Paying for plastic bags!

dejongj said:
We just put it either in the erator or wheelie bins. Haven't used bin bags in years.
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I'd hate to see the inside of your wheelie bin (or smell it) if you just throw raw waste into it. Even my main kitchen bin has large black bin bags that have drawstrings to seal before going into the wheelie bin.

I prefer to keep the waste bagged and avoid the smells and flies (or worse) that come from just throwing rubbish into the wheelie bin.
 
Dave1 said:
I'd hate to see the inside of your wheelie bin (or smell it) if you just throw raw waste into it. Even my main kitchen bin has large black bin bags that have drawstrings to seal before going into the wheelie bin.

I prefer to keep the waste bagged and avoid the smells and flies (or worse) that come from just throwing rubbish into the wheelie bin.
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As I said, raw waste goes in the erator (y) we have difficulties filling a black wheelie bin every fortnight.
 
kendo1 said:
The trouble is: we now have to buy bin bags
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And the Black bags here as well the council have decided to stop supplying them, to save a few pennies
edit although the charity bags are useful for the kitchen bin :D
 
dejongj said:
we have difficulties filling a black wheelie bin every fortnight.
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So do we, though our waste bin is green ;).

We have a separate blue wheelie bin for recyclables and while that one is normally filled in a fortnight the waste bin usually has 2 or 3 black bin bags worth of rubbish (which is only half to 2/3rds full).
 
Here, too.
We have a food recycling bin, must use recyclable bags
a Recycling bin, which is the old green everyday bin
a Landfill bin, half the size of the old green bin, which only gets half full
a Garden waste bin
a glass recycling bin

Plastic bags tend only to be used for shopping up here, as well as shopping bags.
 
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oh dear ,its old news in wales ,just buy a few bags for life (err not the one you married) and don't forget to take them shopping with you ,it really has worked up here as you see very little plastic rubbish flying/lying around these days ,we have black wheelie bins for general waste ,brown ones for garden waste ,small blue bins for glass ,small grey bins for food waste with biodegradable plastic inserts (that burst every time you touch them ) big canvas type bags one for plastic ,one for tins ,and one for paper .my back garden now looks like a f*****g recycling depot ,and when the lazy arsed bin men come round half the stuff ends up in the road ,but hey ho we are saving the planet .
 
dejongj said:
Hmmm very odd, I have some sympathy for it if the proceeds are ring fenced for environmental projects or research but otherwise I don't get why local charities should benefit from a mandatory payment.
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Work have chosen to donate to a coastline/sea environmental charity. Ironically one of their key points is the cleaning of plastic from the sea.
 
A least we are lucky enough that all recycling goes in one and all waste in another. Having what looks like a sample collection for a wheelie bin manufacturer is ridiculous.
 
The planet doesn't need saving.
We're merely a common cold to be dealt with...and deal with it the planet will. :-)
 
Well there goes my morning entertainment when I have to get the train up to London.
It was always amusing to see the confusion in the buffet car about paying / not paying for bags depending which side of the Severn Tunnel we happened to be on :lol:

kendo1 said:
The trouble is: we now have to buy bin bags
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They're 5p each ;)
 
SarahLee said:
Well there goes my morning entertainment when I have to get the train up to London.
It was always amusing to see the confusion in the buffet car about paying / not paying for bags depending which side of the Severn Tunnel we happened to be on :LOL:



They're 5p each ;)
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The thing is, most people don't buy plastic bags up here, we tend to use shopping bags.
It's become a way of life. I still have a stack of plastic bags I keep in my car for emergencies that have been there since the bag charge was introduced.
 
kendo1 said:
The thing is, most people don't buy plastic bags up here, we tend to use shopping bags.
It's become a way of life. I still have a stack of plastic bags I keep in my car for emergencies that have been there since the bag charge was introduced.
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You'll be surprised how quickly you get used to it.
We always used shopping bags as bin liners / dog poop bags too, but before long you get into the habit of buying them.
Not really sure how well the charge has worked to reduce plastic waste though - we still use exactly the same number of bags.

Dave1 said:
Just buy these and use them instead for 2p each. I might even do that if I forget to take bags to the supermarket :p
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TBH supermarkets aren't really a problem.
You know when you're going grocery shopping and you make sure that you take re-usable bags with you.

Where it gets a bit of a PITA is those impulse purchases as you're wandering around town etc.
I mean it's not as if you go out with your pockets stuffed full of spare carrier bags just in case you might decide you want to buy something. :LOL:
 
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SarahLee said:
Where it gets a bit of a PITA is those impulse purchases as you're wandering around town etc.
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I've always carried a plastic bag in my 'manbag'. Hardly a big deal.
 
SarahLee said:
TBH supermarkets aren't really a problem.
You know when you're going grocery shopping and you make sure that you take re-usable bags with you.

Where it gets a bit of a PITA is those impulse purchases as you're wandering around town etc.
I mean it's not as if you go out with your pockets stuffed full of spare carrier bags just in case you might decide you want to buy something. :LOL:
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Those impulse purchases normally are supermarkets for me ;)

I go in for the loaf of bread and buy 15 other things as well, it's not always an issue as I have bags in the boot as we shop at LIDL as well, I won't really miss the supermarket bags for carrying shopping as much as I will for their use around the house, I suppose it just means buying more rolls of bags...
 
It's hilarious watching people juggle 3 bottles of wine , apples, a pizza, 2 mars bars and a croissant because they won't pay for a bag.
 
In coat weather, I carry a neatly folded plastic carrier bag in a pocket for emergencies. I just have to remember to replace it afterwards. I sometimes forget, so I pick up a small box to carry it all.
 
Surprised nobody had already started a thread, I thought it may be to trivial to moan about. But most of us will moan about the most silly little insignificant things, especially on here and I am one of the most guilty :) .
I started it only because me and the missus witnessed a funny event in John Lewis yesterday. A woman who appeared to be very well to do, she looked like a money person. Started shouting why should she pay five pence for a bag, as she was spending £80 on a top. The sales assistant wrapped the item in wrapping paper, as the woman said she will not pay for a bag!
 
I'm sure someone did an environmental impact assessment and discovered the single use carrier bag if re used a couple of times was actually less damaging than either a paper bag or a bag for life. The bag for life has to be re-used a lot of times.

I've just bought some cheap cotton carriers. They've probably used a bazillion times the energy and material than the few plastic ones they'll replace.
 
Dave1 said:
Same here, 3 small bins around the house now need proper bin bags. I never threw old shopping bags away (empty) they were always used for bins and dog mess.
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I just use the charity 'recycle your clothes for the red cross/pdsa/rspca but we'll keep 95% of any money thank you very much' bags as bin liners. Very rarely do I run out and have to actually use a bin liner bag off a purchased roll of them.
 
I am going to use my Recyclable Asda bags, I was going to buy a Home Bargains bag for life for a whopping 10p. But they will not recycle it for a new one when it is worn out, so defeating the object then! Going to be fun shopping in John Lewis with an Asda bag :)
 
Can't be very hygienic if we find ourselves re-using the same bag to put meat and loose items in (veg, fruit and bread)? I suspect some people won't have that to mind when it comes to using bags for life.
 
Let's spend a moment to think of the enormous amount of tiny plastic particles broken down and floating around in the oceans thousands of miles away from your nearest Tescos.

That's enough. Now how am I going to get all these 3 for 2 beer bottles home?
 
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andy182 said:
we should have grown paper bags like the US. More biodegradable
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When I were a lad, the local Safeway used to provide brown paper bags. Probably before plastic carrier bags became commonplace.
 
The other issue is as you now have to carry around large bags to put your shopping in if your shopping in a multi shop complex ,this is a super opening for shop lifters .i would love to know if there has been a increase in shoplifting since this was introduced
 
f1charlie said:
When I were a lad, the local Safeway used to provide brown paper bags. Probably before plastic carrier bags became commonplace.
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That's because Safeway is US owned :-)
 
SarahLee said:
Where it gets a bit of a PITA is those impulse purchases as you're wandering around town etc.
I mean it's not as if you go out with your pockets stuffed full of spare carrier bags just in case you might decide you want to buy something. :LOL:
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Totally agree with this. Particularly if you're shopping for a present and have no idea what you plan to buy.

I bought knee high boots that came in a giant box and told the girl I didn't need the box so that I could fit them in my bag. She looked like i'd just offered to peel off all her fingernails but I rammed them in my bag to avoid the 5p. It becomes a bit of a challenge, avoiding the tax.
 
Think of it not as avoiding the 5p, but as helping the environment. Tell her to imagine all marine life "screaming" every time someone takes a bag from her.
 
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Plastic bags are also free store advertising space.

It does make it harder to buy on impulse if you don't want to have to fork out for a plastic bag as well. I'm surprised stores haven't just decided to add the price of the bag onto the ticket price and say there is a 5p discount if you don't take a bag.
 
Good idea. But if you have n bags worth its difficult to calculate the discount. Especially if you bring your own huge bag.
And the net result of it is you pay the same any way. It just hides it. And part of the point of the tax is to raise awareness of avoiding plastic waste.
 
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You will all get used to it after a while. I'd even forgotten they give out free ones on England.
I have to pay minimum of 10p for bags. Sometimes more. So I'm used to having one in my pocket. It's more fun if it's one from a rival store though!
 
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Regarding outrage, has this tax got a derogatory nick name yet? Also, we are supposed to ask what will they do next? Then make wild suggestions on what crazy scheme they will come up with. Any whacky, illogical ideas?
 
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