What single product bans could actually put a dent in our absurd plastic usage. Plastic grocery bag bans can only do so much when every banana is wrapped in 6 layers of single use plastic
American supermarkets are a special category, since everything is wrapped in plastic.
In poor countries, plastic bags are a significant contributor to overall amount of plastic waste produced. Banning plastic bags in a place like that actually has an impact, because most things aren’t necessarily wrapped in layers of plastic.
If you wanted to have a similar impact in America, you would need to introduce a plastic packing and wrapping tax. So yes, banning a single product in a place like that is only a very small step in the right direction.
You know, there are third world countries with a more progressive approach to plastic…
What single product bans could actually put a dent in our absurd plastic usage. Plastic grocery bag bans can only do so much when every banana is wrapped in 6 layers of single use plastic
American supermarkets are a special category, since everything is wrapped in plastic.
In poor countries, plastic bags are a significant contributor to overall amount of plastic waste produced. Banning plastic bags in a place like that actually has an impact, because most things aren’t necessarily wrapped in layers of plastic.
If you wanted to have a similar impact in America, you would need to introduce a plastic packing and wrapping tax. So yes, banning a single product in a place like that is only a very small step in the right direction.
Anything that may have once distinguished the US from “third world” countries is gone.
I think @TranquilTurbulence pretty neatly established one big different - Americans produce far more waste than any actually impoverished country.
We just live poor in order to afford all those extra landfills.