Random question of the day: Do you recycle plastic bags?

Do you recycle plastic bags?

  • Yes!

    Votes: 47 67.1%

  • No, I don't bother

    Votes: 10 14.3%

  • No, there's nowhere to recycle

    Votes: 13 18.6%
  • Total voters
    70
DawnMarch

DawnMarch

Active member
I know this is a random question but i'm curious if you recycle plastic bags? We use re-usable canvas grocery bags, but it was still driving me crazy throwing away other plastic bags, so I started collecting them and taking them to the recycle bin at the grocery store.

Now that I've started collecting them in one place, I canNOT believe how many bags we collect each week -- the ones the newspaper comes in, Target and pharmacy bags, the little bags that the Lego pieces come in, produce bags, on and on and on . . . They really need to make it easier to recycle this stuff!
 
Yes, but I also re-use them. I use them for DH's lunch, for trash bags in the bathrooms, as trash bags in the car, for packing and transporting breakables, and anything else that requires a small flimsy container. I always keep some, then recycle the rest. They pile up fast.

I bought reusable grocery bags but I always forget them. =\
 
Nobody around here will take them, so I have no choice but to throw them away. It makes me ill every time! I try to use "green bags" whenever I can, but the plastic ones still seem to accumulate.
 
Not really, but I reuse them so I don't throw them out. They are used as binbags, when the kids need to bring wellies etc to school.

I try to use reusable bags when I buy food, I use the big blue ones you get at IKEA, but I don't always remember to put them in the car.
 
we reuse ours. My husband uses them as lunch bags and we use them as small trash bin liners. However we mostly use canvas shopping bags, so I don't end up with a lot of plastic bags to begin with.
 
I recycle anything that can be recycled ... plastic, cardboard, cans, glass, etc. When we go grocery shopping, we only use the reusable grocery bags, I have about 15 of them.
If I do end up with a plastic grocery bag, I keep a few around, in case the kids need them to take things to and from school, go for a sleepover (although normally they use their backpacks or travel bags), carry home library books, etc.

It's amazing how much I used to throw away! Before I got serious about recycling everything, I used to have 2 full garbage cans on pickup day ... now I am lucky if I have 1 full can! (ok, so it also helps to no longer have a kiddo wearing diapers ... those fill up the garbage quickly!)
 
I try to use "green bags" whenever I can, but the plastic ones still seem to accumulate.
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Yes, exactly. We just seem to end up with them from one place or another. Like the newspaper bags -- we get 2 newspapers and every day each one comes wrapped in its own plastic bag. Um, we live it ARIZONA! It never rains! Why do we need these bags???!!!
 
i recycle them by reusing them and also by throwing them in my recycle bin at home. :) i don't collect many now that i always keep some canvas bags in my car.
 
tuneskids said:
It's amazing how much I used to throw away! Before I got serious about recycling everything, I used to have 2 full garbage cans on pickup day ... now I am lucky if I have 1 full can!
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this is totally us. we went to a couple recycle bins and we usually only have 1 and a half trash bags in our trash every friday. much better!
 
yes, i bring all my plastic bags (sans the ones for kitty litter) back to HEB to be recycled. i also use envirosax when i shop... they are super cute!

xo
 
If our recycling company didn't make it so effing difficult, we'd recycle more. I really need to keep our canvas bags in the backseat of my car, because I never remember to use them! Jordan's good about using them to grocery shop though, so that's a LOT less bags coming in the house.

I re-use plastic bags for garbage and such. Either in trash bins or for my craft garbage or whatever.
 
My town doesn't take them (I recycle everything I possibly can!) but I reuse them all. I also have some canvas bags so I don't have to use so many plastic bags- but then I forget the canvas ones when I go to the store! lol!
 
I voted yes, because we reuse them. But, there is no place here for me to officially recycle them.
 
We use canvas bags for groceries and Target trips.

However, we purposefully also use the plastic bags at groceries, Target, Walmart and such on occasion because we recycle those bags and donate them to our local food pantry to use when we're handing food out to clients. Saves us from spending pantry resources just to buy bags. We have a drive at the church just for the bags ;)

We also repurpose bags for bin liners and cat box cleaning (veg. bags, other sized small bags, etc). We rarely just throw out a plastic bag.
 
we recycle those bags and donate them to our local food pantry to use when we're handing food out to clients. Saves us from spending pantry resources just to buy bags. We have a drive at the church just for the bags
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oh, that's a really good idea! I also read in the paper that Phoenix has a pilot program where instead of having the city buy doggy waste bags to stock at the local parks, they have new containers at the park where you can put your extra plastic bags for people to use for their dogs.
 
I kinda recycle....I reuse them for other stuff. My kids use them to take stuff to school that they dont want in a backpack. They use them for clothes when they are going to spend the night out somewhere. We use them in the bathroom for garbage bags in the trash can so we dont have to buy the ones made to fit that tiny can. So while I do not take them anywhere to recycle them I dont just toss them in the trash either without using them for some other purpose.
 
we have to take them to Safeway or Walmart to recycle them and you're right... they collect fast!!
 
We use canvass ones, and try to use any plastic ones as bin bags etc until they have to be recycled. Our Council is just about to step up their recycling programme so we will be able to recycle just about anything - from old bags to any and all waste food, you name it. Hooray - finally!
 
Here in WA it is super easy to recycle. We have a big can, bigger than our garbage can, that is picked up every other week :) We recycle everything we can.
 
We have a big recycle bin here too, Fairon, which is great. But they don't take plastic bags (and I think most recycling companies don't) which is not so great.
 
We take some back to Safeway for recycling and we reuse others. I have canvas and fabric totes that I use most of the time but Wal mart cashiers always behave as if I am causing them the inconvenience of a lifetime when I use them. They are Eco sacks. They are the exact same size & shape as wal mart's plastic bags. They are designed to hook over the bag holders just like a regular plastic bag does but most of the cashiers just look at me and say "I don't have any place for these. You'll have to bag them yourself." Some of them are fine with them but most of them give me such a hassle I don't bother using them there.
 
Ooopppsss... want to change my vote... I don't recycle, but reuse them too... garbage cans, carrying stuff to my Mom's, and also as cushion when shipping a package.
 
We use canvas bags for most trips but still accumulate a few plastic ones (we don't get the newspaper so we don't get those) for dirty diapers while we are out or for recycling our cans and stuff since there is no curb service here.

Visiting my grandparents a month ago I saw how my grandpa had neatly folded all the plastic bags and rubber banded them together and they only use them for their garbage bags. So neat and tidy, but of course they don't make much trash either so it totally works for them.
 
We reuse and recycle. We do a lot of recycling. Sometimes, when I haven't remembered to put out the stuff for a couple of pickups, I start muttering stuff about not loving the planet enough to let the plastic, paper, and jars take over my life. But yeah...we even had to request extra recycle bins from the city.

We do have to take the unused grocery bags elsewhere for recycling though.
 
Serendipity said:
Yes, but I also re-use them. I use them for DH's lunch, for trash bags in the bathrooms, as trash bags in the car, for packing and transporting breakables, and anything else that requires a small flimsy container. I always keep some, then recycle the rest. They pile up fast.

I bought reusable grocery bags but I always forget them. =\
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Me too! ...except from what I have heard from a few people the store recycling of bags isn't happening...they are getting thrown away...we just "thought" they were recycling...so technically we still don't have a place to recycle them...

I forget mine too...I put them in the van and don't remember about them until we're checking out most times.
 
When I don't have my canvas bags with me and use plastic, yes, I do recycle them at our grocery store (they have a big container to put them in for recycle.
 
We started recycling everything we could about a year ago. We had always reused our plastic bags before that, but now we recycle all of them. We are a family of 3 and we are down to 1 bag of trash for our whole family for one week. We used to not be able to fit everything in our big trash tote and now its funny because there is one lonely bag in the bottom each week. Recycling makes a HUGE difference! And its great because my 4 year old is really into it too!
 
We're more of a re-user family...I use them when I clean out the cat litter box, for small garbage cans around the house, etc. I've got the canvas bags for grocery shopping and I'm trying to get in the habit of actually bringing them into the store! I tend to get to the check out and then say, "Crap, I forgot them" and then end up with paper bags!
 
Food for thought if you have to choose paper or plastic at the checkout... My DH designs the machines that make garbage bags... The biggest argument for plastic is the raw materials and energy to produce and recycle (if they get recycled) a plastic bag is significantly less (about 90%) then to produce a paper bag.

Then to be fair, the other side of the argument...

The argument against plastic is the bags that aren’t recycled sit in a landfill for a lot longer since they don’t biodegrade very quickly.

:)
 
Over here plastic bags are really more the norm than exception, so yes I recycle them. A friend of mine even taught me how to fold them into tight triangles for easier storage. I just label them S, M, L (small, medium, large) with a Sharpie so I don't keep unfolding them to find out what size they are.

I find I like folding them, haha. It's relaxing for me, though sometimes I admit I do get lazy and just squish them all into a shopping bag until I can get to them :p
 
I use reusable bags when I can, and all my plastic ones get used either as kitty litter bags or for holding diapers of the kids I babysit, lol
 
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