Bad news for environmental doomsdayers

Debra Saunders writes:

A new study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences could mean bad news for environmental doomsayers. Forget all those warnings about the million tons of plastic debris floating in the ocean.

What people think of as a dump doesn't look like floating junk. Instead, ocean current "convergence zones" are swirling with flecks of plastic - like a snow globe half a minute after shaking - and with considerably less plastic trash than expected.

We do know, however, that single-use plastic bags require fewer resources than reusable bags - which you have to wash - and paper bags. Plastic bags litter harbors, but also represent less than 1 percent of the U.S. municipal waste stream. It's a mistake to believe that what might replace them would have no downside.

Please read more here.

And while we are on the subject of replacing plastic bags, the next time you bring your precious cloth bag to the grocery store, would you please offer to bag the items yourself? It slows down the line when the cashier has to hold your bag with one hand while scanning your items and then packing them with the other hand. At the very least, please be thoughtful enough to wash your bags before bringing them on your next trip.