As we reduce our single-use plastic, we need alternatives. With fewer plastic shopping bags being handed out at supermarkets or grocery stores, what are we suppose to use as plastic bag alternatives for our garbage?
There are a couple of simple alternatives explained here for use in your kitchen and around the home. You’ll notice a huge difference in your weekly plastic waste and feel much better about your reduced impact.
Table of Contents
Why We Need Plastic Bag Alternatives
Plastic bags are one of the worst environmental polluters out there. While they have been, and still are very useful. It’s their super-effective design that is the root of our environmental issues.
Being so light-weight and mouldable, plastic bags can easily travel long distances in a breeze (cue the scene from America Beauty with the floating plastic bag and video recorder).
How Plastic Bags impact the Environment
There have been a few cases this year of whales washing up on shores around the world with huge quantities of plastic bags in their stomachs. These bags are not digested and take up space, which prevents the whales from being able to eat.
It’s a pretty horrific image, yet it’s one that really brings home the point. We need plastic bag alternatives.
It’s estimated that up to 30 Million plastic bags enter the environment each year. How many of those end up in whales? We’re not sure, but we don’t want any more that’s for sure.
Plastic Bags in Landfill. What Really Happens.
Many people use or have been using plastic grocery bags as bin liners. This appears to close the loop on the plastic bag cycle.
But it’s really not the end.
There’s a hopeful thought that by putting your waste into a plastic bag it is somehow “contained”. This is true, temporarily. But our waste is taken to landfills. That’s where things can get complicated.
When most people think of a landfill, they think of a big hole in which waste is dumped and covered over. In some scenarios this is the case. But it’s never quite as easy as that.
Landfills often build up. Garbage and waste has to be pushed around and can stack up into huge piles. With large machines driving over and pushing the garbage it doesn’t matter if your waste is in paper bags, produce bags or reusable bags, it’s going to be ripped open.
Plastic Bags in the Wind
Once the plastic bags are ripped open, pieces are even more susceptible to the breeze.
If landfills are close to an ocean it really doesn’t take much for the bags to end up in the sea. Or, if the landfill is close to a river network, plastic bags can end up in the river and eventually float their way to the ocean.
Even if the landfill is remote and not near any water supplies, plastic bags (or pieces of plastic bags) can still fly out and litter that natural world.
This year 30 deer were found dead with plastic bags in their stomachs from landfill overflow in Utah, USA.
We really need plastic bag alternatives to eliminate this detrimental process from occurring around the world.
Do You Need to Use a Plastic Bag in Your Garbage Bin?
The short answer is no.
It’s more convenient to have your organic waste contained in a plastic bag, as it doesn’t dirty your bin. But, we need to change the way we look at bins. They are waste collectors.
In most cases, even if you do use a plastic bin liner, you have to clean out the bin anyway as things always ending spilling or leaking down the side.
Does Street Side Garbage Collection Require Bags?
Different cities have varying rules on their residential garbage waste collection.
However, in most cases where a garbage can or bin is used for collection, there’s no rule that states you must have your trash inside a plastic bag inside the bin.
If you follow the suggestions for plastic bag alternatives mentioned in this article you won’t be making a mess in your bin anyway.
Plastic Bag Alternatives For Kitchen Garbage/Waste
You really don’t need to use plastic bags in your kitchen. Unfortunately, as supermarkets reduce their use of plastic grocery bags, people are buying alternative plastic bags specifically for their bin liner.
What about Biodegradable or Compostable Plastic Bags?
They’re sold as traditional plastic bag alternatives. However, their true nature is not represented well by the name.
These plastic bags are not a good alternative to traditional plastic bags. Why?
In a Landfill – Like traditional plastic bags, once they are dumped at a landfill site, if they haven’t broken already, they will most likely be ripped apart (leaving a potential for wind blown pieces to be taken long distances)
Biodegradable or compostable plastic bags will not “break down” in a landfill over time. Once they are buried and no air can get to them they are unable to decompose.
In the Ocean – Biodegradable or compostable bags will not breakdown in the ocean and therefore pose just as many environmental threats as traditional plastic bags if they end up the waterways.
What about home composting?
When plastic bags are labeled as “compostable” there’s two potential meanings:
Industrial Compost Safe – It means if you put suitable food waste into a Industrial Compost Safe plastic bag, you have to take it to an industrial composting site to actually be composted. At these sites they essentially cook the bags/material at above 58 degrees C (136 degrees F). It can take up to 6 months for these plastic bags to break down at these high temperatures.
Home Compost Safe – If you’ve got a home compost good for you! It’s a lot of work and a delicate balance between having the organic matter, moisture, oxygen, and bacteria. It can take months to breakdown a composite pile, in which case if you’re taking food from your kitchen to your home compost pile, there’s really no need for a plastic bag to carry them anyway! Let’s strive to use no bag or plastic bag alternatives.
The Best Plastic Bag Alternative for Your Kitchen Waste
Don’t use a bag. We need to learn to say no to plastic.
How does this work? The following sections will detail the process (which is actually very simple).
Step 1. Shop Without Plastic Bags
If you’re going to the grocery store bring your own reusable bag or bags. This is the first step of integrating plastic bag alternatives into your life.
These bags can be reusable mesh, organic Cotton bags or even recycled plastic bags.
Learning how to eco shop is essential!
Step 2. Seperate your Organics When Preparing Food
When you are preparing your meals any organic waste (peels etc.) should be placed into a bowl or pot.
Step 3. Place Organic Waste Bowl Into Your Fridge (Or Countertop Compost Bin)
Designate a spot in your fridge for your organic waste. This will stop it from smelling and attracting unwanted attention to your kitchen.
Alternatively, use a kitchen countertop compost bin! They have a charcoal filter on the lid to contain the smell.
>> Get your Kitchen Counter Compost Bin here!
Step 4. Wash Off Any Plastic Wrapping or Non Organic Waste and Put in Bin (without plastic bin liner)
If you have any plastic wrappers, or waxy paper that cannot be recycled simply wash them free of organics and place them into your garbage bin (without a plastic bag). Because why do you need a plastic bag to contain clean plastic anyway?
Step 5. Empty Your Organics Bowl. Either Into a Compost Bin, A Suitable Natural Area or Curbside Bin (On Bin Collection Day)
Once your organics bowl becomes full simply dump it straight into your curbside collection bin or a composite bin.
Depending on where you live there may even be a place to leave your organic waste in a natural setting.
As an addition you can line the bin with old newspaper if you have any.
If you’re really worried about your bin getting dirty, you can line the bin with old newspaper or whatever old scrap paper you have lying around.
Here is a short video on how to fold newspaper to make a bin liner!
There’s No Need For Plastic Bags
If you follow the above mentioned steps there really is no need to buy plastic bags for your bins. This will save you money over time and save potential plastic bag waste that could end up hurting the environment.
Wash Your Bin if Needed
If you are placing used items into your bins without a bin liner, you will likely need to wash the bin out once and a while.
But this is easy. It’s best to use vinegar to clean and prevent using harmful chemicals in or around your food preparing areas.
Summary for Plastic Bag Alternatives for Garbage
- Shop without plastic bags
- You don’t need to line your bag with a plastic bag (it’s only convenient and easier to clean)
- Seperate your organic waste into a bowl or kitchen compost bin when preparing meals
- Rinse your plastic packaging and place into waste bin (if it cannot be recycled)
- If you’re using a bowl, keep it in the fridge when done
- Tip your bowl/kitchen compost bin into the curbside bin on your bin collection days (or a suitable natural spot or compost garden)
You’ll notice a significant reduction in your waste. As most of peoples waste is organic which really doesn’t need to be in a plastic bag!
More Plastic Bag Alternatives for Home
There are so many options for plastic bag alternatives around our homes.
Whether you want plastic bag alternatives for food storage (sandwich bags, containers, etc.). Head over to this list of plastic bag alternates for your home and out an about.
Alternatively check out our eco store for more single use plastic alternatives! It’s easy to say no to plastic.
Are you in Australia or NZ? Check out the 5 best zero waste products!
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Aaron is one of the co-founders of The Dharma Trails. His background in marine eco tourism and writing have blended together to create the eco travel platform read by users around the world.
Many counties in the US require garbage bags in their trash bins as the plastic reusable bins tend to spill contents into the street. If you live in the countryside, you could compost organic waste and throw it around your acreage. However, non-organics have to be collected or will simply occupy your land, you can see that in any farm or country home without waste pick up. Few counties do not require bags. In the Antarctic, where I work, we recycle and transport all trash 100%, including organics, back to the mainland. After 30 years, McMurdo is polluted and not the pristine environment it was. How? chemicals are leaching out of our clothes, building materials, shoes, housing, vehicles etc.,. The only sure way not to impact the environment is simply to ban humans from there, as it is in the upper Hawaiian islands. The once pristine Galapagos is now heavily polluted, due to the tourism that has grown there despite all the regulations to protect it.