now it’s your public-radio lunch bag 
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Just about!
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FYI to those who don’t know, but plastic bags can’t just go in regular plastic recycling, they’re problematic during the sorting process.
A lot of grocery stores have a plastic bag recycling spot you can bring them to instead
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Except that the availability of cheap used clothing has destroyed the garment industry in quite a few African countries.
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Well this doesn’t address the option of buying compostable garbage bags, which aren’t yet wide spread but are a more eco friendly option. I think they need to come down in cost as well as become more available to gain popularity
Brandless offers a $3 pet waste bag that is made from a material that breaks down much faster than plastic
Amazon offers a ton of compostable garbage bags, Glad even makes one
But yeah, nothing is a perfect solution- but nyc gives out tons of plastic bags daily- it makes me totally crazy- so if this ban only makes a 10% plastic reduction that would be huge
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And today on my local news, they reported that communities that have banned plastic bags show an increase in purchasing plastic trash bags. Turns out 22% of those plastic bags are recycled for use as trash bags. Shopping plastic bags are made from a lighter plastic vs. traditional trash bags, so we’re now using more plastic bags that might be more worse for the environment. Needs further study, but… 
I know building environmental solutions aren’t as sexy as the next Facebook, but I sure wish all this technological innovation we are so proud of could be focused on these sorts of problems instead.
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Is this $3 a bag or $3 for 90 bags? No one is going to pay $3 a bag for dog poop bags.
It might be more bags in the landfill, but I suspect that it’s a lot fewer “decorating” every tree, bush, fence, and ditch along the roads and highways. The last time we drove Route 179 between Phoenix and Tucson, I was appalled at the number of plastic bags desecrating the beautiful scenery.
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Do you mean between Phoenix and Sedona?
I can speak for myself for sure. For years, I had never bought any plastic garbage bags because I always used grocery plastic bag as trash bags. After I moved to California, I started to buy dedicated trash bags. I do use two grocery shopping bags (double bags) as trash bags because they are thin as you have said.
Still, I am sure that I am actually consuming more plastic now than before.
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$3 for 90 bags.
No, I definitely mean between Phoenix and Tucson. I love desert scenery. (I also love the scenery between Sedona and Flagstaff as well, which may be what you are thinking of.)
I personally think we’re all wringing our hands in futility. I think this because Single Stream Recycling is a disaster. Almost nothing that “can” be recycled “is” recycled in a single stream system. Landfills grow bigger, ocean dumping increases because of the volume of garbage mixed in with true recyclable materials.
Hey Congress! Hey EU! Wake up! Only you potentates have the power to fix this.
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I agree. It might be if big-W “We” as a society decided that serious recycling was a public good, like street lights and running water and paved streets, not something that would only happen if some entity could do it at a profit.
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You’re describing the cultural divide we’re living in. Places like where I live don’t aim to make a profit but also can’t sustain running deficits in these programs, so when China decides they don’t want our trash anymore all the interlocking but delicate gears get jammed, as is happening right now.
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It was never going to work. It only makes people feel good, but it is impossible, and these so called recycled trash simply go to regular trash landfill (in China or in some other countries).
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Easier to pack shopping bags than coffee cups:
AND… people like myself go in and pick the vintage for a higher price per pound and resell it so even the old clothing gets a whole new life!
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Just because you can’t do everything, doesn’t mean you should do nothing.
Keep recycling - keep up the struggle - keep trying to do better - keep pushing for improvements
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