Are the Bookstores platic bags really improving the environment?
The Union College Bookstore provides customers with bags that say “100% Recyclable Degradable Bag,” and “Improving the Environment, One Bag at a Time.” With all of the eco-friendly lingo that is being thrown around, realities can become hazy. The environmentally concerned members of the Union College community must sometimes wonder, ‘Could these plastic bags really be improving the environment?’ Plastic bags are traditionally made out of a polymer called polyethylene, which is composed of repeating units of tightly bonded carbon and hydrogen atoms arranged in chains. The carbon in plastic bags is harvested from petroleum and natural gas, which are carbon rich nonrenewable energy sources. Plastic can be recycled, but the process requires high temperature and pressure. This means that energy must be spent in order for the plastic material to be melted down, purified, and reformed. Also, when different kinds of plastic are recycled together, it degrades the quality of the final product. P
