Bag the plastic
Each year Americans throw out more than 100 billion plastic shopping bags, which end up polluting our oceans and killing millions of birds and fish and more than 100,000 sea turtles.
Plastic bags are a worldwide problem, and many European countries are doing something about it: In Ireland, for example, the government introduced a $.015-perbag "plastax" that has reduced plastic bag use by 95 percent since 2002.
While the U.S. hasn't imposed any laws, some companies are developing programs to stem waste. Nationwide, the Whole Foods Market refund program encourages shoppers to use bags from home by deducting 5 cents per bag from their bill; Lush bath and beauty company gives a free bar of soap to every customer who reuses a Lush bag four times in the store; Ikea has just created its own plastax ($0.05 per bag; proceeds fund the nonprofit American Forests) and will sell its reusable Big Blue Bag for $0.59. And as of press time, Wal-Mart's Kids Recycling Challenge has collected more than 350 tons of plastic bags to recycle.
