aplasticbag's Spot Follow

All the right things people tell us to do tend to follow sound logic when you stop and think about it. For instance, parents are always telling their kids to eat their vegetables. The logic: potassium, iron, fiber etc. from veggies provide essential nutrients for proper health, which in turns allows for kids to run around, play, hang out with friends, study, explore, and live life. It’s all for a good outcome. What does this have to do with Earth Day and plastic bags?

Earth Day is right around the corner, and it is a time think about how we can be better caretakers of planet Earth. The logic: like a car, if we take care of it, it will take care of us. Here are some ideas that might help make the world a little bit more 'environmentally friendly.' You can do these things every day, or you can just try it out for one day.

Recycle, recycle, recycle. Paper, plastics, aluminum, tin or glass are all materials that can be reprocessed for use again, or fill up landfills for generations to come. Reusing used, sturdy trade show bags is for carrying lunch to work or miscellaneous items to and from your car is a great way to recycle. By recycling, mining operations can be reduced in search for new sources of metals which uses up valuable water resources. Recycling and using recyclable plastic bags can also reduce the burden at the dumps that keep filling up quickly.

Recycling doesn’t stop at these materials. You can recycle your old cellphones or your other e-waste. They could be put to good use for someone else. Many stores have free recycling kiosks to dispose of ink-jet cartridges, rechargeable batteries, Cds/DVDs and gift cards. There are also several on-line recycling programs if you do a little research.

If you do use custom plastic bags, recycle them by bringing them back to stores that have recycling available for them. Several major retailers that have a place to recycle all those plastic bags you never know what to do with. And with regards to power, change out your light bulbs for more energy efficient ones. There are compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs that use considerably less electricity than traditional light bulbs. You can also buy LED light bulbs that are super efficient. The downfall to LED is that they are not as bright as the CFL light bulbs. The downfall of CFL's is that they contain trace amounts mercury and have to be disposed of through hazardous waste.

Using your own refillable water bottle reduces the cost and waste associated with constantly buying pre-bottled water. Buy bringing your own refillable water bottle you stop the process of making more trash. Also the water bottles have to be delivered to the store which take fuel and energy to produce them. It takes time and a bit of effort to figure out new habits. If you do one change, and continue to add more as you go along, you have done a lot to protect our environment. For additional information on great recyclable options in plastic bags, visit www.aplasticbag.com to learn more.