Archived Bag Rant

[Flow Warrior]

Scientific America has some interesting results.... Do Plastic Bag Bans Work? - https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/do-plastic-bag-bans-work/ Regardless, I'm a fan of folks using reusable bags. Don't agree that CA is failing but I won't go political as this isn't the point of this thread.

I don't believe Cart attendants (CA) are failing either. On the other topic I could produce link after link to prove my point but as you said this isn't the topic of this thread so I disgress.

 

[Kartman]

No bag charge here.

 

[beachlover]

I don't believe Cart attendants (CA) are failing either. On the other topic I could produce link after link to prove my point but as you said this isn't the topic of this thread so I disgress.

I agree. The cart attendants at my store are superheros. True, they aren't gathering carts in 10 feet of snow in -20 degree weather, but they gather carts in summer in 100 degree heat, deal with the restrooms and spills, and in my store, back up GS and cashier on occasion.

 

[SoCalMama]

How, as tracking for plastic refuse in the oceans is tracked by UNOPS ( UNOPS - https://www.unops.org/ ) not California.

Here you go:

You searched for plastic bag - Heal the Bay - https://healthebay.org/?s=plastic+bag

Did you ever have to cashier (more than just back-up)? I know that a good portion of the people who wanted double and triple (yes) bags for each item were hoarders. There is really no need for single use bags at all. We used to go through pallets and pallets of bags. 90% of the items did not need bags.

On the flip side, there is now a huge hepatitis A outbreak in CA. It was mostly spread through the homeless population and fecal matter. A lot of the single use bags were used in the past for human waste. Not anymore. Police and Fire report that the encampments are horrific now - filled with human waste.

 

[Flow Warrior]

Here you go:

You searched for plastic bag - Heal the Bay - https://healthebay.org/?s=plastic+bag

Did you ever have to cashier (more than just back-up)? I know that a good portion of the people who wanted double and triple (yes) bags for each item were hoarders. There is really no need for single use bags at all. We used to go through pallets and pallets of bags. 90% of the items did not need bags.

On the flip side, there is now a huge hepatitis A outbreak in CA. It was mostly spread through the homeless population and fecal matter. A lot of the single use bags were used in the past for human waste. Not anymore. Police and Fire report that the encampments are horrific now - filled with human waste.

Thanks for making me laugh and I am sorry I shouldnt be laught at that but I am.

 

[IWishIKnew]

On the flip side, there is now a huge hepatitis A outbreak in CA. It was mostly spread through the homeless population and fecal matter. A lot of the single use bags were used in the past for human waste. Not anymore. Police and Fire report that the encampments are horrific now - filled with human waste.

Talk about your unintended consequences. Yeah, plastic bags get reused at daycares and such for accidents, but I wouldn't have thought of that for homeless people, but it makes some sense.

We use them for garbage bags or to bring my lunch to work. If we had to pay for bags I would just be buying garbage bags instead of reusing them. Though we do use reusable bags, or reuse plastic bags for shopping, if we can ever remember to.

We also donate our paper grocery bags to a local food shelf, so those go to use, too, if we don't use them.

 

[Guessed Service]

You'll eventually do a good job of standing up for yourself resisting the dummies who try to take advantage of the situation.

On the other hand, even in a normal state, a TM once to stop two guests from walking out with an almost full box of bags!

 

[Dwyatt]

Are store has been without bags for a couple weeks now. We don't even have the target reusable bags..sucks to shop and have no bags to put your stuff in

 

[Times Up]

Are store has been without bags for a couple weeks now. We don't even have the target reusable bags..sucks to shop and have no bags to put your stuff in

 

[SoCalMama]

Talk about your unintended consequences. Yeah, plastic bags get reused at daycares and such for accidents, but I wouldn't have thought of that for homeless people, but it makes some sense.

We use them for garbage bags or to bring my lunch to work. If we had to pay for bags I would just be buying garbage bags instead of reusing them. Though we do use reusable bags, or reuse plastic bags for shopping, if we can ever remember to.

We also donate our paper grocery bags to a local food shelf, so those go to use, too, if we don't use them.

Target has great reusable lunch bags after back to school. My 16 year old has been doing "waste-free lunches" all year. She got reusuable baggies on amazon and uses a soft sided (purchased at) Target lunch bag. I have probably saved $40 in Ziplocs alone.

I manage to get a couple of single use bags here and there from places like Kohls, Ross, Home Depot, etc. I use them for trash bags as needed.

 

[IWishIKnew]

I put my lunch in the cooler, and one of my pet peeves is people who put insulated lunch bags in the cooler, and a plastic bag works fine. I also have an old Target mini-reusable bag, from the days before they became ubiquitous, so I use that for food I bring to Target.

Because the fridge is full of people's food in Target plastic bags, as mine would be, and it takes forever to find my food.

 

[TTB]

I have programmed the phrase would you like a bag for ten cents...i always remind them after only two visits of them remembering to bring the bag..we pay them 5 cents per bag so it pays for itself after 2 visits. Sells them every time

 

[redeye58]

After my city banned bags plastic bag litter all but disappeared.
No longer see bags snagged on fences or trees like stray windsocks, trash clean-ups are mostly cans & water bottles but the greenbelt around our store is finally devoid of plastic bags.
They do have valid reuse but we still have lots of guests dropping off bundles in our recycling bin.

 

[Kartman]

Plastic bags should be OUTLAWED.

 

[commiecorvus]

I'm not sure how many of you know about the Pacific Trash Vortex.
In the Pacific Ocean because of the currents there is a gyre that creates a huge vortex of trash.
It has always been there but in the old days it would break down because it was mostly biodegradable but now we have plastic.
This thing covers about 270,000 square miles (about the size of Texas), the largest trash dump known to man.
There are smaller ones forming in other oceans as well.
Plastic bottles and plastic bags are a big part of the mess out there.

 

[Kartman]

I helped contribute to that, dumping trash overboard on Enterprise back in the 70's.

They don't do that anymore.

 

[SallyHoover]

It isn't ideal to legislate things like banning or taxing plastic bags but it does work. Just like legislating seatbelts saving lives. Hawaii outlawed bags because they don't have anywhere to put that much refuse. Really no where does. Where I live most counties don't tax bags but one or two do and people from those counties are actually happy to get a few extra "free" bags when shopping out of county but for the most part have adapted to using and wasting fewer plastic bags. I try to encourage those who use reusable bags or don't take a bag for one or two items.

 

[Kartman]

Really no where does.

And there you go!

 

[oath2order]

I know I am sounding double minded in these posts but seriously no one should have to pay for a bag. I am thankful I am not where you all are and seriously Target should either stop sending plastic (there are paper bags I have one from Austin) or eat the cost.

This is part of the reason why california is failing (sorry not turning this political)

"sorry not turning this political BUT I'M TOTALLY GOING TO MAKE IT POLITICAL"

 

[SilentCrow]

You could do K3 - No Barcode, key in 0.00 as the price, and then charge them for a bag (I'm not from a bag tax store so I'm not exactly sure how that works)

Don't do that as it'll come up as 999 merchandise, mess with inventory, and is something that is talked about during shortage visits.

There should be a barcode by the registers for bags.

 

[Flow Warrior]

I'm not sure how many of you know about the Pacific Trash Vortex.
In the Pacific Ocean because of the currents there is a gyre that creates a huge vortex of trash.
It has always been there but in the old days it would break down because it was mostly biodegradable but now we have plastic.
This thing covers about 270,000 square miles (about the size of Texas), the largest trash dump known to man.
There are smaller ones forming in other oceans as well.
Plastic bottles and plastic bags are a big part of the mess out there.

you do realize that is photoshopped as greenpeace wanted to clean it up and couldnt find it on satelite. (this much could be picked up on ours, chinese and russian) This pic is a person kayaking through a landfill. Its what on the hunger games was called a propo or propoganda.

The actual gyre is made of broken down plastic that is so small it can't be seen anymore. This doesnt mean it doesnt kill the fish or birds.

Great Pacific garbage patch - Wikipedia - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Pacific_garbage_patch

The Great Pacific garbage patch, also described as the Pacific trash vortex, is a gyre of marine debris particles in the central North Pacific Ocean discovered between 1985 and 1988. It is located roughly between 135°W to 155°W and 35°N and 42°N.[1] The patch extends over an indeterminate area of widely varying range depending on the degree of plastic concentration used to define the affected area.

The patch is characterized by exceptionally high relative concentrations of pelagic plastics, chemical sludge and other debris that have been trapped by the currents of the North Pacific Gyre.[2] Its low density (4 particles per cubic meter) prevents detection by satellite photography, or even by casual boaters or divers in the area. It consists primarily of a small increase in suspended, often microscopic, particles in the upper water column.

This has a greater deal with plastic containers not bags. Bags are a long handing fruit because cities can't ban plastic bottles.

People think there is all these benefits from not using bags. There really isn't. Yes you dont see them. That doesn't change the gyre one bit. Plastic is used for bottles and those recycled bags. People are still pissed they have to pay for something that is free so eventually they go less and shop on line more (which used plastic in packaging)

Ideas have consquences. This idea is one that looks like it helps but actually hurts. It drives business away and doesn't change anything really other that make things less convenient.

 

[Flow Warrior]

"sorry not turning this political BUT I'M TOTALLY GOING TO MAKE IT POLITICAL"

Sorry couldn't help myself. California and NY have very destructive laws that are insidious. They appear to help but dont actually do that and worse they deprive liberty.

 

[Flow Warrior]

Don't do that as it'll come up as 999 merchandise, mess with inventory, and is something that is talked about during shortage visits.

There should be a barcode by the registers for bags.

No there should be officials booted from offices and free bags.

 

[Flow Warrior]

It isn't ideal to legislate things like banning or taxing plastic bags but it does work. Just like legislating seatbelts saving lives. Hawaii outlawed bags because they don't have anywhere to put that much refuse. Really no where does. Where I live most counties don't tax bags but one or two do and people from those counties are actually happy to get a few extra "free" bags when shopping out of county but for the most part have adapted to using and wasting fewer plastic bags. I try to encourage those who use reusable bags or don't take a bag for one or two items.

They could recycle them, or compress them into bales and ship those back for profit or chuck them into the lava. They DONT want to.

 

[commiecorvus]

They could recycle them, or compress them into bales and ship those back for profit or chuck them into the lava. They DONT want to.

I live in Alaska where the sheer cost of shipping stuff out makes recycling too expensive.
I'm sure they have the same problem in Hawaii.
With no processing plants there is no way to turn the plastic back into something usable.
Those are expensive if you don't get enough volume and Hawaii (certainly no Alaska) isn't going to get one.

As to the picture, I couldn't find the provenance on it but if you are sure I'll take your word for it.
Here are a few more that I am sure of, they aren't any better.

I know the first one was after a major hurricane so it's not completely fair.