Paper_vs_Plastic

Plastic bags were introduced to retail and grocery stores in the late 1980s to early 1990s. While my parents and older siblings may remember the days of paper only, all I really know is plastic. Since paper bags are foreign to me, I naturally request plastic when asked, “paper or plastic'” It wasn’t until recently when Austin passed the Bag Ban Ordinance that I started contemplating the issue. Then I realized that not only did the ordinance ban plastic bags, but it banned paper bags as well. Why paper too' Paper seems the natural choice. While both paper and plastic propose environmental issues, banning paper bags seems unreasonable to me. Should the city of Austin have banned paper bags in the ordinance' The answer is no. The city of Austin should not have included paper bags in the Bag Ban Ordinance. I maintain this stance for several reasons and throughout this paper, I will show that the city of Austin should limit the ban to plastic bags only. The first reason I believe that paper bags should be removed from the city ordinance is basic utility. Paper bags are much more user friendly than plastic bags. Since this issue has come to light, I realize that paper bags hold many more items than plastic bags -- perhaps anywhere from 50 percent to 400 percent more, depending on how they’re packed. Paper bags have a flat bottom and are sturdier than plastic bags. It’s amazing since I’ve started using paper how much they can hold and even sustain the icecream leaks through the bottom of the bag and not bust! This reason alone insinuates that it takes one and a half plastic bags to hold the volume of one paper bag. This will cut down on the number of plastic bags used and justifies my point that the city of Austin should not include paper bags in the bag ban. Another reason I strongly oppose the city of Austin including paper bags in the bag ban is because paper bags can be recycled easier than plastic. Furthermore, they are easier to re¬use. If you think about it, paper is everywhere. We can not get away from using paper. The biggest complaint by environmentalists regarding paper biodegradation is that, while it biodegrades faster than plastic, the paper bags take up more room in landfills because they are bigger. Well, as previously discussed, they hold more, too!