Reusable Bags Project and Exploring a new Trail

At a previous class, we brainstormed some "green actions" that we would like to try.  One of them was reminding shoppers that reusable bags help the environment by taking the place of plastic and paper shopping bags.  In this post there is information about how some stores in Needham are encouraging customers to use reusable bags (see below).  We are also creating posters to remind shoppers.  Look for our posters soon at Sudbury Farms, Roche Bros., and Volante Farm.

Here is some information about Plastic Bags:*

• An estimated 100 billion plastic bags are used in the US every year.
• Worldwide, an estimated 500 billion to 1 trillion plastic bags are used.
• Less than 3% of plastic bags end up being recycled; the rest end up in landfills, oceans, and as litter.
• 4 out of 10 people believe that plastic bags will biodegrade, even though they won't.
• In landfills, plastic bags would take about 1,000 years to decompose, releasing toxic chemicals in the soil as they decompose.
• In our oceans, plastic debris was found in 75% of dead sea turtles in 2002.
• There are reports of problems with entanglement or ingestion of marine debris, including plastic bags, in 86% of all known species of sea turtles.
• An EPA ranking of chemicals that produce the most hazardous waste showed 5 of the top 6 were used by the plastics industry.
• An estimated 12 million barrels of oil is required to produce the plastic bags used in the US each year.

Good News:

•  Reusing just one bag in your daily life, can "eliminate" about 6 plastic bags each week; saving 6 bags a week works out to 288 bags a year.
• Adopting the use of reusable bags for one's entire life can "save" (reduce) the need for over 20,000 plastic bags.

 Did you Know?

"Free" grocery bags are not really free.  Many stores offer credits for shoppers who bring their own bags instead of using plastic or paper.  Although grocery stores offer bags for "free," the stores have to pay for the bags and pass those costs on to the consumer via higher prices on items in the store.  Stores provide credits to customers who bring their own bags as a way of not "charging" those customers for "free" bags.   Over time, the reusable bag will pay for itself and could eventually actually save you money on your grocery purchase.

*Info from www.reusablebagsdepot.com

Here's what some Needham stores are doing to encourage reusable bag use:

Roche Bros./Sudbury Farms

Reusable bags are available for sale at the front of the store, behind the check-out (2 kinds -$ .99 and 2/$3.00).  Customers who bring their own bags receive a $.05 rebate for each bag, OR they can opt to donate the rebate to Children's Hospital, Boston.  Pooling the rebate funds, Roche Bros. hopes to donate about $50,000 to Children's Hospital each year.

Trader Joe's

There are a variety of sizes and styles of bags, ranging from $.99 to $5.99, for sale at the front of the store, behind the check-out.  Customers who bring their own bags may fill out a raffle ticket; the winner receives a $25 gift certificate to Trader Joe's.  (Katie Catka, a "Captain" at Trader Joe's volunteered to give each member of our class a reusable bag!  Thank you!)

Volante Farm

Reusable bags are available for sale for $.99 at each cash register.

CVS

If you are an ExtraCare cardholder, you can purchase a Green Bag Tag for $1.  Attach this tag to your reusable bag, or present it when you re-use a shopping bag, AND present your ExtraCare card.  You will get $1 ExtraBucks Rewards every 4th visit using your Green Bag Tag.  Anytime you decline a one-time use plastic bag, you will receive a Green Bag Tag credit. Limit of one use/scan of the Green Bag Tag per day per household. The tag is made with corn-based material. 

If we get more information about other stores, we will include it in a future post.

What we did at last week's class:

First, we got ready to go outside.  

We walked 2/3 of the way around the loop trail in Eastman Conservation area behind Newman School, and decided to explore a dead-end spur of the trail that leaves the main trail at the big rock.  The ground was mostly snow-covered.  We were pretty much guessing where the trail was, kind of bush-whacking in places.  We found 2 lean-to shelters of sticks - made by local kids, we guess. Also found lots of deer tracks, a surprisingly large mound of pine cone scales at the base of a tree - "someone" had a feast!  Squirrel - red or gray?  A pile like this is called a "midden." We also noticed a large - maybe 6" wide - freshly dug hole at the base of a tree.  Maybe a skunk is using this hole?  The trail was short and ended when the higher ground that it was on was surrounded on 3 sides by swamp; we were basically on a peninsula in the swamp.

Back at the Science Center, after warming up with hot chocolate, we paired or tripled up to design posters about reusable bags to put in stores.  We got a good start and will finish next week.