Community Based Project, Essay Example

Americans use over 380 billion polyethylene bags each year of which 100 billion bags are thrown away. It takes 1000 years for polyethylene bags to break down and as they break down, toxic substances enter the food chain. In addition, plastic bags are also carried by the wind into forests and water bodies such as lakes and rivers (Burtinshaw, 2007). Since San Francisco became the first city in the country to ban plastic bags in 2007, the movement has spread to the rest of the country (Chartrand, 2010).

I would like to start a community program that encourages the use of reusable totes and discourages the use of plastic bags. The program will try to persuade the retail and departmental stores to encourage the use of totes by offering a credit of 10 cents per plastic bag that would have been used otherwise. In addition, the stores will also be asked to carry totes in attractive styles and affordable price points to increase their appeal to the customers. Assuming Americans use over 380 billion bags, an average American uses over 1200 bags per year. This is a huge number and totes will not only help reduce the environmental damage but also pay back their cost many times over.

Every social change comes gradually and elders have a significant impact on their children. By using totes, they will be setting positive examples for their children. Moreover, as the use of totes spread, more and more people will notice and be inspired to do the same. America is the largest consumer of energy resources in the world and by eliminating plastic bags we can reduce our consumption of fossil fuels by a significant proportion. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 35 of the 47 U.S. chemical plants ranked highest in carcinogenic emissions produce plastics. 12 million barrels of oil is required to produce 100 billion plastic bags (Schwartz, 2008).

I hope our program will inspire community to reduce plastic bags use and eventually replace them altogether with reusable totes. Once we succeed in our community, we will expand to other communities and there is a good chance that we inspire other communities to start their own programs.

References

Burtinshaw, J. (May 1, 2007). Say No To Plastic Bags. Retrieved January 29, 2011, from http://www.suite101.com/content/say-no-to-plastic-bags-a20241

Chartrand, S. (May 21, 2010). Paper Bags or Plastic Bags? New Proposals Like Neither. New York Times , p. 21A.

Schwartz, M. (March 2008). In the BAG. Gifts & Decorative Accessories , pp. 20-28.