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New York, NY - U.N. Calls for Worldwide Ban on Plastic Bags |
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"Single-use plastic bags which choke marine life should be banned or phased out rapidly everywhere," said Achim Steiner, head of the U.N. Environment Program, according to McClatchy Newspapers. "There is simply zero justification for manufacturing them any more, anywhere."
Steiner's words accompanied the release of a U.N. report entitled "Marine Litter: A Global Challenge," which finds that plastic is the most pervasive form of pollution in the oceans.
"Plastic, the most prevalent component of marine debris, poses hazards because it persists so long in the ocean, degrading into tinier and tinier bits that can be consumed by the smallest marine life at the base of the food web," reads the report.
But the plastic-bag industry says that its bags aren't the problem — it's the people who throw them out.
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Read Comments (31) — Post Yours »
1
Jun 09, 2009 at 10:19 AM good american Says:
let the UN take care of more important things in the world, people!!! we have a couple of rogue nations building nuclear bombs, if they aren't stopped everthing will be destroyed anyway, so why the plastic bags? they're incompetent, so let them close down!!! we americans pay enormously for this non-grata institution, do something more productive please!!! so they'll ban plastic bags, but not bombs!!! interesting idea!!!
2
Jun 09, 2009 at 11:22 AM Oiber Chuchem Says:
Use plastic to save the trees. Use paper to save the oceans. Make up your mind.
3
Jun 09, 2009 at 10:54 AM Anonymous Says:
Why not design biodegradeable bags, or else figure out a way for plastic bags to be recycled. We need plastic bags. Paper bags are too bulky and cumbersome. The handles on paper bags tear much too easily. They are also not good for throwing away trash in. I try to reuse at least some of the plastic bags I get, although I do admit to getting more than I can reuse.
4
Jun 09, 2009 at 10:50 AM Anonymous Says:
Just another reason to be completely unimpressed with the United Nations. This gang of idiots will also protest any efforts to revert back to paper bags, despite the fact that they are biodegradable. The reason - trees. It is not "green" to cut down trees. Bloomberg wants to plant them everywhere they can tear up our streets (only to make us pay to fix them), the environmentalists will proclaim them to be pollution sources (they emit black sooty carbon when incinerated), and governments will attempt to tax them to the point where we will need to carry home our groceries balanced on our heads.
If they cannot make specific recommendations for alternatives, their work is destructive. But that has been the UN for so many years. Just anti-Israel junk and stupid reports like this one.
5
Jun 09, 2009 at 11:57 AM Anonymous Says:
The question is not paper or plastic. There should be no question. We should be using old-fashioned reuseable cloth bags. Does anyone remember string bags?? What did our grandparents use before all this wastefulness became so prevalent? We have become a throwaway society, where everything, from our bags to our pcs to our elderly grandparents and our spouses are disposed of at the earlieast convenience. Hardly the lesson we learned from Yaakov Avinu who went back across the river because "shochach pachim k'tanim"- he forgot some small vessels.
6
Jun 09, 2009 at 11:46 AM Loshon Hora Says:
Did he say that the UN should be packaged in plastic bags & dumped at the bottom of the Ocean?
If so it may be a good idea.
I guess the UN is becomming increasingly irrelevent.
7
Jun 09, 2009 at 11:43 AM Anonymous Says:
“ Use plastic to save the trees. Use paper to save the oceans. Make up your mind. ”
Trees re-grow. The oceans are what we've got. The UN is useless or worse but this is a valid point. Plastic lasts forever, pollutes our air when we make it and when we recycle it. There is some evidence even the "safest" plastics leach dangerous chemicals into our food and beverages. How about carrying those cloth ones supermarkets are selling even here in Israel?
8
Jun 09, 2009 at 11:39 AM Anonymous Says:
They are right. Plastic bags are a huge problem. They are a big contributor to the imminent collapse of our ocean ecosystems, on which a huge portion of the world depends for food.
9
Jun 09, 2009 at 12:58 PM TT Says:
Cloth material bags are the way to go. We should stop being a disposable society. Do you have a disposable income - I certainly don't.
10
Jun 09, 2009 at 12:41 PM Communist UN Says:
Let us all tell the Communist UN to take a hike to North Korea where they can patrol the gulags for litter. The UN is a sick and disgusting organization that is cruel to the kind and kind to the cruel. They make me sick. Use plastic LDPE film bags as much as possible. They are very environmentally friendly and recyclable. The UN is run by morons. Tell the British, Germans and French to stop dumping in the oceans.
11
Jun 09, 2009 at 12:25 PM The Commissioner Says:
The United Nations, has become a left wing political action group. Instead of wisdom, they preach random rubbish. They have become an organization based on paper, but there's nothing at the center. The United States should start a new "League", we can use the old name, "The League of Nations".
12
Jun 09, 2009 at 01:10 PM HAGTBG Says:
Paper bags and rain don't mix.
13
Jun 09, 2009 at 01:52 PM Anonymous Says:
the un is idiotic. we've got bigger and more dangerous things to worry about. besides, i and everyone i know have started using reusable bags years ago after getting tired of having a million plastic bags floating around the house after each shopping trip, we don't need these guys wasting our precious oxygen to tell us to do something we already do...
14
Jun 09, 2009 at 02:16 PM FVNMS Says:
I feel like murdering a fish right about now.
15
Jun 09, 2009 at 04:15 PM good american Says:
“ The question is not paper or plastic. There should be no question. We should be using old-fashioned reuseable cloth bags. Does anyone remember string bags?? What did our grandparents use before all this wastefulness became so prevalent? We have become a throwaway society, where everything, from our bags to our pcs to our elderly grandparents and our spouses are disposed of at the earlieast convenience. Hardly the lesson we learned from Yaakov Avinu who went back across the river because "shochach pachim k'tanim"- he forgot some small vessels. ”
what our grandfather's used??? why not travel with a horse and buggy??!! btw, our grandparents never had computers, let alone internet, so get off and stop blogging stupid comments!!!
16
Jun 09, 2009 at 03:34 PM Anonymous Says:
Watch out balloons-you're next.
17
Jun 09, 2009 at 03:21 PM Anonymous Says:
“ The question is not paper or plastic. There should be no question. We should be using old-fashioned reuseable cloth bags. Does anyone remember string bags?? What did our grandparents use before all this wastefulness became so prevalent? We have become a throwaway society, where everything, from our bags to our pcs to our elderly grandparents and our spouses are disposed of at the earlieast convenience. Hardly the lesson we learned from Yaakov Avinu who went back across the river because "shochach pachim k'tanim"- he forgot some small vessels. ”
maybe we should go back to the gool old times when they carried items on their shoulders with a stick and pail. maybe the un will be happier then. afterall plenty of the nations they represent carry merchaindise like that.
18
Jun 09, 2009 at 03:02 PM U.N. committee for destroying all human life Says:
#1-The important thing in life is to get rid of all humans. Only then will peace reign on Earth and will all those poor, poor fish be able to swim uninterrupted. There is no more eco-efficient way to kill all humans than through nuclear bombs, hence our active support in having them manufactured and sanctioning any country that pre-emptively strikes the nuclear facilities. Some have mentioned that atomic bombs will also harm marine life, but the cause of wiping out humanity is too great to be surpassed by such minor details.
As an aside, you may be worried about this brief break of Israel condemnations. Although the Zionist/Racist state continues to do terrible atrocities as we speak, it is worthwhile to just for a moment consider the feelings of aquatic creatures besides for the Palestenians. Please note that this cessation is just temporary. We will continue demanding a one state solution, for the Palestenians, in just a short time. We do apologize for the inconvenience.
19
Jun 09, 2009 at 05:37 PM cp Says:
If anyone wasn't sure the UN was a joke, they can now be convinced.
20
Jun 09, 2009 at 06:59 PM Anonymous Says:
“ let the UN take care of more important things in the world, people!!! we have a couple of rogue nations building nuclear bombs, if they aren't stopped everthing will be destroyed anyway, so why the plastic bags? they're incompetent, so let them close down!!! we americans pay enormously for this non-grata institution, do something more productive please!!! so they'll ban plastic bags, but not bombs!!! interesting idea!!! ”
i agree, such a shmoitefunes
21
Jun 09, 2009 at 07:32 PM Anonymous Says:
This is a very important step to address a critical problem. EY should be the first country to follow the UN's recommnedation to ban all plastic bags. Garbage is such a big problem in EY and most of the landfills are located in the Palestinian areas so its also a big social problem.
22
Jun 10, 2009 at 05:21 AM a plumber Says:
Kill the whales and feed the starving people. This reminds of the U.S. congress decision in the 1990s to legislate how much water went into a toilet flush. It's now a federal crime to buy or sell a toilet that uses more than 1.6 gallons per flush. What the environmental rocket scientists at the U.N. fail to remember is that 70 percent of the world flushes raw sewage into lakes and rivers. Get a handle on that before worrying about the 10 percent that use plastic bags. and BTW those 1.6 gallon toilets? You have to flush thm twice to get them to work right. So much for a great water saving idea.
23
Jun 10, 2009 at 03:34 AM Milhouse Says:
“ Trees re-grow. The oceans are what we've got. The UN is useless or worse but this is a valid point. Plastic lasts forever, pollutes our air when we make it and when we recycle it. There is some evidence even the "safest" plastics leach dangerous chemicals into our food and beverages. How about carrying those cloth ones supermarkets are selling even here in Israel? ”
No, it is not a valid point, it's a nonsense point. There is no basis whatsoever for this Steiner clown's claims. And plastic does not last forever; it degrades pretty quickly.
24
Jun 10, 2009 at 03:31 AM Milhouse Says:
“ The question is not paper or plastic. There should be no question. We should be using old-fashioned reuseable cloth bags. Does anyone remember string bags?? What did our grandparents use before all this wastefulness became so prevalent? We have become a throwaway society, where everything, from our bags to our pcs to our elderly grandparents and our spouses are disposed of at the earlieast convenience. Hardly the lesson we learned from Yaakov Avinu who went back across the river because "shochach pachim k'tanim"- he forgot some small vessels. ”
The cloth bags are a breeding ground for bacteria and can cause food poisoning.
25
Jun 10, 2009 at 01:02 AM Anonymous Says:
“ Use plastic to save the trees. Use paper to save the oceans. Make up your mind. ”
everyone should eat out every meal and then we don't need to bring home nearly as many groceries and paper goods. It's good for the economy and the environment.
26
Jun 10, 2009 at 12:45 AM from-jerusalem Says:
I'm proud of the U.N. There is a dictator threatening to level a democratic country, North Korea did a missile test, millions of Sudanese are in danger of genocide, while many have already been killed, and they came up with the very best solution, ban plastic bags!! I wouldn't have thought of it myself! Keep on going. BTW, I like this. If only for a moment the U.N. is not being dangerous to all peaceful countries, at least it is being downright foolish.
27
Jun 10, 2009 at 07:47 AM Anonymous Says:
“ The cloth bags are a breeding ground for bacteria and can cause food poisoning. ”
It's called throwing them into the washing machine every once and a while or don't you ever clean anything?
28
Jun 10, 2009 at 07:44 AM Anonymous Says:
“ Paper bags and rain don't mix. ”
so get some waterproof reusable ones
29
Jun 10, 2009 at 09:38 AM FVNMS Says:
I guess my plastic toilet paper idea won't go over well...
30
Jun 10, 2009 at 09:55 AM Can Anyone Show Me... Says:
.. a fish that died from eating a piece of plastic? And if it did, i'll bet the fish become lunch for another fish. Leave these things to G-d. HE knows what HE is doing.
No, Envirowakko, I am not saying we should run to Coney Island and throw plasic into the ocean as that would be littering. I am saying this is just more UN manure!
31
Jun 10, 2009 at 01:21 PM BB Says:
Finally..... The United Nations has gotten down to the work they were created to do. Please! Save us from plastic bags!!! ...hopefully this is resolved quickly so I can leave my home without the fear that I will be attacked by rouge plastic bags....whew!!!