Nowadays, no matter where you go, you may have noticed that plastic shopping bags are among the most common things when people go shopping and around the home. It is true that these plastic bags are suitable for all kinds of shops, for promotional uses and for home use. One of the biggest reasons why people like to use plastic bags is that their light weight and water resistance, all these make people feel very convenient. On the one hand, they can provide convenience at store. People can use them to carry groceries, clothing, and other routine purchases when they are shopping. On the other hand, they can be used to hold rubbish and many other things at home. Another noticeable reason why they are so popular is that they are very cheap, and everyone in the world can afford it. Although they can bring great benefits to our human beings, their negative impacts cannot be neglected.
One of biggest negative impacts is that they are too difficult to decompose. Because plastic bags are hard to break down, they may be blown into the ocean, where they may first threaten the lives of whales, fish and other animals that make a habitat under water. Or they may be washed into storm drains, sewers and streams, where they can cause great pollution to the environment. And also if they winds up in garbage heap and they cannot break down, the only way to deal with them is to burn them up. However, when they are burning, they will give off poisonous gas, which can hurt human’s health. The second biggest negative impact is that they are made from crude oil and natural gas. We know both oil and gas are nonrenewable energy sources, and they are in an urgent shortage in this day and age. There are many other great damages that using plastic bags can bring and the issue of using them has become a sticky problem. The governments all over the world begin to reduce the use of it is based on information concerning its negative impacts.
We all know that China has banned the use of plastic bags on June, 1st, 2008 from all public transport, airports and scenic places. And those places which are still allowed to use it must be paid. There is an old Chinese expression: if you want to correct something that others do, you should first correct it yourself. So, now, it’s time for everyone to use less plastic bags to protect our environment, animals, and nonrenewable energy sources.