According to The Wall Street Journal, the U.S. goes through 100 billion plastic shopping bags annually, with an estimated cost to retailers of $4 billion. 1
It is estimated that 500 billion to 1 trillion plastic bags are consumed worldwide each year. 2
Plastic bags aren’t biodegradable. They undergo photodegradation—breaking down into smaller toxic particles that contaminate soil and water and end up entering the food chain when animals accidentally ingest them. 3
Plastic bags are recyclable, but they can only be recycled if they are in pristine condition, which requires a different system of collection than the curbside collection process. 4
Only an estimated 1 to 3 percent of plastic bags get recycled. 5
In an ideal situation, a plastic bag will take about 20 years to degrade; but in less than ideal circumstances, a bag could take more than 1,000 years to degrade. 6
On average, a family accumulates 60 plastic bags in just 4 trips to the grocery store. 7
In the sample of refuse collected from the oceans by the Ocean Conservancy in 2008, plastic bags were the second most common trash. 8
1 Californians Against Waste (www.cawrecyles.org), Bag Facts
2 Californians Against Waste (www.cawrecyles.org), Bag Facts
3 Larry West, "Paper, Plastic, or Something Better?", About.com Environmental Issues Guide
4 The New York Times, "Answers From a Garbologist, Part 3," July 16, 2010, answers to reader questions by Dr. Robin Nagle
5 Californians Against Waste (www.cawrecyles.org), Bag Facts
6 Reuseit (www.reuseit.com), Facts about the Plastic Bag Pandemic
7 Reuseit (www.reuseit.com), Facts about the Plastic Bag Pandemic
8 Reuseit (www.reuseit.com), Facts about the Plastic Bag Pandemic
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