Environmental Corner: The Ubiquitous Grocery Bag

They’re everywhere: on the trees, along the road, on the beaches and in the forests. How can you help stop this littering problem that leads to these “urban tumbleweeds?”

The best thing you can do is bring your own bag for shopping and reuse it. Keep some in your car to have at a moment’s notice.

The next best thing you can do is recycle the plastic bags. Don’t put them in with your recyclables at home because they will clog up the works, but you can take them to most of the area grocery stores.
The stores have contracts with places that can turn the plastic bags into composite material to make flooring, park benches or even use them to make more plastic bags.

And one more tip: Look for corn-based biodegradable bags where available for carrying your produce. They’re great for holding composting scraps, too! Just don’t let them get too wet.

– Bags should be clean, empty and dry

– Remove any strings or rigid plastics, such as zip locks

– Avoid plastic from frozen foods and six-pack rings

-Bubble wrap, newspaper bags and the plastic wrap around things like paper towels all can be recycled too.

What stores participate?

• Weis Markets, formally Food Lion
• Giant
• Wegmans
•  Target
• Lowe’s
•  Walmart

You can also check in with the church office to see if the Table is in need of grocery bags! Spread the word and help reduce grocery bag litter!