What with all the taxes, bans, levies and charges, the humble plastic carrier bag is getting more than its fair share of headlines and newsfeeds. “Ban the Bag, Break the Bag Habit, and Bags for Life” are all stories you may have heard about, but here are a few interesting stories you might have missed…
Carrier Bags of unclaimed Silver raise money for charity
While collecting litter near his allotment in Clifton, Ashbourne man Chris Allen, unearthed a plastic carrier bag filled with 200-year-old Georgian silver. Including a 48-piece dinner service, a mustard spoon and a solid silver shoehorn, the collection went on to raise £800 at auction, which Mr Allen then donated to local charities. When asked about his find, he said, “As I picked up one of the bags the bottom fell out, and what I had assumed to be a bag full of rubbish turned out to be a carrier bag full of Georgian silver.”
500 Shopping Baskets stolen from Tesco as Shoppers refuse to pay 5p for a Plastic Carrier Bag
Reports may have us believe that the carrier bag tax is “widely supported” in Wales, but a Tesco supermarket in Denbighshire (northeast Wales), has reported a surge in shopping basket theft as cash-strapped shoppers refuse to pay the 5p carrier bag charge. Five hundred baskets have reportedly been stolen since the charge was introduced last year, and they are now exchanging hands on eBay for as much as £25.
Prisoners in Ohio make mats for the homeless from unwanted Plastic Carrier Bags
Inmates at an Ohio prison are making good use of unwanted plastic carrier bags, by turning them into sleeping mats for the city’s homeless. Taking up to 90 hours to complete, and using between 600 and 900 plastic bags each, the six-foot by four-foot sleeping mats are given to people living in homeless camps via an urban ministry program.
Plastic carrier bags may get a bad rap from environmentalists, but these stories just go to show useful and valuable they can be!
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