The New York City Department of Sanitation collects more than 10,500 tons of residential garbage and institutional and 1,760 tons of recyclable materials, every day, while managing solid waste and cleaning trash or snow from 6,300 miles of streets.
Of that trash, in New York alone, single-use plastic bags account for 1,700 tons of residential trash each week, which equates to 91,000 tons of plastic each year, costing the city $ 12.5 million a year to collect and process these wastes, this according to a New York State Government report.
On average, only 12% of the total discarded plastic bags are recycled annually in the United States. And if that outlook wasn’t grim, education about environmental havoc and climate change has been shown to only achieves a 5% reduction in plastic usage from a single usage among Americans.
If New Yorkers recycled to their fullest potential, around the 68% of the 3 million tons of garbage that are produced in homes, municipal buildings and city schools each year would not end up in landfills. But nevertheless, the residential recycling rate is 18%. In addition, businesses, stores and restaurants, which are part of an independent and poorly regulated commercial garbage system, recycle only 24% of the more than 3 million tons of garbage they produce each year, according to a recent industry report.
While New York, like other states in the nation, has enacted fundamental bans to curb the irresponsible use of single-use plastic bags, many wonder if it is sufficient or effective, and if the effort is significant in environmental terms. .
Perhaps the biggest problem lies not in the consumption of bags every time a New Yorker goes to the supermarket or the grocery store on the corner, but in the mass production of plastic.
It is projected that by 2028, the mass production of plastics will increase by more than 40% despite the environmental havoc.
Consumers are partly responsible for limiting the rampant use of plastic, but the industry can symbolize a bigger problem if it is recognized that the root cause of the crisis may be the amount of plastic that is being produced rather than the amount of plastic that is being produced. is using.
Every year there are 300 million tons of plastics, half of which are single use. Plastic bags are used for everyday purposes, such as buying food, buying takeout and in retail, and only a fraction of that waste is recycled.
The 2012 Economic Manufacturing Census for the state of New York, compiled by the Department of Commerce, revealed that in 2011 there were 69 plastic manufacturing plants in New York. Of the 69 companies, the census reports that 30 were mainly engaged in the manufacture of plastic bags. In total, the industry had shipments totaling more than $ 1 billion a year.
However, bans such as those in New York and New Jersey are worthwhile and necessary attempts to encourage consumers towards sustainable methods, such as replacing plastic bags with cloth or reusable ones.
And for Hispanics, so accustomed to reusing due to limited purchasing power in our countries of origin, it can be a way of reverting to the old practice of carrying “grocery bags” when shopping.
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