Have you remembered to BYOB in 2010?This is a query everyone should ask themselves.  We are midway through 2010 and there has by no means been a more critical era to bring your own reusable and/or recycled grocery bags. When you BYOB, rather than using single-use plastic or paper disposable bags, you instantaneously become a piece of the solution to the massive urban waste predicament associated with disposable shopping bag waste.  As of July 1, 2010, it is estimated that over 240 billion plastic bags have been consumed in 2010 alone.  What ís still even more alarming is the effect that plastic and paper disposable bags are continuing to have on the natural environment.   The intent of this article is to examine the most up-to-date news regarding large-scale efforts to reduce the use of plastic and paper throw-away bags along with the associated waste, and talk about what choices are available to all of us individual consumers in order to know for sure we are a part of the resolution to this crisis.  

The good news is that BYOB momentum is growing rapidly in this year.  Provided you have not heard the news yet, the California legislature has proposed a bill; AB 1998 (to be voted on by the Senate in August), which would outlaw throw-away bags sold inside supermarkets, drugstores, convenience, and liquor stores and take complete effect by 2013.  Even ìThe Governatorî, Arnold Schwarzenegger, said that he would sign the bill if it makes it to his desk.   This certainly could be a gigantic victory for all friends of the environment to have the largest state, in the 3rd biggest nation on the planet, to put in place a ban on disposable plastic bags. Taking into consideration that China first c racked down on plastic bags in 2008 and Ireland lawmaking efforts to diminish plastic bag usage began in 2002, it is so terrific to be informed that California lawmakers have introduced this bill to the table.  

In America, cities from San Francisco to Los Angeles to Washington DC have passed or enacted legislation that either tax consumers for the utilization of plastic bags or outlaw them altogether, but California would be the first American state to take action if this bill were to get through the senate.  Believe it or not, even state representatives from the state of Texas have written possible legislation that would insert a 7-cent tax for every disposable bag used.   It is so thrilling that there is a chance that both Texas and/or California may possibly soon have policies in place to combat the plastic bag pandemic.  Hard work by individuals and governments to reduce large-scale use of single-use grocery bags is a good way to encourage people and spread the word concerning the overwhelmingly positive benefits of environmentally friendly reusable shopping bags.

Plastic grocery bags might take up to 1000 years to biodegrade completely, and before that it just decomposes down in to smaller and smaller toxic pieces that wind up in our food, water, and soil. Biodegradable eco friendly shopping bags, are a great alternative, once disposed in landfill sites, the exposure to sunlight, air, and heat will convert these bags into liquid, carbon dioxide, mineral salt and biomass.  Similar to a fallen leaf, it will perish in time and leave Zero Dangerous Residue in the soil.  Plastic grocery bags finish up in our landfills moreover often get tangled and trigger permanent problems in trash management machinery.   Millions if not billions of additional bags end up as urban litter and usually find their way in to rivers, resevoirs, streams, as well as the ocean.  Creatures, especially marine animals, get entwined in plastic bags, and/or swallow them and often asphyxiate or starve to death.  

So the solution takes us back to BYOB, which is extremely simple.  Just remember to use ecologically friendly reusable shopping bags or recycled grocery bags, or reuse an older bag, period.  Be sure to keep spare reusable bags inside your vehicle or within your backpack, as you will want to be sure they are nearby as soon as you need them.  Also remember to clean your bags following use, in particular after transporting raw foods and/or cleaning supplies.  You should also give them to your friends and colleages as a reminder to BYOB.  Of course, continuously remember to recycle whenever the occasion presents itself, recycling is always a victory for the natural environment.  Instituting a BYOB habit in our personal lifestyles and businesses is really the finest way to ensure we are truly part of the solution rather than the problem.  Right now is the time to go out and lead by example.