After learning how much plastic (Ocean Conservancy) is in the ocean and making a mess of our precious and beautiful land as well I decided to look for a more eco-friendly choice. We ran out of the box of Glad ForceFlex 50-count bags the other day and as I broke the box down for recycling I started thinking about a safer bag. We recycle a lot and think about what goes into our garbage but what if what was surrounding our trash was also a problem. I've purchased other eco-friendly choices before but either they were cost-prohibitive or not easily attainable. So I turned to the internet to see if I could find an answer.
I found this great article posted on a website selling compostable trash bags. Of course they want you to buy their compostable bags yet the definitions make sense to me based on what I know already. What I learned is not to buy biodegradable bags because regular landfills do not usually have the key ingredients to biodegrade. Unfortunately the notes didn't help me find what I need as I'm looking for a trash bag for my NON- compostable materials; the stuff that ends up in landfills. We compost a lot at our house and we just throw that stuff right outside into a rolling bin and in the springtime we used to spread it out on the garden. This is our first spring without a backyard garden so we'll still find a new place to spread the compost love back into the earth. I don't know why more people don't compost; its so easy and it's literally like giving the earth a gift back.
In my continued search I found this article from the SFGate from the city that's already banned grocery bags! I like some of Ms. Lovering's ideas of lining trash containers with paper bags or newspaper. According to my husband our trash pick-up is required to be in tied bags so right now I'm using the few grocery bags my husband carries home because he forgets to bring reusable bags. I have to move forward, knowing I'm working on this issue in my own time, and hopefully along this journey I will find a solution. It's going to make a difference, maybe not in my life time but for my children and the next generation.
Anyone have a green alternative?
