wild places | wild happenings | wild news
make a difference for our wild places

home | links | search the site
  all articles latest | past | articles by topics | search wildnews
wild news on wildsingapore
  Today Online 9 Jun 06
Give reusable bags a try
Letter from Ong Seng Eng
Head, Resource Conservation Department
National Environment Agency

We thank Hwee Luzhny and Khoo Lih-Han for their feedback, published on June 6, on the National Environment Agency's (NEA) latest campaign to conserve resources by reducing the use of plastic bags.

It is important for refuse to be bagged before disposal as this would prevent malodours and vermin infestation. Nevertheless, we see the liberal issue and excessive use of plastic bags as a wasteful habit and would like to urge shoppers to take only what they need.

By using reusable bags, we can cut down the number of plastic bags used for bagging groceries. If we refrain from taking plastic bags for small purchases such as candy, drink cans, newspaper, etc, we can further reduce the number of plastic bags used. Such items are small enough to be held or put into bags we are likely to be carrying.

To bring this message home, NEA launched a campaign "Why waste plastic bags? Use reusable bags!" early this year in February.

Working with the major supermarkets and retailers, we hope to educate both shoppers and cashiers to curb wastage of plastic bags. The participating stores have taken various initiatives such as providing reusable bags at cost to customers to encourage them to make the switch. More retailers are also being invited to join us in raising public awareness and to make it more convenient or attractive for shoppers to use reusable bags.

We take this opportunity to encourage everyone to ask for less plastic bags and to reuse those that we already have.
links
Related articles on Singapore: reduce, reuse, recycle
about the site | email ria
  News articles are reproduced for non-profit educational purposes.
 

website©ria tan 2003 www.wildsingapore.com