Thursday, July 28, 2011
New Orleans' plastic bag problem
Posted by Lauren LaBorde on Thu, Jul 28, 2011 at 6:11 PM
Today I visited the grocery store near the office for a carton of milk and some yogurt, which I decided I could easily carry out the store using my hands and gigantic purse. When I told the women working at the checkout counter that I wouldn't need a plastic bag for my items, one of them asked derisively, "Why, are you trying to save the environment?"
I've gotten similar responses in the past after politely refusing a bag — either because I've brought my own or didn't think the pack of Tic-Tacs I purchased needed its own three-gallon-sized vessel. I'll either get an eyeroll or snarky comment like the woman's today, or the baggers will decide to just stop doing their jobs because I've brought my own bags. The latter scenario invariably creates this embarrassing struggle for me to hurriedly bag my groceries before the growing line behind me gangs up and murders me.
Look, I'm no Portlandia character. Although plastic bags are poison-filled wildlife killers, I bring my own bags to stores because — like many reusable products — they are just way better than their disposable counterparts (I had the same experience with resuable menstrual products). They hold more stuff, they're less likely to break and I can tote them around the store and use them to carry my groceries. The bags from the local company Repax are small enough to stuff into my purse or pockets. They're cute! And plus, I just hate how plastic bags accumulate in my house. There's only so many tiny trash cans you can line.
Reusable bags are an eco-friendly thing I assumed most people — regardless of socio-economic status — can get behind, unlike overpriced organic rice milk ice cream sandwiches or the majority of Whole Food's health and beauty section. They're a practical, inexpensive way to waste less. So why the resistance in New Orleans?
Many countries in the world ban plastic bags, with San Francisco being the first American city to ban them. Washington D.C. was the first place to impose a five-cent tax on shoppers requesting a disposable bag (paper or plastic). I wonder how many light years away Louisiana is from passing similar laws, given the attitudes I've experienced.
I'm not saying shoppers are the ones resistant to reusable bags, because I see them frequently. I just wish stores in the city would do a better job at promoting the use of them — which could be as easy as asking "Do you need a bag?" Wouldn't that save the grocery stores some money?
Building comprehensive public transportation and re-outfitting 100-year-old homes and buildings with ductless air conditioners and rainwater cisterns are eco-friendly initiatives that take time and money in New Orleans, where those things could be better used toward, I don't know, making sure our levees work and getting people to stop killing each other. However, applying the BYOB approach to bags instead of booze is an easy, inexpensive step in the right direction, and something even people not so concerned with "saving the environment" can get behind.
Comments (8)
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"Saving the Environment" reminds people of stuck up uptown snobs, or the hipsters pricing new orleanians out of the marigny/bywater. I think that's all it is.
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Or they're just ignorant, judgmental, jaded and apathetic. What's it to them or anybody if someone wants to use one less plastic bag?
:: comment #3 deleted; abusive language :::
Sorry - had to kill a comment here (which doesn't happen too often).
You're welcome to disagree as vehemently as you want, but personal attacks are way off limits. There are plenty of places on the Internet where that's just fine. This isn't one of them.
Wow, newsflash. I've got a small collection of plastic bags from when I've forgotten to bring my own. If you'd like to come collect them and hand-smother some fish or ducklings with them, or just strew them about someone's front yard you're welcome to them, since I'm clearly not doing my part.
Plastic bags have a functional use all of 5 whole minutes. Not enough to be worth having, in my opinion. I'd rather shove my stuff in my purse or reuseable totes, one of which replaces like 3 or 4 of those flimsy things anyway. Totes that I use all the time for stuff beyond groceries, by the way. I'm not sanctimonious, I just like walking home with one sturdy bag instead of 5 uncomfortable, stretched out cheap ones.
""Saving the Environment" reminds people of stuck up uptown snobs, or the hipsters pricing new orleanians out of the marigny/bywater. I think that's all it is."
Soooo, does that mean those Real New Orleanian pleebs are wasteful schmucks who think it's their God given right to produce as much waste as they want? Since when did having an environmental conscious require one to be a "snob"? Nice self-limiting attitude. To be honest, being aware of conspicuous consumption used to be something the poor and downtrodden HAD to have, like during the Great Depression. Now you're an uptown snob if you don't triple-bag your Chinese-made crap? Grow up!
I didn't say I agree. But I've seen and recognize that attitude in people. It's a resentment of people who have the luxury of worrying about the environment, when a lot of people are worrying about making ends meet. Sure it's possible to do both, but it's easier to assume. Turn it into a comfortable "us vs them" scenario, the "everyman" vs the "elite" and the charged political climate (and talk radio- looking at you WWL) doesn't make it any better.
No matter what the motivation, that was a jerky thing to say and it was also poor customer service. Anyway, I use totes whenever I go shopping, (I got the green Kohl's ones, they're huge!) and the grocery store I frequent gives me points for bringing my own. With as stingy as they can be about plastic bags, it makes sense. I use plastic to line my bathroom trashes but am considering switching to something that lets me recycle, bag and all. Does anyone know if that's kosher? The other bags that I never get around to using I just collect and return to that same store's plastic bag recycling tin, so they don't take up so much space in my house.
