Backgrounder

Plastic ... Fantastic?

Plastic bags are a part of modern life. We use them for all sorts of things, bringing home the shopping, lining the kitchen bins, wrapping up the dog poo, carrying all sorts of things. Plastic bags are light, economical, versatile, and very, very popular.

For something so helpful, so useful, so practical, they are really cheap As a general rule, supermarket plastic bags are free In fact, last year in Australia, the big chain stores gave away billions of plastic bags Every time we shop, we get them for nothing A gift

Some gift Plastic bags are killers. They are a more than a nuisance or a menace. They are deadly. Plastic bags are destroying animal life. Millions of mammals, birds, reptiles and fish are killed by plastic bags. Dolphins and sea-turtles think they are food and choke to death. In the ocean, turtles often mistake plastic bags for jellyfish and swallow them. The bags choke them or block their alimentary canals, starving them to death.

Plastic bags do not break down and become part of the eco-system. They cannot be burned without causing further harm. If they are buried, they block the natural supply of air and water to the earth’s soil. They clog our waterways. They create havoc in our landfills. They clog up sewage pipes and cause diseases. They can be seen floating on every waterway on the planet.

Plastic bags are amongst the worst pollutants in the world

One of the poorest countries in the world, Bangladesh knows this, and is worried enough to do something practical. Last year, the Government of Bangladesh realised that almost the entire floor of the Buriganga River in Dhaka was covered in plastic bags. The river was dying and the main waterway of one of the world’s biggest cities was in big trouble, and so was its people. Something had to be done. On New Year’s Day this year, Bangladesh passed a law banning plastic bags throughout the country. People are encouraged to use bags made from jute, a natural fibre.

Nepal is worried too. Plastic bags litter the environs around Mount Everest, left there by intrepid but selfish travellers. The Nepalese Government has also decided to ban the use of plastic bags in the area.

Ireland is worried too. The Government has decided to do something to discourage people from using so many bags. If you want your shopping in a plastic bag, you pay about 20 cents for every bag.

Friends of the Earth in Jordan, Egypt and Israel are worried too. The Red Sea is in danger from the litter of thousands of plastic bags and so is its marine life. They want the area near the Gulf of Aquiba to be a plastic bag-free zone’.

Some Australians are worried but not many. Australians use 6 billion plastic bags a year, 3.6 billion are supermarket bags. Clean-up Australia wants us to change our shopping bag habits and indeed, change many of our waste habits. We are the second-highest producers of waste, per person, in the world. Each one of us is responsible for almost 690 kilograms of rubbish every year. (Human Development Report 1999, United Nations Development Program).

Make a change that will make a difference. Say No’ to using plastic bags every time you go shopping. Make a change, for the sake of the earth, and all living things.

STUDENT ACTIVITIES

1. HOW MANY PLASTIC BAGS DO WE USE?

a) Count how many plastic supermarket shopping bags come into your home every week. Put a check list somewhere in the kitchen and ask everyone in the family to write down the number of plastic bags they bring home each day for one week.

b) Challenge everyone to halve this number in the following week.

2. WHY DO WE USE THEM?

Make a graph showing the reasons why plastic bags were used. Down the left hand side write numbers 1-30 (or more). Across the bottom, write letters for reasons people might give for using plastic bags. Here are a few ideas:

A) The supermarket checkout person just put the things in the bags. I had no choice.

B) What else can I do?

C) I wanted to keep things safe

D) I had nothing else to carry stuff

E) The bag looks nice.

F) They’re handy

G) They’re cheap

H) Other reasons

3. THE CALICO BAG CHALLENGE:

Discuss the work that one local Council did to reduce plastic shopping bags. Would this plan work in your area? Why or why not?

http://www.warringah.nsw.gov.au/calico_bag_challenge.htm

4. WHAT ELSE CAN WE USE?

a) Think of how we use plastic bags and come up with alternatives. Make a class display of these better than plastic’ ideas. For more ideas about alternatives, scroll down this website: http://home.vicnet.net.au/~when/plastic.htm

b) Include in your display a poster showing what the people of Bangladesh are now being encouraged to use, instead of plastic bags.

http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/13863/
newsDate/28-Dec-2001/story.htm

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/1742716.stm

5. FACTS ABOUT PLASTIC BAGS

Make a poster for the classroom, using the information you will find at this website about plastic bags.

http://www.tct.org.au/n13i.htm

6. USING THE TAX

The Irish Government uses the money it collects from its tax on plastic bags on environment projects. Make a list of environment projects in Australia which could be developed from such a tax. Prioritise your list, giving your reasons.

7. DEBATES

a) A tax on plastic bags in Australia would not change anything.

b) The benefits of plastic outweigh the problems they cause.

8. CLASS DISCUSSIONS

Check out these links for articles on how plastics enter the sea and what harm they cause there:

http://www.umassd.edu/public/people/kamaral/thesis/plasticsarticle.html

9.BUT WAIT ...THERE’S MORE

For just one week, keep a cardboard box at home to collect the packaging that holds most of our ordinary consumer goods. Decide what is essential packaging and what is not really necessary.

TEACHERS:

SUSTAINING CREATION: AN ECUMENICAL ENVIRONMENT ACTION KIT'

Available for $5.50 (incl. GST) from Australian Catholic Social Justice Council, 19 Mackenzie St, North Sydney. ACSJC Secretariat 19 MacKenzie Street North Sydney NSW 2060 Tel: (02) 9956 5811 Fax: (02) 9954 0056 Email: admin@acsjc.org.au

The Kit, focussing on environmental justice, includes a range of activities and ideas for action. Even just a small change in attitude or behaviour is worthwhile change. Prayer and worship ideas are also included. An excellent resource for schools, parishes and social justice action groups.

This Sunday, September 29, 2002, the Catholic Church celebrates Social Justice Sunday.

A New Earth: The Environmental Challenge http://www.socialjustice.catholic.org.au/content/
publications/documentation/documentation_sjs01.html