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Calleigh Sheeks
T. Sotira
English Comm. 1101
12-02-15
The Truth Behind Plastic Bags
Originating in 1860 and further developed in 1907 by Leo Hendrik Baekland, was the
birth of the first plastic bag made of synthetic polymer composed from phenol and
formaldehyde. Flash forward 100 years and you can see the negative effects such a convenient
object portrays. Since 1994 plastic bags have caused a growing concern; harming the
environment, innocent animals, and the societys health. In the meantime, 12 U.S. jurisdictions
have banned plastic bags, the most recent being the city of Chicago in August of this year.
Plastic bags are harmful to the environment in various ways. Due to peoples careless
actions and uneducated knowledge of how to dispose of plastic bags, they end up in landfills and
cause litter in the oceans. It takes years for plastic bags to fully degrade naturally in landfills due
to the harmful chemicals they are made of. According to the article Plastic Pollution by Robert
Kiener from CQ Researcher, it takes approximately 500-1,000 years for plastic bags to
decompose in a landfill; and that is with ideal weather conditions such as moderate light and
temperature. This means that the first plastic bag ever made could potentially still exist in a
landfill somewhere. One problem this creates is that with the amount of plastic bags being
produced and used compared to the amount of space in landfills and on Earth alone, we will
eventually run out of space to dispose of the bags. With this, engineers are coming up with ways
to dispose of plastic bags by burning them; however, this poses another threat to the planet.
When plastic bags are burned or disposed of by using chemicals, it produces harmful toxics in

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the air that destroy the atmosphere. Robert Kiener also states that, Dutch scientists have found
590,000 tons of discarded plastic on the bottom of the North Sea alone. That being said, imagine
how many plastic bags cover the entire ocean. In 2008 only 7.1% of manufactured plastics were
recycled. And in 2009 during a beach and waterway cleanup, 500,000 volunteers picked up over
7.4 million pounds of marine debris across 108 locations (Kiener). This shows that across the
world, beaches that provide a home to various animals, are being polluted and in turn can cause
harm to these innocent creatures. With this, all this pollution is causing harm to the environment
along with the animals living in it.
Plastic Bags are endangering land and sea creatures. Due to the inconsiderate acts of
littering, animals eat plastic bags because they mistake them for food. When the animals eat the
plastic bags, it fills up their stomachs, and blocks their intestines causing them to die; they also
get tangled up in the plastic bags. When they get tangled in the plastic bags, many animals,
especially marine creatures, have had to have limbs amputated because their blood supply is cut
off. Along with this, the plastic bags also cause strangulation. According to the article How Bad
is the Ocean's Plastic Problem? Check with Sea Birds by Beatrice Gitau from The Christian
Science monitor, in 1960, less than five percent of seabirds had plastic in their stomachs; nearly
90% of all seabirds alive today have plastic in their stomachs. This means that within about 50
years there has been an 85% increase. This shows that it is becoming an increasingly larger
problem. In India, 15-20 cows are dying each month due to ingesting between 50-60 plastic bags
each that are blocking their stomachs (Kiener). With rates like these and the current rate of
production of plastic bags, more and more animals are going to die and become endangered.
According to the article, Can we Save the Sea Turtles from our Plastic? by Olivia Lowenberg
from The Christian Science Monitor, all 7 sea turtle species along with other animals are getting

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tangled up in plastic bags floating in the ocean. Marine debris has affected at least 267 species of
seabirds and marine animals total worldwide, and according to Robert Kiener an estimated
100,000 animals die a year from plastic bags. If these statistics arent a wakeup call, I dont
know what is. These numbers show that something needs to be done about this problem before it
is too late.
Along with this, plastic bags are harmful to societys health. Have you ever thought about
what goes into the production of plastic bags? The answer is a lengthy list of various hazardous
chemicals. Plastic bags are harming not only those who work at companies who manufacture
plastic bags, but they are also harming those who live nearby. In the article Plastic Pollution by
Robert Kiener, he states that those who work at manufacturing companies for plastic bags are
exposed to cancer causing chemicals. Another way plastic bags are harmful to peoples health is
due to the fact that we are eating plastic. This occurs due to the plastic pollution in the ocean.
When fish and other sea food people consume eat the plastic bags that end up in the ocean, it
remains in their intestines. These fish are then found with toxins in them. People then eat the
fish, and end up with the same harmful toxins in their bodies (Kiener). This shows the
continuous chain of events that occurs. Humans manufacture the plastic bags using harmful
chemicals which in turn end up in a landfill or people litter. They are then consumed by animals.
After this we eat that animal and the process begins all over again.
To many, plastic bags are a convenience. People use them at the grocery store, when they
go shopping, and they are also used within homes to dispose of garbage. They are a daily used
item. Along with this, since they are made from such cheap materials, plastic bags are disposed
of after a one time use. Although plastic bags are very convenient, they do more harm than good.
Regardless of the fact that plastic bags are a superior alternative which is cost effective and they

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are also energy efficient, plastic bags are harmful worldwide due to the fact that they harm the
environment, innocent animals, and societys well-being.
With this growing concern of the negative effects plastic bags pose, many states along
with some countries have already banned the production, distribution, and use of plastic bags. If
plastic bags were to be banned, it would decrease pollution, help save wildlife species, reduce the
risk of cancer, and reduce the controversy of eating plastic. This would help benefit society by
enforcing the sale of reusable bags which would help create a profit for companies. It would also
clean up the Earth and make it a safer place to live. We only have one planet that is inhabitable
and now is the time to start realizing we need to fix this problem before it takes the life of
another innocent creature. In conclusion, plastic bags are harmful to the environment, animals,
and societys health, and in turn should be banned.

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Works Cited
Gitau, Beatrice. "How Bad is the Ocean's Plastic Problem? Check with Sea Birds." The Christian
Science MonitorSep 01 2015.ProQuest. Web. 18 Nov. 2015 .
Kiener, Robert. "Plastic Pollution." CQ Global Researcher 1 July 2010: 157-84. Web. 18 Nov.
2015.
Lowenberg, Olivia. "Can we Save the Sea Turtles from our Plastic?" The Christian Science
MonitorOct 11 2015. ProQuest. Web. 18 Nov. 2015 .