them with hot water after every use, plus you have to color code which bag is used for produce, which bag is used for meats, etc., to avoid cross contamination. I don’t own a washing machine so if I want to go to the grocery store more than once a week I have to buy more bags and I already barely have to room to store the ones I have. And add handwashing my bags to the list of daily duties in my jam-packed crazy-busy life? I can’t imagine what a hassle it would be for a busy parent having to run a load of just shopping bags several times a week, plus they can’t go in the dryer so you have to hang them up to dry. Where? I’m all for an alternative to plastic bags, but like so many other green alternatives like the mercury-laden hazmat lightbulbs this is causing a new set of potentially dangerous problems. They don’t think these things through.

Cruzin- I agree with you pointing out the ironies here, but I think the article was referring to plastic that doesn't break down (funny I thought all bags were made this way now ?).

BIG IRONIES the public needs to be aware of:

1. 100 watt tungsten bulbs will be banned and replaced by bulbs containing MECURY !! (does anyone really think that most people are responsible enough to properly dispose of bulbs containing MECURY ?? (sounds like some big corporate lobbying to push "their" product)

2. What an irony about light bulbs when people are flocking to stores to purchase big screen TV's. So if the government is so concerned about electric use, why not ban big screen TV's ?

3. What about AC power ? There are lots of people using electric power AC units, and the government is caving in on 100 watt bulbs ??

4. The government regulates 100 watt bulbs, and then allows the kids of Senators to get out of paying off student loans !!!(meanwhile the rest of the country's kids are permanent slaves to student loan payments they were offered so easily with no collateral and no credit !!!) Who is working for whom ???

Leprechaun1230 the wife calling at work was about you then having to stop at store and pick up those things she wants on your way home ie milk bread eggs etc... and now needing a bag as you did not have one with you when you went to work. The wet lands was in response to an article in oregon where the county messed up a creek bed that caused flooding on a persons property. They already had pemits and started constuction and where told they had to stop construction and tear it down as the land was a wetlands for the flooding on it.And useing themm for carrying wet clotyhes is JUST ONE example of how plastic bags are REUSED many times inn all manner of ways by many may people,, but amazing noone thinks about how often things are reused they want to claim they are just thrown away and c reating another problem for people. Now in another 15 years we will hear the cries againn about the trees being cut down or maybe the shortage of cotton from all the reusable bags. Or even we will hear about all those out of work cause they mandated reusable and now everyone has too many of them and no need to buy anymore.

YAYY!! Good for Hawaii !! I'm glad they have banned plastic bags in order to reduce trash. I have NOTHING BAD to say about Hawaii's ban of plastic bags at checkout.

How come I can't find a picture of the island the size of texas?

There are plenty of pictures of crap in the ocean but none of this huge island?

I see several posts collapsed simply because they presented a contrary opinion. That is entirely inappropriate

I use the reusable bags, and I also reuse the plastic bags I get for some things such as fresh meat that I do not want in my reusable bags. I reuse the plastic as liners in my bedroom and bathroom barrels. I also use them for garbage that cannot be recycled. So I do reuse them. My local grocery store also takes them back for recycling, and I bring some in when I'm inundated with them at home.

@otto-372694 a 50" flat panel LCD tv uses less electricity than a 13" CRT TV. The only TV's that use more electricity are Plasmas and those are going the way of the dinosaur.

anyone that doesn't like this piece of legislation, doesn't know anything about Hawaii's ecology.

Hawaii's ecosystem is incredibly delicate. the people of the state of Hawaii realize that and are trying to take appropriate measures to protect their state. if you don't live in Hawaii, how can you possibly say that it isn't the state of Hawaii's business to protect the state's natural environment?

SmarterthanYou-2552970

If some on here had it their way, they would mine Mauna Loa and the other volcanic activity there for all the precious metals they can get....

Tom - Plymouth

Maybe not quite the size of Texas but here's one:

http://awesome.good.is/transparency/web/0905/trans0509throughthegyre.html

I think the posters were combining all the Pacific current trash deposits:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Pacific_Garbage_Patch

How about this?

NO bags at all! Just use their flippin' cart and load it in your transportation device from there...?

What happens when you don't bring enough bags to cart your purchases (all you 'bring your own bags' people)? Yes the answer is simple, just load it in your vehicle without a bag, who needs them anyway?

I guess if you were hoofing it half a mile or something, but who walks to the grocery store?

Ya, I can see high density city areas satisfying that criteria, but when you live 50 miles out, you aren't going to use a bicycle or mass transit, or one of those impractical electric cars, nor walk either!

What are all the ABC stores in Hawaii going to put tourist purchases in? Tourists aren't going to be bringing their own shopping bags, and they often re-use these plastic bags for their wet bathing suits or to pick up trash after a picnic. Paper bags just don't work as well in many instances - and those with handles don't hold up to plastic handles.

Plus, people with health problems, as well as the elderly and infants, should be wary of pathogens clinging to those cloth bags. I'm not going to buy meat and put it into a re-usuable bag. Separate bags for produce, household cleaners, and produce? Crazy.

Just use grocery plastic bags when necessary, re-use them for wet trash or dog droppings, and properly dispose of dirty ones in the trash. Clean, used plastic bags can be recycled at many grocery stores. It's not so much the plastic bags themselves... it's people improperly disposing them that's causing the environmental problems.

I always liked paper better anyway and it's biodegradable. We were in Hawaii in December; Kauai had already banned plastic bags. We had paper bags. What's the big deal? Yes, we do need to worry about trees, but with recycled paper and people using cloth bags, it's a much better option.

I haven't found it all that hard to cut down on usage of plastic bags.

I don't have a car, so I bike. It's a mile and a half ride to the nearest grocery store. I carry a huge backpack (one of the kind that survivalists/campers use--the best bag I ever had was an old Army backpack found at the local thrift store, the thing was practically bottomless and I could carry everything.) Because I know I have limited room to carry what I pick up, I pick less junk and cut down on impulse spending, plus my local grocery store also gives me a 5 cent discount on the checkstand price for every plastic bag I don't use; for every six items I can fit in my backpack they take 5 cents off. Also, since I carry less, I visit the grocery store more often, and we have next to no spoiled food getting thrown away because nothing stays in the fridge long enough to spoil.

The only time I use plastic is when I've bought meat--I wrap a plastic bag around it and stick it in my backpack, and once I get home the bag is rinsed, dried and then I take it to the animal shelter I volunteer at so it can be used to clean up dog droppings. I do have a dog, but I also live in a suburb of the city and luckily there is a park where take my dog for a walk with loose soil. I take a garden trowel with me and after he goes I dig a shallow hole and bury it.

Tom - Plymouth

How come I can't find a picture of the island the size of texas?

There are plenty of pictures of crap in the ocean but none of this huge island?

That's because it doesn't exist. It's just another fable invented by the libtards to help them ram through dranconian regulations.

Hurray Hawaii, be leaders!

DeVille223

See #1.36. The first link has a copy to the "fictious libtards" island. Look, I cant stand the "hippies" either, but there is a trash problem, over which you apparently have a disconnect with......

When your denial is emphatic enough, maybe we can help you move there........

Conservatives are always screaming about states' rights. Then a state passes laws working on a county-by-county basis---about as local as you can get---and they still complain.

Let Hawaii do what it wants.

Traci M said:

It's not so much the plastic bags themselves... it's people improperly disposing them that's causing the environmental problems.

Excellent point!

I've seen people open packages outside a store and drop the wrapping/packaging on the ground. I'll pick it up and hand it back to them and say 'here, you dropped this, there's a trashcan over there.' Most people look embarrassed and go put their trash in a trashcan--some don't. I had a kid, about sixteen, drop a plastic bag from her doughnut on the ground. I picked it up and held it out to her and pointed out the nearest trashcan. She looked at me and said, 'it's a free country, I can do what I want,' then she took it from me, dropped it back on the ground, and said, 'there, now you illegals can stay and pick up my trash.' I wanted to smack her. Even her friends looked embarrassed

But I did pick up her trash and put it in the trashcan myself.

if you are buying more than a handful of grocerys, those stupid cloth sacks won't fit the bill. They have been doing a lot with agri based plastics, made out of biodegradable materials such as corn. They already make deli containers out of them, I think if they can't already do it, a little more r & d and they will be able to make plant based plastic type bags. Of course, the cotton industry would be happy with a cloth only thing.

Total waste of time and effort which will have little positive effect other than pleasing the eco-nuts. Even the greenies estimate that only around 3% of these things end up as litter, less biased sources say it's less than 1%. Most are reused or recycled. I have been using the cloth bags for years but you can't put a leaky package of chicken right in the bag, it will contaminate everything else in there. I use the occasional plastic bag as a trash can liner as do many people. They're small and convenient, how many people tie up and throw out a half full regular liner because the garbage starts to stink before the bag is full? Recycled plastic bags are used by a variety of industries, the deck outside my house probably contains hundreds of recycles bags, the cost of all of these products will increase if bags are banned completely.

Basically this is one of those things that sounds good at face value but will have little if any positive effect. Just another worthless piece of "feel good" legislation that we all end up paying for one way or another.

PLASTIC BAGS ARE REUSABLE BAGS, people reuse them all the time!

OMG! It's sad to see the lazy, moronic, attitude against this ban on bags. It doesn't matter how many times you reuse your damn bag, we are still disposing of them irresponsibly and they are ending up all over the place, as mentioned in many of the above posts. Do you like seeing plastic bags blowing around everywhere? I don't...I guess those who dont care are too busy thinking about nothing more than money. Also, a very very high majority of paper grocery bags are made from recycled paper, so we are NOT cutting down new trees to make them, and even if we are, we are cutting plantations grown for the purpose of being used, not so much from the forest. Plastic bags were introduced to grocery store in 1977, How awful was your life before then? Was the invention of plastic grocery bags such a positively life changing experience? I dont think so!

So when we are shopping and we dont have enough of our own bags, we use a paper one that all stores provide. They can still be reused in trash cans (in fact they can be used as trash cans without actually having a trash can), or a myriad of other ways including reuse as a grocery bag. We dont buy that disgusting drug and disease laden meat from regular grocery stores so we need not worry about separating meat bags from produce bags.

As for pictures of the garbage island in the pacific, Tom-Plymouth, do some research! It's not an actual island, but literally hundreds of tons of photodegraded plastic pieces floating submerged in the ocean that marine life mistake for plankton and eat, then you eat it, and then you get really sick which we all pay for with high health care costs.

Maybe if corporations that make plastic bags and water bottles, and a good majority of the people who use these things were even the slightest bit responsible, the government wouldn't have to step in and mandate these things. It's our own fault! That's the way I (and millions of other people who care) see it!

This isn't new, and adjusting is not as devastating as some people are making it sound. We live with 7 billion other people, and things like this do matter. Give it a try before you swear your life will fall apart if this passes in your state.

Conservatives are always screaming about states' rights. Then a state passes laws working on a county-by-county basis---about as local as you can get---and they still complain.

Let Hawaii do what it wants.

Can I give this 20"likes"?

States rights are only good for conservatives when it fits their agenda, as shown in this topic.......

What's good for Hawaii nay not be good everywhere else... Leave them alone.....

To the people who don't know what the Pacific Garbage Patch is here is a link for you. And Hawaii can pass Laws all they want. I think it is a good idea. There are plenty of Biodegradable materials that can be used to make bags. The beaches in Hawaii are still the most beautiful I have ever seen. And I would hate to see it become like Some of the SO CAL beaches here in California. Hell even our Nor Cal beaches are getting more and more Trash. Someone was talking about tourists to Hawaii. Most tourists to any place simply do not care what they do there. They visit and leave. The people living there have to live with the trash left behind by others. So Great for Hawaii

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Pacific_Garbage_Patch

About time.

Also when I buy something here in California. I almost always see the person behind the counter. Start to put my item 1 item in a bag. So I tell them I do not want a bag. Who needs a Bag for 1 item. The receipt is enough to get me out of the store. And for people saying they do not want cross contamination and all with meat. I remember butchers using waxpaper. The plastic is really not needed. And you should really wash your produce anyway.

@haydukeii

It doesn't matter how many times you reuse your damn bag, we are still disposing of them irresponsibly and they are ending up all over the place, as mentioned in many of the above posts. Do you like seeing plastic bags blowing around everywhere?

It doesn't matter how many times you reuse it? And you're calling other people moronic? What do you suppose people are going to use instead of plastic grocery bags? They are going to buy plastic bags in rolls or they are going to buy the reusable bags, many of which are made out of what you wonder? That's right plastic. There are cotton or canvas bags also but I found this interesting-

"...an HDPE plastic bag would have a baseline global warming potential of 1.57 kg Co2 equivalent, falling to 1.4 kg Co2e if re-used once, the same as a paper bag used four times (1.38 kg Co2e). A cotton bag would have to be re-used 171 times to emit a similar level, 1.57 kg Co2e....Most paper bags are used only once and one study assumed cotton bags were used only 51 times before being discarded, making them – according to this new report – worse than single-use plastic bags."- http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/green-living/plastic-fantastic-carrier-bags-not-ecovillains-after-all-2220129.html

The reusable and paper bags are actually worse for the enviroment and most of the reusable ones are made in China to boot!!

Congratulations on the knee jerk reaction Hawaii, at least you can feel better about being "green" even if it isn't actually true! LOL!

The wax paper was killing trees to make and the wax prevented it from degrading! At least thats what I remember hearing from all the tree huggers

@joeyfromcali

And for people saying they do not want cross contamination and all with meat. I remember butchers using waxpaper. The plastic is really not needed. And you should really wash your produce anyway.

Should I wash the cardboard box my crackers and cereal come in also? Something tells me that's not going to do a whole lot of good once they've soaked up meat juices that leaked out of the folded up "wax paper" my butcher used to use. Butcher paper is great for preventing freezer burn, not so much for containing liquids.

@backcountry164

We use 500 billion bags a year. 3% of that is 15 billion bags littered, or we can go with the 1% which is 5 billion bags littered. Oh, maybe I should say ONLY 5 billion bags littered. The other 495 billion bags go into landfills. Awesome!

Pure Genius!

tbh, if a store didn't offer bags, I'd either request carryout service and have THEM put it in my car, or take my business elsewhere... I wouldn't just carry a bunch of items as such in my bare hands after I payed the bill with my hard earned money... This sort of thing really just puts it on the business if they want no bags, or it means people will get more paper bags instead... I also wouldn't pay several bucks for cloth bags; would rather save my own money; same reason I use those things for trash bags, rather then purchase trash bags seperately...

However, with the paper bag, it's more likely to just throw it out, vs plastic bags which get used as garbage bags (rather then purchase seperate plastic bags). Only thing, some stores do go a bit over-board with their bags; which tends to result in them piling up. A good recycling spot, at the stores or however else would be good, a lot of the plastic recyle containers such as at apartments and what not only want plastic bottles, not bags (posted on the thing, probably as requested by the town's own refuse collection department). AKA, a few soda bottles (2 litre variety) probably should be doubled, but some things don't need to be. Cleaning supplies should be seperate from food, but if there's just 1 soda bottle and the weight isn't too bad, I really don't mind if a block of cheese or something that won't crush gets put in... I guess some don't know how to bag as well as others... Ah well

But the stores would have to provide bags of some variety; more then a few customers simply wouldn't go there otherwise, or wouldn't buy much (so as not to over-load their arms/inconvenience themselves), which would mean more trips to the store, aka using more gasoline, or shifting to Internet purchases for food, and having the USPC put it on one's door step....

Hawaii must be a Democratic state because the American Taliban (Repbulican party) supports pollution and will do anything in its power to ensure every American gets to enjoy every ounce of pollution you can possibly create.

@haydukeii

We use 500 billion bags a year. 3% of that is 15 billion bags littered, or we can go with the 1% which is 5 billion bags littered. Oh, maybe I should say ONLY 5 billion bags littered. The other 495 billion bags go into landfills. Awesome!

What you seem unable to grasp is the reality that if people aren't reusing the plastic grocery bags they're still using something else, often times PLASTIC BAGS. Durrrr

Just looked at my reusable bags and they're made out of 100% recycled PLASTIC. Did you read the rest of my post or just ignored it since it didn't fit your preconcieved notion? The reusable bags and the paper bags are worse for the environment.

And btw, I pick up any and all trash I come across as do most of the people I know so littered doesn't mean none of them eventually make it to the trash can. In fact I carry a wadded up plastic bag with me when I'm hiking for that very purpose.

Yeah, a bag for just one item is a little ridiculous; as is I got home one day and noticed after having told the cashier that she could just throw the stuff into one bag, except the 2 soda bottles (which is more a weight issue then anything, as they'll typically tear if one tries to throw 3 2 litres in there or 2 2 litres and a bunch of other stuff)... So was getting out my card to pay when she did this, but when I got home she doubled the 2 soda bottles (I didn't ask for that, simply told her to bag those alone), and in the other bag she individually wrapped items and stuck them in the one bag on the bottom, with the few other items above...

That was a little nuts, and after days like that it leaves a few more trash bags then I need. 2 bags would have been sufficient there, didn't need 6....

dyermoe

Hawaii must be a Democratic state because the American Taliban (Repbulican party) supports pollution and will do anything in its power to ensure every American gets to enjoy every ounce of pollution you can possibly create.

I wouldn't necessarily assume that. I wouldn't exactly consider Montana to be a blue state, and they are certainly no CA... But, perhaps next to CA?, MT has some of the toughest environmental laws in some areas I have heard of. Tougher then some states like Jersey, which aren't considered to a red state. But here in Jersey one doesn't need an environmental impact statement to do a lot of stuff, that around there, one does. The 11 years I lived in NM, I don't remember anything that similar, and NM isn't as red a state as say Texas... Now I understand, with Yellowstone right in their back yard, they of course want to protect the park and the wilderness there... But one shouldn't assume that more Republican states don't necessarily have environmental laws... One should also not assume, (as I have heard some suggest when they make arguments against hunting or the like), that sports men and the like don't care about the environment... They might be surprised, and MT would be one place where the surprise might come...

Hell when I was vacationing in Monta in (believe it was 1993), I saw a political cartoon in (might have been the Billings Gazette, but was a long time ago so might have the paper wrong). It had 2 apes speaking to each other, and one said:

This just in. We need to complete an environmental impact statement, in order to be allowed to evolve.

/rofl

@Nuadormrac

I wouldn't necessarily assume that.

That's because you're not a partisan hack who favors BS rhetoric above all else including logic.

Some people are just not worth the time responding to, even they probably don't believe half the sht they spew.

they are recylable right?....at least that's what i do with them if not using for trash liners. everyone should recycle. i just started a year ago, i'm now a fanatic about it. i do wish it payed like the alluminum cans do. i turn the plastics/paper at my sis work and they were pd a $3000 check.

why aren't they made biodegradable like some plastics?

I guess when plastic bags are outlawed it is time to close animal shelters-- who use plastic bags to put waste from cats in-- or get rid of all cats in the world. I have reusable bags, but I refuse to use them when I clean my cat's litter box and throw them out with the s##t.

I am not able to get up steps and get into my house while toting bags of groceries. With plastic bags, I can slip the handles on my arm and still use the railing.

I just hope that there are no disabled people in Hawaii who need help to get up the stairs with paper bags in their arms. The young people do not understand that it isn't easy to do.

Joey, again no pictures we can zoom in on my back yard with Google Maps, but don't have a picture of this floating island?

Unbelieve - you comment on conservatives is partially correct, but it is actually Rhino Repubs that are completely clueless and the people you are talking about.

Hawaii has every right to enact this law, and if people don't like it don't visit, and if you live there move. People on both sides are hypocrites, why? because they have no real base values. If you are base starts with the constitution then then everything is a bit more straightforward, but if you base is trying to figure ways around the constitution then, well, you can read the comments and see what I am talking about.

cruzin596, I'm with you on the compact fluorescent bulbs that's the worst idea they ever came up with. It's not like we don't have enough mercury in our fish & food supply already. It won't be to many years & they will have to bring back the old saying "mad as a hatter".

@stc1993

I'm with you on the compact fluorescent bulbs that's the worst idea they ever came up with.

And to add insult to injury most of the incandesent bulbs were made in the US, most of the CFL's are made in China.

Is a ban on incandescent light bulbs really coming to the United States? Technically, no, an incandescent light ban is not about to take place.

On January 1, 2012, the light bulb police will NOT come and haul you away if you light your home with 100 watters. It won't even be illegal to buy or sell them. (New date: Oct. 1, 2012)

But after that day, it WILL be ILLEGAL to: manufacture or import 100 watt incandescent bulbs.
So, the effect will be that of a ban.

(NaturalNews) January 1, 2012, was supposed to be the day that the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA), which was passed by Congress and signed into law by former President George W. Bush back in 2007, came into effect, banning certain high-watt incandescent light bulbs. But all such bulbs will remain on the market, at least for now, thanks to a “rider” that some members of Congress successfully attached to the massive government spending bill.

Guess what President started this? Guess the only state that will manufacture incandescent light bulb? Texas. Gee I wonder why they will only be manufactured in Texas?

Why?

I agree that it is a terrible idea. I reuse my plastic bags for trash can liners. I would have to spend money on trash bags - money that I can't afford.

I just returned from a long vacation in Hawaii. Even with the ban on Maui and Kauai, depending on what beach you go to, there is still a lot of plastic debris on the beach. It is still an improvement from a few years back. A few years back is when they also put a deposit on all plastic, aluminum, and glass containers. That also helped the alleviate the problem. I think some of problem lies with debris from areas far to the west of Hawaii. Unless steps like this are taken everywhere, you will still be harvesting someone else's plastic debris. But Hawaii's ban on plastic is hardly a "terrible idea". wryview, try using biodegradable paper bags for a liner.

try using biodegradable paper bags for a liner.

No do not use A PAPER bag we will then have to listen to the tree huggers again yelling about the trees cut down for you to have that paper bag!

.

@wryview

are you Seriously saying you can't afford to buy garbage bags. the store has their own brand, 10 for 1.99. if you can't afford 2 bucks for a pack of garbage bags. there is seriously something wrong with your budget and its not just a garbage bag problem.

chanctob maybe he has a low paying job? maybe he is on fixed income, maybe his finaces are really none of your business and he really cannot afford another expendature with the rising cost of everything nowdays, maybe he is disabled or has high medical bills or graduated from college with large student loans and does not yet have a high paying job. maybe he is a college student trying to pay for school by working because he has no finacial help. many student have lived on pork and beans or ramon noodles and could not afford any more!

So, don't use a trash can liner? You can deposit items directly into your trash bin, and when it is full, dump it into the outside garbage. Then, you rinse out the little can, which takes about a minute, and voila! No plastic bag needed. I live in Europe, where nobody gives away plastic bags for free, and people seem to do just fine without them.

In Florida (where my parents live), there are discarded plastic bags all over the place. As the article says, they are modern day tumbleweed. If you must have disposable bags, at least the paper ones biodegrade eventually and don't blow around as much.

Also, I don't understand why people have such an issue about washing their shopping bags. How hard is it to throw them in with the laundry? And, to the person complaining that they can't go in the dryer, why don't you just use a different kind of bag that can go in the dryer? There isn't a rule that you must use a specific, non-dryer friendly shopping bag, is there? Mine is a big cotton tote bag. I don't own a dryer, but if I did, my bag could go in it.

When I lived in Germany, most people went to the local store and bought the groceries for the day. Doesn't work too well in a larger country like the U.S.

@Elpea

If you must have disposable bags, at least the paper ones biodegrade eventually and don't blow around as much.

They also require 4 times the carbon footprint to produce. Damned if you do, damned if you don't.

New Egypt - Where would you get paper bags? No one around here has them. And liquids would seep through.

Chanctob - I am serious. I have other things I need to spend money on. Reusing plastic grocery bags saves a ton of money.

Elpea - It's not as simple as "rinsing out" a trash can. If there is gross stuff, you have to use a lot of soap and water - also really bad for the environment. Not to mention, it takes a lot of time.

To all these pathetic people who are having big problems with reusable bags: I have been using organic cotton/canvas bags for decades. I have enough of them so I always have at least 4 completely clean ones available when I put those used, filthy, contaminated, bacteria-ridden (!!?) ones in the wash. Someone complained about "not having room to store them all". Oh, puleeze. Do you only have one towel? One pillowcase? Grow UP!

I don't spend more than $.50/cotton bag, either, because I buy them at thrift shops. They've got them there, gently-used (probably pre-owned by the same kind of spoiled lazy people who can't live without their plastic bags). Upon bringing them home I wash them in my washing machine in hot water. That kills all those nasty microbes left on them by human being hands.

Another hint for you: you CAN wash your garbage pail and your bags without adding vile chemicals that pollute the water table. Go and buy some green, biodegradeable, dish etc. soap. It comes in bottles. It's even sold in your supermarket. Grow UP! Stop complaining about stupid things!

And one final note: I do not and have never bothered separating produce from cleaning supplies (see above paragraph re: biodegradeable soap) or dairy/meat/fish, etc. What nonsense! I am supremely healthy and never get sick. I don't buy leaky packages of meat or seafood in the first place. I also don't wash every single cotton bag out after every single use. You guys are hopeless infantile microphobes. Grow UP!

Come on yourself! How many groceries do you have to buy when you're on vacation? Pack a couple cloth tote bags and Kamehameha's your uncle!

Great post Doug! It really isn't all that hard- most of us even when travelling will pick up a tote bag. And how many people grocery shop on vacation! Let the stores charge a nickel or dime for paper- much more useful than those nasty things that don't hold anything anyway.

can you read? the ban goes into effect in 2015.

I always pack a cloth bag or two when I travel. No weight, next to no room and very handy! Especially if you are traveling to other countries where people have ALWAYS brought their own bags!

It's not a big deal Cherie. I live in MA (no ban on plastic grocery bags yet) except on the island of Nantucket where I vacation. Yes, it's possible to go on vacation and grocery shop without the aid of plastic bags. I use a tote bag which can also double as a beach bag when going to islands like Nantucket and oh, let's see... Hawaii, maybe? I've been going to this island every summer for 20 years and I haven't found the bag issue to cramp my style one bit yet. Do try to keep an open mind and you also might want to refrain from calling people morons. It's a breach of the code of honor here on the newsvine.

Cherie, mein Herz schwimt in Blut für dich. You poor little girl. You will have to travel xxxx thousand miles to your Hawaiian vacation residence and once there you will have to go out and for no more than US$10, you will have to purchase some cloth shopping bags so that you can purchase your food and other household items for consumption while you are vacationing in the islands. And what will you do with these cloth bags after you return to the mainland? Well, you can stuff them into your luggage, which will add barely 1 lb. to the weight thereof, or you can donate them to one of the numerous recycle sites that are omnipresent in the Hawaiian islands. Indeed, I find my heart swimming in blood for you because after spending a few thousand dollars on your Hawaiian vacation, you will have to spend perhaps an additional $10 for some cloth bags. What a wasteful expense, yes? What a terrible inconvenience to you, yes? What nerve the government of the State of Hawaii has in imposing upon your cherished freedom to use plastic, yes? Oh, you poor little put-upon, put-out girl. Jawohl, mein Herz schwimt in Blut für dich.

Wow why is this difficult to resolve. If you don't take some in you luggage then buy them in Hawaii. There will be available at each store.

Take the opportunity to purchase a unique Hawaii themed bag to take home with you. not only will you have a nice memento of your trip you'll have a nifty reusable bag for home use.

Did it say they are banning paper bags too? If not, that's the solution for travellers and people who popped into the store without planning first.

Yes, please be sure to buy a re-usable bag, put some meat and chicken in it and fly it back to the main land, that sounds like a wonderful idea.

I'm all for not giving away the plastic bags, but . . . I like them and I use them for lots of things. They're so darned handy, especially for stuff that can be messy. I appreciate being able to wrap stuff like meat in them so the meat doesn't leak all over my other groceries or my cloth bag. And I use them for lots of stuff at home. When I get one from a store, I save it and use it multiple times. Now where will I get plastic bags?

Reusable bags are available at most stores and certainly grocery stores. It's just not that hard. Quit whining so much about something that is certainly not difficult.

Several need to go back and read the article again as either your reading comprehension is way down or you didn't bother to read it in the first place.

Don't see the big deal here, if the people of Hawaii are happy with it so be it. It's their state and their business. And people worried about using more trees for paper don't understand the timber industry. Trees are a completely renewable product, we cut them down when needed then replant. The more valuable timber is the more likely that timber tract will be replanted providing habitat for years and years.

Cherie, I can pretty much guarantee there will be reusable bags for sale next to the register that can be purchased for a couple of bucks. If you're going to be in Honolulu then hit up Aloha Stadium swap meet and pick up a couple of totes real cheap...then you can use them for groceries, beach towels and sunscreen, etc and have a souvenir to boot. Me thinks you're making a big deal out of nothing. Also, once you see the price of groceries here you might change your mind on eating out for every meal. Aloha and enjoy our islands. Mahalo.

Sorry Tom they won't allow you to do that.

O Supremo - And I use that term lightly, LOL B4 you start typing, remember that you know NOTHING about me, so stop assuming that I spent thousands of dollars on this vacation. Your jealousy over my vacation is VERY apparent. Get over it! That is not what this discussion is about.

Ashley- I am FAR from lazy. I walk 4 blocks everyday at lunch (my choice) and I have 4 kids, so needless to say.... I don't sit very often in my day. And for you to say "I hope you die soon".... over a discussion about plastic bags is just plain ignorant. What kind of a person says that? Well..poor Ashley- sorry, but that decision is just not up to you.

Kat- I can't call people morons (that's what they act like) but other people can tell me "I hope you die soon" and "go come on yourself"? REAL mature.

Term, I do agree with you the it is the people of Hawaii's choice.

Tom, since when do tourists buy meat and chicken on a Hawaiian vacation and return to the mainland with it? Sorry, but even a plastic bag isn't going to help with that. Nice reach, though.

cjhs... you can still buy plastic bags. I'm sure they're not going to put Hefty or Glad out of business.

Kat, Really?

You would buy it, put it in your bad, take it out and cook it. and not wash it.

Yes, Tom...no one is allowed to travel with food like that on the plane. There is an area the size of a state in the Pacific. They couldn't figure out what was killing all the condors. They opened up the dead condors and guess what they found...plastic. The adults are feeding their babies plastic because they can't tell the difference. The scientists also took a plankton net and trolled it through that area and there was more plastic than plankton. This is a huge issue and it involves ALL OF US...unless you are selfish and don't care...and there are many, sadly.

I live in Hawaii, Maui county and we have had a plastic bag ban since 2011. Well for all the people complaining about the ban you need to know that it is not a problem here, people how live here as well as tourists have adjusted to the changes fairly easily, if you are at a store and forgot to bring a bag with you, it is not a big deal, they will pack your shopping items in brown paper bags or you can buy very some cheap reusable bags, some grocery stores will even give you a small discount each time you bring your own bag. Also people have to understand how bad the impact of plastic bags is on our state land and marine ecosystem.

Imagine yourself coming to Hawaii for a vacation and finding a white sandy beach littered with old shopping plastic bags that flew off from the nearest landfill thanks to our constant Trades wind or imagine some dead great sea turtles, spinner dolphins, our highly endengered monk seal, migrating humpback whales, sea bird etc.... dead on the beach from ingesting plastic bags, because once in the ocean, plastic bags look like jellyfishes which many marine wildlife feeds on. How would you
Like that? you would most likely be the first one to complain about how dirty and unkept the beaches are. The government passed this ban in the county of Maui, because after educating people about the damages created by plastic left in nature the majority of people and businesses understood it was something important to do to preserve the beauty of our islands. So to the people how think it is the government just shoving an other rule down our throat you have it completely wrong. It works well for our county and it is why the ban is expending to the others Hawaiian islands, so all the whiners out in the mainland maybe try to go out in nature and learn, try to be less selfish and only care when it is too late, when everything is destroyed or polluted that you can not enjoye it anymore. Stop being lazy, a little change in attitude toward the your home land and the oceans surrounding it is not just the thing to do, it is the right thing to do. Try to learn about the giant garbages patch about the size of Texas floating around in the Beautiful waters of the Pacific ocean. Stop being selfish!
Anyway wishing all of you much Aloha

After just returning from Hawaii, I say that almost all the stores have paper bags that are made from 40% recycled paper. The exception is Walmart.They offer no bags except reusable one at the register for 50 cents each.

No, Tom, really? I was asking you if you actually thought people on vacation in Hawaii would return to the mainland with chicken like you suggested. Wait. Do you know what the mainland is?

P lease spare me your whiney, smug “all you have to do is…..” I just love how all you know-it-alls are so quick to say ”all you have to do is….” Not everyone has the time to keep piling all these ”all you have to do is….” I would dare anyone of you to try to keep up with my life and then say “all you have to do is….” I was one of the first to use reusable bags. I was the one getting snickered at in line at the store. I love them, I can carry more groceries in them and because they are structured the goods actually stay in the bag as bagged. HOWEVER – I only have a portable washing machine that does not use hot water. I have go to the Laundromat once or twice a month to wash all my sheets and towels in hot water. That’s about all the time I have. I don’t have time to go to the Laundromat once a week and spend $3.00 to wash a few bags in scalding water, and the hot water in the tap at home isn’t going to be hot enough to do squat, so now you’re saying “all I have to do is” wait for a huge pot of water to boil and then hand wash my grocery bags and hang them to dry somewhere. I look at my schedule and I can’t fit that in. Maybe all you have to do is sit around all night and watch cable – I’m so busy that when my t.v. died two months ago I didn’t even buy a new one – I don’t have time to watch it. I’m too busy dancing, rock climbing, martial arts, traveling, teaching, holding down two jobs and getting my Master’s degree. And I’m not going to give up any of those things just so I can wash a few grocery bags in boiling water twice a week.

on your hot water tank. there is a dial, just turn the dial up to the temp you want. 140 for dishwashers, washing machines, etc. or 120 if no dishwasher. turn the hot water up to the desired temp and wash your bags.

Kat, Sorry I thought it was obvious but I guess not. I didn't mean for them to bring the chicken and meat from Hawaii to Cali, I meant for them to bring a contaminated bag back with them because their Hotel sink doesn't get hot enough.

Chanctob, that pretty much wipes out any advantages to the environment.

Actually, it doesn't change much...most places will be switching to biodegradable plastic bags.

Panic Moon

I look at my schedule and I can't fit that in. Maybe all you have to do is sit around all night and watch cable – I'm so busy that when my t.v. died two months ago I didn't even buy a new one – I don't have time to watch it. I'm too busy dancing, rock climbing, martial arts, traveling, teaching, holding down two jobs and getting my Master's degree. And I'm not going to give up any of those things just so I can wash a few grocery bags in boiling water twice a week.

Wow. I'm tired just reading that. But you forgot to add in all that time you spend on internet message boards.

Panic Moon- way to be defensive. People are offering helpful suggestions, and you find that offensive? BTW, all you have to do is wash the bags that were holding meat, produce, or precooked food. The rest should be okay. They don't need to be boiled, just washed normally with some detergent. Don't turn a simple act into a huge production. It really is easy.

Panic Moon,

If you're through patting yourself on the back...

You sound like someone who's self worth is determined by how much they can cram into 24hours. It won't come until years later but boy are you in for some disappointment when you find out you missed what is REALLY important and it has nothing to with reusable bags. Good luck, sport.

Kat- I can't call people morons (that's what they act like) but other people can tell me "I hope you die soon" and "go come on yourself"? REAL mature.

No ... you can't call people "morons" ... it is a violation of the TOS. But no reason to attack Kat, she didn't call you names or anything else you listed.

I'm not attacking Kat; everyone else is attacking ME over ONE comment about me not wanting to pack empty bags while I go on vacation. I never said I won't pay for paper bags or won't use them. All I said was I'd rather not bring my own. It's my God given right; that's why they call it an opinion. No reason for ANYBODY to tell me to go "die soon". Uh oh..... another poster said, "moronic behavior", does he get a spanking, too?

All the people worried about more trees being cut for paper bags write your reps. & tell them to support growing hemp it's easy to replenish compared to trees.

You do know those bags don't get up and walk away. It is lazy people that do this, you don't think the same lazy people will do the same with paper?

Tom, paper decomposes, plastic does not.

You are wrong, Erica. Plastic DOES decompose. It just takes a little longer. In fact, plastic was found to decompose extremely fast (within 50 years) in the pacific ocean due to the corrosive nature of salt water and the constant barrage of the sun.

Please do not spread mis-information.

Don't you get how paternalistic and insulting it is for the government to make "people adjust" to an idea just because they happen like it, and deprive people from options they may prefer? Isn't the entire point of being an adult in a free society that you get to make as many decisions about how to live your life as possible? If you want to be "lazy" isn't that your right?

And let's not pretend that this move is entirely without environmental tradeoffs. Manufacturing and distributing reusable bags is much more energy intensive than disposable plastic bags, to point that, given average shopping use, it takes nearly ten years of using a single resuable bag to offset the comparable energy consumption of disposable plastics. And that is without factoring in the additional energy consumption of regularly washing your bags (you know, if you don't want to get sick), the increased water consumption that creates (an issue on Hawaii due to their lacking long waterways to draw from), and the pollution that phosphates in laundry detergent makes.

But hey, let's just chalk up disposable use to "lazy", right?

justross, grow up. You wasted more energy typing drivel no one will read past the first line.

justross . . . . do you have a reference for your " it takes nearly ten years of using a single reusable bag to offset the comparable energy consumption of disposable plastics" statement above?

make "people adjust" to an idea just because they happen like it, and deprive people from options they may prefer?

How about preserving the environment for EVERYONE and not catering to the whining few?

i take my ralphs bags to the store and at check out give to cashier to use for packing my groceries. there is usually a bagger and she or he gives the bags to that person. often when i look into the cart when ready to leave i see they used my bags but packed every thing also in plastic bags. they seem to think i bring my own bags for convenience because they are easier to carry. i can't seem to not end up with bags filled with the dreaded plastic bags.

Why should I have to BUY bags? That's too expensive. They are between $2 - $5 each.

I stopped reading justross's post when he started citing "facts" without providing a source.

I live in a county where plastic bags were banned. I get loads of them from outside the county and bring them with me to go shopping with. I love seeing people getting all agrivated when I bust out about a dozen plastic bags and bag my own groceries.

Mikedp--must be nice just to ignore facts that don't comport with your world view. But it takes just a few seconds on google to find comparison points on the relative energy consumption of manufacturing reusable bags versus plastics. Not all reach the 10 year mark, but here's a sampling.

For example, wikipedia:

An unpublished report from the UK's Environment Agency found that when compared to a traditional plastic bag, a canvas or cotton reusable bag would have to be reused a total of 171 times to offset the higher carbon emissions. The same study found however that the average cotton bag is used only 51 times before being thrown away.

On that metric, if you shop every other week, then it takes 6 years of use. Of course, if the bag is worn out and thrown away in 2 years, you never reach your break even point.

The Wall Street Journal says "28 times the energy" compared to a disposable.

Renee, I don't think you're tracking the argument properly. Manufacturing resuable bags consumes much more energy, and releases much more carbon, than manufacturing disposable plastics. According the UK study, you would have to use it 171 times before you reach the point where the ongoing use of disposable bags uses more energy/releases more carbon that was used/released for the one-time manufacture of your reusable shopping bag.

Now, if you used a single reusable bag to avoid those 416 disposables, then good for you, by using that one bag, you've prevented the use of energy/release of carbon that would have been caused by your use of 245 disposable bags. Of course, if you used two bags, then you are down to 74 disposable bags. If you used three bags, you still need not use 96 more disposable bags before the energy consumption from the manufacture of your bags breaks even on the energy consumption that would have resulted if you had used disposables every time you went shopping. I think you can see where this math is going.

And of course, as I noted earlier, this does not account for energy consumption in washing your bags. What, exactly, that is, has too many variables to reliably calculate-how efficient is your washer/dryer, are they gas or electric, if electric, how is power in your area made, etc. But suffice to say, that will push it up a little farther.

So then you have to ask yourself: what's a greater priority to you in protecting the environment? decrease carbon emissions and energy consumption, or decreasing plastic waste in the environment? Personally, I think you should be able to make that choice on your own. But the nanny staters would rather have the government make that choice for you.

justross

Thanks. I was looking for facts, not to just counter your argument.

If protecting the environment is "tyranny", then move to China and enjoy the coal-choked air.

No kidding. I can't believe some of the comments on here. If you have kids, you are killing them too. When the eco system starts to break down we are in real trouble. Plankton is the bottom of the food chain. When the bottom starts dying, up the ladder it goes to HUMANS. Are people really this stupid and selfish. Good grief. Apparently.

David B thanks for the laugh! Awesome post

The throw away society that we are, is not acceptable and never was. I hope that the 'Nanny State' as you call it, stops you from buying your Mountain Dew, soda, sweet tea and water in plastic bottles aswell. While they are at it, they should ban diapers that are not biodegradable, to really take away your freedom!

farting cows add to the methane so get rid of cows. but then there will be no milk, so we all must drink soy milk. but then since soy is a plant and it is mass consumed then we have added global warming and we run out of soy milk. Then the sun burns a hole in the ozone and fries most living thing on the planet.....

How about if you don't like plastic, then don't use it. I happen to like it. I will not be carrying my groceries in a duffle bag, thanks.

I remember the EXACT same reasons expressed when the decision was made to move to plastic bags!

In 20 years, these same people will use the same points to ban reusable bags that end up in landfills at a rate of 50 million per year. What, you think reusable bags last forever?

And people don't get that the cost of these laws (obeying them and enforcing them) disproportionately hurts the poor and middle class. And there's no assurance that they will even provide the intended benefit (improve the environment).

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ah nice!!! have to try it :)

So you are just a d!ck. Nice.

BMCM 9, A**hole, the only thing missing is you.

Simma down Bob...jeez, libbies have no sense of humor.

My future grandchildren already have a $15 trillion debt to worry about thanks to political stupidity. I don't think an issue with plastic bags are going to be top on their list.

@lance

Ahh yes, on top of financial worry, you want your grandchildren to live in unclean and worst possible environment as well. Nice thought you have there.

When the food chain breaks down because of the pollutants...plastic (just one) the humans are screwed. Does anyone else realize that?

@Coung, save your tinfoil hat chicken little green-enviro horror stories for somone that cares.

And there's that arrogant paternalism again. We're all adults, we don't need your "permission," or the government's, to make daily decisions about our lives and how we shop. And you can be damn sure that, being as we are adults, if you want me to change my behavior, there will be a conversation about it. You may be able to pull that stuff with your kids, but it's asinine to treat grownups that way. You have no idea how anybody else live's their life and what conveniences to you are necessities to them. And no one should have to explain to you why it's necessity nor should they have to ask your permission.

You don't sound much like an adult. You sound like a spoiled brat.

You don't sound much like an adult. You sound like a spoiled brat.

Make that an entitled spoiled brat.

First, I think it's incredibly ironic that a comment of mine pointing out that David B admitted lacking the focus to read my whole post gets "collapsed by the community" for being, I not sure what, offensive, maybe? While at the same time a post from him that cannot muster an argument better than an ad hominem "brat" gets likes. I guess it shows the "community" feels only one side can get away with being even mildly insulting, as opposed to imposing an objective standard of polite discourse.

But more importantly, neither David nor Kat can answer the paternalism/nanny state argument without being paternalistic. The insult "entitled spoiled brat" inherently implies parent-child relationship wherein one has authority over another to determine what the "child" to determine what choices they can or cannot make, and expressing frustration at the child making forbidden choices. That feel that you have the power to refer to someone as a "spoiled brat" speaks more to your overblown sense of entitlement to authority than it does defects in my character

renee--there's that weak nanny-state sauce again. Your argument boils down to "communities make rules, so let's make this rule, too." Unless, of course, you can do what Kat and David B and everyone else has failed to do: Articulate a limiting principle on the rules and laws that a community can pass to restrict behavior. What distinquishes a law the state can pass dictating individual behavior from one they can't?

While neither here nor there in this particular discussion, your example of suburban neighborhoods is flawed for many reasons, the first of which being that one has total choice in neighborhood in which one buys a home. If you want to subject yourself to petty HOA tyrants that will pick what colors you can paint your house, or try to take your home through a lien foreclosure for not mowing the lawn enough, that is your choice. while one can choose to leave a city, county, or state if they object to new laws, it's much more difficult. Further, HOAs are private entities with no democratic obligation to balance majority will with minority rights, whereas governments, at least in America, are required to walk that line.

But beyond that, the remainder of your post naively assumes a simplicity about environmental impacts and policy making. The reality is, every environmental decision has a cost. Wind farms kill birds and destroy scenic vistas. Solar panels require the mining of toxic elements. Nuclear emits no carbon but has waste disposal issues. And reusable bags require more energy to manufacture and require several years to pay off that energy debt. Who knows better than the individual if they will use a bag enough to justify the energy investment?

Further, who knows better than the individual if they have the time to routinely wash the bags? It just seems ludicrous to me that the government should be able to tell everyone "hey, here's a new chore to add to your weekly work, just because we said so. I know we have technology that can help you avoid that chore, but we've decided we don't like it."

Amen MamaJudy. The local governments, selected by the people, made these laws with local input. Anyone who stays out of Hawaii because of the Big Brother Bag Laws is worth missing.

Good point. I always recycle or reuse my plastic bags too, be it for garbage bags, packing material, what have you. I guess a lot of people don't though, and I can see how the waste can easily and quickly build up and get out of control of plastic doesn't decompose.

You folks need to do some research and read about the area in the pacific, that is the size of Texas, that is filled with plastic. There is also one in the Atlantic. This is not a tree hugging issue. This is common sense. Do the research and hope it isn't too late. I can't believe that some people are so spoiled.

Diver

Please provide references.

OK, but you don't need to make your font so large and bolded.

Mike, does bold print make you "manhood" feel small?

marlane, no it doesn't. Do you take that much offense over it that you need to try and insult me? If so, keep trying internet tough guy.

For the most part, the comments used to promote the use of Corn Starch trash can liners as an "eco-friendly" product are false. Most Corn Starch-based trash can liners are made of corn starch, which in and of itself is a bio-degradable product. However, in almost all cases, Corn Starch-based trash can liners still contain at least 75% plastic resins

Source: http://voices.yahoo.com/corn-starch-trash-bags-they-really-better-for-1867798.html

The ones we get around here (plastic) are really thin and fragile. I have to check them for holes before I put them in the "save" pile. I've used re-usable bags for many years, and a back-pack when on vacation. I always felt it was a win for the environment AND a win for the small shop owner.

I think that most people would agree with the intent behind this ban, but some are feeling a "lack of freedom" because of the way it panned out. I don't think that those that disagree are stupid necessarily, but somewhat stubborn and paranoid.

Daccer66, I recycle my plastic for the same reason, but you and I are considerate...a lot of people (maybe most) don't even clean up after their dogs.

Daccer and marlane... I used to do that, too. In fact, I'm still trying to break myself of using them to pick up the dog poop. I bought a bunch of biodegradable plastic bags specifically designed for picking up after dogs but I'm having a difficult time getting used to their size. Anyway, the point is that you end up throwing them away which is what this all about. Plastic grocery bags aren't biodegradable and there's just way too many of them in the world getting thrown away. You're not really recycling them when you put them in a waste basket or put dog crap in them because you do throw them out.