Q&A: Plastic bags

Why are plastic bags back in the news?

London is considering a ban on the millions of free plastic shopping bags given away by shops each year.

Chief executives of the 33 London councils are expected to recommend a ban today after receiving overwhelming public support for the proposals, which were first put forward in July.

Is there support for this ban?

Yes. More than 90% of organisations asked by London Councils, the body that represents the city authorities, said they wanted a complete ban, or would support a 10-15p levy on every bag.

A survey last month by the British Market Research Bureau found that almost three-quarters of adults would be prepared to pay for reusable carrier bags.

It also found that if supermarkets stopped supplying free plastic bags, 14% of respondents said they would be prepared to pay £2 or more for a reusable woven shopping bag that would last for up to a year, 64% said they would pay between 50p and £1, while 11% thought that 20p was a fair price.

Which other cities have banned the plastic bag?

Traders in 80 mainly small towns round Britain have either introduced a voluntary ban or are considering one as a way to reduce landfill.

Brighton and Hove council last week became the largest authority in Britain to offer support for a voluntary ban.

Cities around the world, from San Francisco to Dacca in Bangladesh, have vastly reduced the number of bags being issued by imposing taxes.

Many towns in Britain have been inspired by the action of Rebecca Hosking, who persuaded all 34 local shops in her home town of Modbury in south Devon to substitute their plastic bags with reusable cloth bags.

The BBC camerawoman was moved to do this when she saw albatrosses, turtles and dolphins choking to death on plastic while filming in the Pacific last year.

What is the government's position on plastic bags?

The government has so far resisted a national ban or a levy, preferring a voluntary agreement with supermarkets to reduce the "overall environmental impact" of carrier bags by 25% by the end of 2008.

A statement on the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affair's website says: "There is no clear evidence that such a tax would be beneficial on either broad environmental or litter grounds. This is because people would be encouraged to use bags made from other materials or alternative forms of packaging, which may be equally or more damaging to the environment."

The mayor of London said in July that he was in favour of having a levy on plastic bags.

"I have called for financial incentives to encourage people not to use plastic bags in my waste strategy for London, but do not have any powers to take forward such a proposal. If the London local authorities are able to do this and they produce an action plan of how this will be implemented and enforced then I would support this initiative," he said.

Why are plastic bags so bad?

More than 17bn plastic bags are handed out by supermarkets a year - that's 300 for every man, woman and child - causing nearly 60,000 tonnes of plastic to go to landfill sites.

The bags can take between 400-1,000 years to break down, and like all forms of plastic they do not biodegrade. Instead they photodegrade, breaking down into smaller and smaller toxic bits that contaminate soil, waterways and oceans, entering the food chain when ingested by animals.

Many plastic bags end up as waste on our beaches, streets and parks. When a plastic bag enters the ocean it becomes a harmful piece of litter. Many marine animals mistake plastic bags for food and swallow them, with painful and often fatal consequences. Nearly 90% of floating marine litter is plastic.

What are retailers doing?

Last week Marks & Spencer announced that it planned to introduce a 5p charge for plastic grocery bags in England following a successful trial in Northern Ireland, which led to a 66% reduction in the number of bags used by customers. The trial will extend to 33 stores in south-west England from February. If successful, it will be rolled out across hundreds of M&S stores in a move to cut plastic waste.

Sainsbury's yesterday said the use of free carrier bags had fallen by 10% over the past six months, while the use of reusable bags rose by nearly 50%. Since February, all of its free bags have been made from 33% recycled plastic. A "bag for life" cost 10p, though they are sometimes given away. The supermarket said that if all its customers reused these bags 20 times, it would save 90m disposable bags a year. It has also sold £5 cotton bags designed by Anya Hindmarch with the slogan "I'm not a plastic bag", and had a one-day moratorium on plastic bags in April.

Tesco, the UK's largest supermarket, gives out 4bn free plastic bags each year, but allocates reward points to shoppers who refuse them. Online shoppers can choose bag-free delivery. The supermarket's carrier bags are biodegradable.

Asda gives out free disposable bags, although all those returned to the store are recycled. The supermarket sells reusable bags for 5p and jute bags for 97p. Cash register operators are instructed to offer fewer plastic bags to customers.

Waitrose was the first supermarket to introduce reusable bags, which it sells for 10p. It claims that in 2005 this helped reduce the number of disposable bags distributed by 54m. But it still hands out 250m free disposable bags a year to its customers.

What can I do?

Refuse plastic bags in shops, and try to recycle or reuse the ones you do have. Buy a woven cotton "eco-shopper" bag and keep it with you for when you need to go to the shops.

Can I get my town to ban plastic bags?

Yes, but you must start the campaign yourself, or with a group. Don't rely on councils or supermarkets. Get the trust of the traders by approaching them directly - a handout is not enough.

Gauge public support to encourage supermarkets and multiples to take part, and learn about what plastics are doing to the environment and research every type of alternative bag on the market.

Set a date for the ban and go for it.

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