Avoid plastic

Plastic bags are everywhere, and while they are convenient, they cause signficiant environmental damage all over the world.

Plastic bags can becomeserial killers. Once a bag is ingested, the animal dies and decomposes, releasing thebag back into theenvironment to kill again.

The Environmental Impact of Plastic Bags

A plastic bag on the beach, in a tree or blowing down the street is a very unattractive, yet common sight.Moreover, because plastic bags don’t go away, they just break up into smaller and smaller pieces of plastic, the number of plastic bags in the environment continues to accumulate, with 80 million littered per year.

Plastic bags are lightweight and moisture resistant, which means that they float easily in air and water, often travelling long distances.

Threat to Marine Life

Every year over 6 million tonnes of rubbish is dumped into the world’s oceans, 80% of which is plastic, and a further 10% of this being plastic bags. With an estimated 46,000 pieces for every square mile of ocean, plastic is responsible for killing 1 million sea birds and over 100,000 sea mammals each year. Turtles, whales and sea birds mistake rubbish for food or get entangled in it, resulting in painful injuries, or even death.

Greenhouse Gases

When gas, oil and coal are used to produce plastic bags, they emit dangerous greenhouse gases. Large amounts of plastic end up in landfill, also a significant source of greenhouse gases.

PAPER bags

Paper bags have multiple uses, but most suppliers offer them as shopping bags, grocery bags, and gift bags. Many manufacturers will also be able to build custom paper bags to meet your specifications as well as offering custom printing on each. Check with the supplier to find out what is available.

Paper Bag Specs

Most paper bag suppliers will give the specifications and strength of the paper in terms of paper thickness, also know as basis weight. So the higher the basis weight of the paper, the stronger the bag will be. The symbol # represents pounds. So a 30# paper bag has a 30 lb basis weight.

Recycling Paper Bags

Paper shopping bags are the kind of bags which are both environmentally friendly and cost saving. Most manufacturers will offer bags made with 100% kraft paper which guarantees that the bags are 100% recyclable. Check with your supplier to see the availability of these types.

The main reason most people choose paper bags over plastic is due to recycling. Here are some others:

• Are made from a renewable natural resource
• Can be reused again and again
• Can be shipped to paper mills to be made into new paper
• Require less energy than plastic to be recycled
• Are biodegradable
• Are safe for small children to play with
• Pose less of a threat to wildlife

Action for the environment and health

Our objective is to achieve a quality of environment where

the levels of man-made contaminants do not give rise to

significant impacts on, or risks to, human health.

❚ Improve our understanding of the link between environmental pollution

and human health through better research;

❚ Look at health standards to account for the most vulnerable groups of

society;

❚ Reduce the risks from the use of pesticides;

❚ Develop a new strategy on air pollution;

❚ Reform our system for controlling the risk from chemicals.

Protecting nature and wildlife

Providing for the protection of nature and biodiversity is not

just a special area for ecologists or bird lovers. It is about ensuring

that natural systems continue to function, systems which

provide us with air, food and water. It is about reducing the

risks from flooding by ensuring that we do not lose forests or

misuse agricultural land. Nature is under threat on many sides,

from pollution caused by acid rain and chemical leaks to

the over-exploitation of fish stocks or the destruction of the

countryside.

❚ Protect our most valuable habitats through extending the Community’s

Natura 2000 programme;

❚ Put in place action plans to protect biodiversity;

❚ Develop a strategy to protect the marine environment;

❚ Extend national and regional programmes to further promote sustainable

forest management;

❚ Introduce measures to protect and restore landscapes;

❚ Develop a strategy for soil protection;

❚ Co-ordinate Member States’ efforts in handling accidents and natural

disasters.

Tackling climate change

❚ Achieve international agreement on the Kyoto Protocol and put it into

practice;

❚ Set objectives for cutting greenhouse gas emissions in the main

economic sectors;

❚ Establish a scheme for ‘trading’ greenhouse gas emissions within the

European Union by 2005;

❚ Support renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar power;

❚ Help Member States to prepare for the consequences of climate change.

Save our Cities

The term Global Warming refers to the gradual rise in the earth’s temperature.Global warming has been an environmental issue that has plagued the entire globe for a few years now and researchers have said that the global warming will cause a complete change on the planet, with the same catastrophic effects as the ice age. Small effects can be seen already in the North and South Poles, where the ice bergs are beginning to melt. There is also evidence of the sea levels rising in certain areas.

Global warming has been directly attributed to the hole in the ozone layer which is causing the heating up of the earth’s atmosphere from the sun. This is commonly referred to as the greenhouse effect. It is said that if the hole in the ozone layer continues to grow, global warming could accelerate quite dramatically. This is why many countries have come together and signed agreements to cut down on fuel emissions into the atmosphere and use various other forms of energy that are safe for the ozone layer.

Our goal's

we need to aim for a society where cars do not pollute
the atmosphere, waste can be recycled or safely disposed
of and energy production does not lead to climate change. Our
children must not take in harmful chemicals from their toys or
food. Landscapes and wildlife should not be endangered by
development.