For our second post, we would like to continue talking about the situation of plastic bags in our country because we want you
to realize the critical situation we’re going through. You probably have read
or heard about the “Plastic Bag Reduction Ordinance” that some regions started
to implement. Well, you might think why this? Why now?
In case you didn’t know, our country has the
highest production of solid waste in Latin America but only 10% of garbage is
recycled. If we only consider the use of plastic carryout bags, more than 3
millions are being used every year, that is, 200 plastic bags per person which generally
end up in landfills or public spaces such as squares, even in tourist places
like national parks.
For this reason, we saw mainly supermarkets
promoting a more environmentally friendly alternative. The nonwoven fabric bags
spread quickly and today not only supermarkets but also shoes and departmental
stores have replaced the traditional plastic bag by reusable shopping ones.
As my partner pointed out in the previous post,
the case of Chile is not different from what happened in many other countries.
The popularity of reusable bags has reached such a level that a new niche
product has been created. Consequently, several small and medium-sized
enterprises have emerged; some of which are expanding abroad. This is something
beneficial for the economy and the environment; however, there are other
aspects to take into consideration when it comes to the disadvantages such as
the monetary cost for users.
We may all agree that plastic bags are like a
plague difficult to eradicate and that any attempt to reduce their use has only
positive aspects. Nevertheless, there is one thing I’m concerned about: The
price of reusable bags. At the beginning, supermarkets sold these bags at $100
CLP then at $290 and now they cost $800 in some places.
You might think that $800 CLP is not that much,
but if we think about this when doing the grocery shopping, we usually need
more that one carrier bag. Therefore, we have to spend about $1600 or 2400 CLP additionally
only in bags because –and let’s admit this– most Chileans are not accustomed to
bring their own bags when shopping.
This may not look like a big deal; even so,
spending $2400 in carrier bags seems a considerable amount of money when we
consider that about 50% of Chilean workers earn the minimum wage and that they would
spend that money on other needs. Besides, what it bothers me the most is the
fact that supermarkets are taking advantage of this situation.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not against reusable bags!
But, why do they increase prices so often? In just a few months supermarkets
increased the price of bags eight times their initial cost and given the fact
that so far no one has said the opposite, now I’m wondering, are they
continuing to rise?
From my perspective, I don’t see the point in
restricting the use of plastic bags –which had no cost for consumers– and
imposing a new system that is advantageous to companies. In order to make a
major change in our habits, first of all, I would suggest that bags shouldn’t
be so expensive and secondly, that the government or even supermarkets should
create a strong campaign for raising people’s awareness about the importance of
reusable shopping bags.
