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| Today
Online 9 May
05 Japanese green efforts are exemplary Singapore should adopt similar policies to control plastic bag usage Letter from Chan Yeok Kwan I COULDN'T agree more on the necessity to spare a thought for the staggering numbers of plastic bags consumed daily. The properties of plastic bags — low cost, light weight, water resistant, energy efficient to produce and easily discarded — make them so ideal for carrying daily purchases that it's hard to imagine life without them. I had been living in Japan for 6 years and observed how some Japanese go the extra mile to recycle plastic bags. There are member-owned retail co-operatives that do not provide plastic bags. Patrons have to bring their own plastic or cloth bags to put their groceries. Normally, prices at these stores are slightly cheaper than elsewhere as savings are passed on to the consumers. There are supermarkets where you need to buy plastic bags. There are also many supermarkets in Japan that carry a few different sizes of plastic bags for different merchandise. I notice some supermarkets in Singapore basically carry only two sizes of bags: One for normal items and one extra-large bag for bulky items like toilet paper rolls. It's a waste to use the normal-sized bag for just one or two small items. Another point is that instead of having the cashiers pack the items into the plastic bags, Japanese shoppers are given the minimum number of plastic bags to pack their purchases. There are areas close to the checkout counters, where you can carry your paid items to and pack at your own pace. Some stores use strong, durable plastic bags which can almost take the weight of a child and can pack more items. There are TV programmes that show you how to efficiently pack your groceries using fewer plastic bags. Some simple folding techniques to neatly fold plastic bags into triangular shapes are also taught, so that they do not take up space in your handbags. . Special attention has also been given to certain plastic packaging, such as the plastic egg carton, so that their sharp edges are smoothened to avoid cutting through the plastic bags. Over in Singapore, I have been using newspaper to wrap around egg cartons before placing it into a plastic or cloth bag. As consumerism is mostly about replenishment and replacement of old items, adopting a more environmentally responsible attitude goes a long way to preserve our environment for future generations. While we can afford to buy new things to replace old things, we simply cannot afford to move to another planet just because this planet is getting too polluted. Everybody's effort, no matter how big or small, counts. Letter from Chan Yeok Kwan links More about plastic bags and other marine debris that threatens our marine wildlife on Coastal Clean Up Singapore Related articles on Singapore: plastic bags More articles on Singapore: general environmental issues |
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