From Breaking News 24/7

WASHINGTON - In a new microbiological study of reusable shopping bags, scientists have warned of the risks that unclean reusable bags can have on human health.The study was commissioned and funded by the Environment and Plastics Industry Council (EPIC), a Canadian industry group which promotes responsible use and recovery of plastic resources.EPIC is a committee of the Canadian Plastics Industry Association.
The 15-page study releases the findings of two independent testing laboratories, showing that unclean reusable bags can pose a public health risk due to high levels of mold, bacteria and yeast present in the samples.In an Earth911 poll, 50 percent of readers said their favorite way to go green was shopping with a reusable bag.
Sixty four percent of the tested reusable bags were contaminated with some level of bacteria and nearly 30 percent had bacterial counts higher than what is considered safe for drinking water.Forty percent of the bags contained the presence of yeast or mold.Some of the sampled bags contained unsafe levels of coliforms and fecal intestinal bacteria.Possible sources of contamination may include improperly wrapped meats, spilled liquids or perishable food items and using the bag for non-food-related purposes, such as trips to the gym or as a diaper bag.
Though results of the study may cause alarm, proper care of the bags and responsible use will likely eliminate the studies concerns.As is with anything reusable and washable, the bags should be washed and cared for between uses to decrease the likelihood of bacterial contamination.
According to Dr. Richard Summerbell, research director at Toronto-based Sporometrics, an environmental microbiology laboratory that evaluated the study results, recommends that one should treat the reusable bags like a kitchen cutting board, which is also exposed to food and can become a source of harmful microorganisms.

Luibeg comment:

The recent study commissioned by EPIC highlights a major problem with using reusable shopping bags or "bags for life". The risks attached to using these bags in a country such as India can only be exacerbated due to the climatic condtions and other factors.
The current argument in Delhi between the Hon. Minister for Environment and Forests (Central Government) who advocates that biodegradable plastics should be adopted and used and the Chief Minister (Delhi) including various environmentalists who demand that all plastic bags should be banned continues to rage. Luibeg strongly support the argument put forward by Mr. Jairam Ramesh, the Minister for Environment. We do not believe that Mrs. Dikshit, the Chief Minister, has considered the long term problems of introducing a total ban on plastic bags and promoting reusable bags or even paper bags - recycled or otherwise.
We would like firstly to state that we are working closely with a number of reusable (jute) bag manufacturers to develop a disposable d2w bag liner which can be produced economically. This liner will go a long way to solving the problems raised in the EPIC Report. This will allow the reusable jute or cotton bag to be used in harmony with oxo-biodegradable plastic as a protection.
As for using paper bags - either new or recycled: have the Chief Minister and the environmentalists given consideration to the fact that the process of manufacturing paper cuases 70% more atmospheric pollution than the manufacture of plastic bags?
That paper bags use 300% more energy to produce them and consume large amounts of water in the manufacturing process, and when they degrade they emit methane and carbon dioxide. A stack of 1000 new plastic bags would be around 2 inches high, whereas a stack of 1000 new or recycled paper bags would be around 2 feet high!
In transporting paper bags, one should also remember that it would take at least 7 times the number of vehicles used to transport the same number of plastic bags - greatly adding to traffic pollution and increasing fuel consumption.
In considering the alternatives - oxo-biodegradable plastics: it should be remembered that less than 4% of oil is made into plastic and this is derived from a bi-product which would otherwise be burned off. A European study (Gesfellschaft fur umfrassende Analysen GmbH . Austria 2004) concluded that without the current use of plastics in packaging in Western Europe, an additional annual energy requirement of 101.3 million barrels of oil would be required. And as a result, an additional 42.9 million tonnes of Co2 would be produced.
The equivalent to the Co2 emitted by 12.3 million cars per year! This applies to India as well. And so the Government bans the plastic bag and as a result, puts thousands of people out of work in an Industry which contributes significantly to the GDP.What happens to all the other plastic products and applications which are manufactured?
For example: the food packaging - used in every aspect of retail packaging; the garment wrapping; the magazine wrapping; the shrink wrap and pallet wrap; the thermo moulded cutlery, boxes and trays; the pouches used for milk, water and edible oils; the woven sacks used for bulk commodities, such as cement, fertilizer, sugar, rice....the mulching film used to increase crop yields. Are they all to be banned as well??
With all due respect to the environmentalist and to the Chief Minister, we have to all face the fact that plastic will not go away and is here to stay. We should be looking towards the future and to the generations who will inherit our decisions of today. We need to work with the solutions which are constructive and not destructive!
The solution is here, it is safe and fully tested, and it is being introduced around the World (in over 70 Countries) including India - d2w oxo-biodegradable plastics. All of the above products can be and are being manufactured using d2w additives. Equally, all of these products have been successfully manufactured in India.
The banning of plastic does not solve the problem, it does not deal with the current waste plastic pollution. A greater understanding of how the oxo-biodegradable plastic works is required and then perhaps the lawmakers and environmentalists will begin to seriously appreciate the benefits of using this technology. A technology which is environmentally safe, contains no heavy metals, emits no methane, can be used with virgin and recycled polymers and will create total degradation of almost all plastics.
The process is simple: there is little if any increase to the manufacturing cost and a producer does not have to incur capital expenditure with new machinery or technology; he/they use their existing machinery and follow the normal extrusion process.
The degradation process is simple: the polyolefin consists of long entangled molecular chains. The catalytic effect of d2w additives break these chains by creating free radicles. The free radicles combine with the available oxygen atoms and create hydro peroxides, which are the precursor to total bio-degradation. The resulting chains are consumed by micro organisms leaving harmless residues of Co2, H2o and biomass.(MS-SYMPHONY)
How can a genuine environmentalist argue against this?