Story by Tina Xie

In today's society, plastic pollution has become one of the world's biggest problems, and plastic shopping bags are considered to be one of the main sources. Therefore, some governments and organizations have called for a ban on the use of plastic shopping bags. However, we should realize that banning the use of plastic shopping bags will not solve the underlying problem.

In fact, alternative shopping bags are not always more environmentally friendly than plastic shopping bags and they may consume more resources and energy. A cotton shopping bag must be used approximately 130 times to produce a smaller carbon footprint than a plastic shopping bag. Growing cotton requires more pesticides for the crops, and processing and transportation requires a lot of energy. If plastic shopping bags were reused to line trash cans, cotton bags would need to be used more than three hundred times to reduce global warming potential（Source）.So what about using reusable plastic bags? Will it be more environmentally friendly than disposable plastic shopping bags? Reusable plastic bags are usually made from laminated plastic and are not recyclable. Depending on the type of plastic, whether low-density polyethylene or non-woven polyethylene, reusable bags must be used at least 10-20 times to become more environmentally friendly than single-use plastic bags. There are also contamination issues if reusable bags are not cleaned properly. The warm trunk is an excellent incubator for bacteria, which originate from the meat juices left in the bag（Source）. However, in real life, I think few people can use a bag frequently.

Plastic shopping bags do little harm to the ecological environment, so there is no need to ban the use of plastic bags. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says there are no published studies on how many marine mammals are killed by marine debris. Meanwhile, other sources of marine debris, such as abandoned fishing gear, are considered a threat to marine life （Source）. Consider a study by the UK Environment Agency, which found that plastic shopping bags had 100% lower risk in "human toxicity" and "oceanaquatic toxicity"as well as"worldwide warming potential"（（Source）So banning the use of plastic shopping bags will not necessarily bring the expected environmental benefits.

Banning plastic shopping bags could have an economic impact on retailers and consumers. A study from the National Center for Policy Analysis said banning plastic bags at grocery stores and retailers would negatively impact sales in no-bag zones and increase plastic bag sales. In the year since the ban was implemented, overall average sales in most of the bags-banned stores surveyed fell by nearly 6%. While the majority of respondents surveyed in areas without bans reported overall average sales growth of 9%.（（Source）. A survey by the National Center for Policy Analysis showed that employment in stores under the bag ban also dropped by 10% and employment in stores outside the ban increased slightly. Pamela Villarreal, a senior fellow at the National Center for Policy Analysis said this was particularly "shocking"（Source）. We usually focus on the environmental harm caused by plastic bags, but bag bans also have an impact on the economy and cause shopping inconvenience to consumers.

Some people say that plastic bags cause serious pollution to the environment. They are often discarded in streets, rivers and oceans, affecting the ecological balance. But these bags don't dive into the ocean on their own, jump into sewers, or fly without help. Humans are the real problem. With proper recycling, reuse or disposal, the benefits can outweigh the risks (Source).

Although banning plastic shopping bags has been proposed as a solution to the problem of plastic pollution, these arguments outweigh the positive aspects. By looking at the possible impacts of bans, I think we need to look for more comprehensive solutions.