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Item 4: Ordinance Encouraging Use of Reusable Bags
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Item 4: Ordinance Encouraging Use of Reusable Bags
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10/22/2012
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Bag Ban Public Testimony 7/24/2012 – 9/17/2012 <br />The preferred use of hydrocarbon is moving towards recyclable products and not to be burned and <br />consumed as an energy source. For instance polyethylene film is primarily produced from natural gas <br />and is recyclable indefinitely. <br /> <br />Please seek better solutions to tossed trash. Some countries put people in jail for tossing a cigarette <br />butt. Please do not deprive citizens of a very remarkable, low cost, efficient product that we all use every <br />day. <br /> <br />George R. Hermach <br />th <br />2165 W 29 Ave <br />Eugene, OR 97405 <br />541-686-2793 <br />We include our previous comments dated March 2, 2012: <br /> <br />We offer our comments re your consideration of a possible ban on plastic grocery bags. <br /> <br />As dedicated environmentalists, we have reviewed many studies which conclude that kraft paper bags <br />are not environmentally superior to plastic bags, considering the much larger product mass, raw materials <br />required, processing and fabrication, inconvenience of use (weak handles), and lack of secondary use. <br /> They are much more expensive. <br /> <br />The light weight plastic bags, so universally used, have a very tiny mass, probably similar to a couple of <br />grains of wheat. As a family, we reuse all of the plastic bags we receive, almost entirely to sanitarily <br />contain the small amount of kitchen waste we generate. The convenient handles fit over the wire rack we <br />have fastened to the cabinet door under the sink. When full, we tie the handles together before it is <br />deposited in the 32 gallon Sanipac can. No garbage is ever spilled in the automated dumping process <br />Sanipac employs. <br /> <br />If we no longer obtain plastic bags from retailers, we would have to purchase them in bulk from plastic <br />bag suppliers. <br /> <br />We have never placed a plastic bag in Sanipac’s recycling bins. We have never deposited them <br />elsewhere, discarded them in the environment, or lost them to the wind. The amount of bags we receive <br />seems to match our needs and creates no unwanted surplus. <br /> <br />We consider plastic bags far, far superior to kraft paper bags, both in handling groceries and in <br />subsequent uses. Plastic bags are moisture proof and paper bags are not. We have experienced spilled <br />groceries many times due to torn handles and ripped bottoms when moist produce weakens them. <br /> Plastic bags are just as recycleable as paper, perhaps even more so. <br /> <br />We are well aware of the power of the timber industry in Oregon and the prolonged, well financed <br />campaign to prohibit plastic bags. A proper solution to abandoned bags, whether plastic or paper, is <br />education. Bags have many uses and need not be discarded in the larger environment. Retailers <br />certainly recover their bag costs in their pricing structures. While we always bring our five cloth bags to <br />Market of Choice, it is not practical to do that for every store on our shopping route, such as Longs and <br />Newmans. A separate charge for bags is an unnecessary inconvenience, both to the retailer and the <br />customer. Surely there is a better solution to ocean pollution. Increase fines and penalties for improper <br />trash disposal. <br /> <br />We urge that you study this issue more intensively, using all of the sources of information available. <br /> <br />We suggest that there are more important issues facing our community than banning plastic bags. <br /> <br />Sincerely, <br /> <br /> <br />
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