( The New Paper, Sunday 29 Apr 07 )Charge us for plastic bags? Customers say:
WE'LL BUY OUR OWN
Shops say more people also ask for extra free bags
IF you think that the once-a-month Bring Your Own Bag (BYOB) Day campaign at 200 supermarkets across the island will help to cut down on plastic bag usage, think again.
A check with more than 10 provision shops selling plastic bags have all reported an increase in sales of such disposable bags.
The buyers: People who want to have their own plastic bags so they don't have to pay 10cents for it at supermarkets on BYOB Day.
Each packet of 50 plastic bags usually cost about $1.20.
A shop selling household items at Hougang St 21, near Cold Storage and FairPrice supermarkets, has seen a 20 per cent surge in the sales of plastic bags since BYOB Day, which happened on April 18.
Manager Foo Soo Teck, 50, said: 'On that day, one elderly woman came in looking quite frantic and bought six packs of plastic bags.'
Mr Foo said she wasn't the only customer who grumbled about needing plastic bags. They claimed they need them as trash bags. (See report on facing page.)
He said: 'Most of these housewives have grown so used to getting these bags free from the supermarkets, so having to pay 10 cents a bag came as a shock,' he said.
Mr Foo couldn't quite keep up with the demand of plastic bags on BYOB Day when one customer strode in wanting 12 packs of trash bags.
'I was quite shocked, because people usually buy one or two packs at most. I didn't even carry that many packs in my shop and I sold him the only seven packets I had,' Mr Foo said.
The shop manager thinks that while saving the environment is important, he feels that many people are confused about the message behind BYOB Day.
He said: 'Instead of educating people, it is bringing out their kiasu side. They start stocking up on bags, thinking the prices are going up.'
Manager Foo Soo Teck, 50, said: 'On that day, one elderly woman came in looking quite frantic and bought six packs of plastic bags.'
Mr Foo said she wasn't the only customer who grumbled about needing plastic bags. They claimed they need them as trash bags. (See report on facing page.)
He said: 'Most of these housewives have grown so used to getting these bags free from the supermarkets, so having to pay 10 cents a bag came as a shock,' he said.
Mr Foo couldn't quite keep up with the demand of plastic bags on BYOB Day when one customer strode in wanting 12 packs of trash bags.
'I was quite shocked, because people usually buy one or two packs at most. I didn't even carry that many packs in my shop and I sold him the only seven packets I had,' Mr Foo said.
The shop manager thinks that while saving the environment is important, he feels that many people are confused about the message behind BYOB Day.
He said: 'Instead of educating people, it is bringing out their kiasu side. They start stocking up on bags, thinking the prices are going up.'
At Bedok North St 1, some shoppers asked for extra free plastic bags with their purchases.
Mr Wong Lock Meng, 34, who works at a shop there: 'On BYOB Day, about 20 housewives came in asking for free plastic bags. They bought one or two things and asked for two or three big plastic bags.'
The same happened for a medical hall situated opposite the supermarket.
Owner Madam Chong said that on BYOB Day, about 15customers asked for two to three extra big carrier bags each.
She said: 'I gave them the bags even though they bought single, small items.'
Many families use plastic bags to hold household rubbish.
A plastic bag wholesaler at Victoria Wholesale Centre, who wanted to be known only as Mrs Chua, said many housewives buy plastic bags regularly for rubbish disposal and to store food.
Mr Wong Lock Meng, 34, who works at a shop there: 'On BYOB Day, about 20 housewives came in asking for free plastic bags. They bought one or two things and asked for two or three big plastic bags.'
The same happened for a medical hall situated opposite the supermarket.
Owner Madam Chong said that on BYOB Day, about 15customers asked for two to three extra big carrier bags each.
She said: 'I gave them the bags even though they bought single, small items.'
Many families use plastic bags to hold household rubbish.
A plastic bag wholesaler at Victoria Wholesale Centre, who wanted to be known only as Mrs Chua, said many housewives buy plastic bags regularly for rubbish disposal and to store food.
CONVENIENCE
She said: 'BYOB Day is not effective because people like myself will simply avoid shopping on that day.
'Singaporeans want convenience. It is impossible to live without plastic bags. They are an essential item to daily life,' she said.
HDB resident Madam Elizabeth Michael, 43, is one of those who use plastic bags daily for rubbish disposal.
'It's good to save the environment, but what if it affects hygiene?
'If people throw food waste down the rubbish chute, it is going to attract more cockroaches and flies,' she said.
She said she is already facing cockroaches crawling up the chute, thanks to neighbours upstairs who do not bag their refuse before throwing it.
She said: 'I am already recycling the plastic bags I get from the supermarkets. I am not going to use fewer bags just because of BYOB Day.'
'It is only hurting my pocket because I have to pay for new plastic bags to use as trash bags,' she added.
Graphic designer Lindy Wan, 31, agreed: 'I cannot cut down because I need to bag refuse and dog poo, and take the trash to the chute outside.'
Wrapping the waste in newspapers is not an option, she said, because it will open up, spilling the rubbish.
'People who do that do not spare a thought for workers who clear the bins,' Ms Wan said.
She said: 'BYOB Day is not effective because people like myself will simply avoid shopping on that day.
'Singaporeans want convenience. It is impossible to live without plastic bags. They are an essential item to daily life,' she said.
HDB resident Madam Elizabeth Michael, 43, is one of those who use plastic bags daily for rubbish disposal.
'It's good to save the environment, but what if it affects hygiene?
'If people throw food waste down the rubbish chute, it is going to attract more cockroaches and flies,' she said.
She said she is already facing cockroaches crawling up the chute, thanks to neighbours upstairs who do not bag their refuse before throwing it.
She said: 'I am already recycling the plastic bags I get from the supermarkets. I am not going to use fewer bags just because of BYOB Day.'
'It is only hurting my pocket because I have to pay for new plastic bags to use as trash bags,' she added.
Graphic designer Lindy Wan, 31, agreed: 'I cannot cut down because I need to bag refuse and dog poo, and take the trash to the chute outside.'
Wrapping the waste in newspapers is not an option, she said, because it will open up, spilling the rubbish.
'People who do that do not spare a thought for workers who clear the bins,' Ms Wan said.
According to figures provided by the National Environment Agency (NEA), Singaporeans use 2.5 billion single-use plastic bags yearly.
This translates to 625 bags per person a year.
This is alarmingly higher than in Japan, where the consumption rate is 260 bags per person annually, and in the US, where it is 333 bags per person a year.
The NEA said many of the bags here are re-used to bag household refuse, a good hygiene practice that the agency continues to promote.
However, what BYOB Day aims to address is the problem of plastic bags thrown away without being re-used. This is a waste of resources.
The message that the NEA would like to send out is to take only enough plastic bags and to re-use bags as often as possible to cut wastage.
The 10 cents charged for each supermarket plastic bag helps to fund the Singapore Environmental Council's activities.
~~~
Many upset over 10 cents bag charge
WHEN it comes to good hygiene practice, Singapore shoppers pass with flying colours.
WHEN it comes to good hygiene practice, Singapore shoppers pass with flying colours.
Some 90 of the 100 shoppers polled by The New Paper on Sunday said that they would bag their household refuge properly before disposal.
However, many are clueless about the green message behind the on-going Bring Your Own Bag (BYOB) Day, which will happen again on May 2.
About a third of those polled say they are not aware that the campaign aims to reduce plastic bag wastage.
This explains why many of these shoppers are upset over the 10cents-a-bag charge, thinking it is the supermarkets out to earn a profit.
This translates to 625 bags per person a year.
This is alarmingly higher than in Japan, where the consumption rate is 260 bags per person annually, and in the US, where it is 333 bags per person a year.
The NEA said many of the bags here are re-used to bag household refuse, a good hygiene practice that the agency continues to promote.
However, what BYOB Day aims to address is the problem of plastic bags thrown away without being re-used. This is a waste of resources.
The message that the NEA would like to send out is to take only enough plastic bags and to re-use bags as often as possible to cut wastage.
The 10 cents charged for each supermarket plastic bag helps to fund the Singapore Environmental Council's activities.
~~~
Many upset over 10 cents bag charge
WHEN it comes to good hygiene practice, Singapore shoppers pass with flying colours.
WHEN it comes to good hygiene practice, Singapore shoppers pass with flying colours.
Some 90 of the 100 shoppers polled by The New Paper on Sunday said that they would bag their household refuge properly before disposal.
However, many are clueless about the green message behind the on-going Bring Your Own Bag (BYOB) Day, which will happen again on May 2.
About a third of those polled say they are not aware that the campaign aims to reduce plastic bag wastage.
This explains why many of these shoppers are upset over the 10cents-a-bag charge, thinking it is the supermarkets out to earn a profit.
Even among the many who were aware of the campaign, only nine knew that the money collected is for environmental causes.
Shoppers are also divided on the 10-cents charge, with almost half saying they would not pay.
While Japanese housewife Miyoshi Yamaguchi, 40, is used to paying for plastic bags in Japan, Singaporean retiree MadamOrokrah Mohammed, 58, is unwilling to pay.
She said: 'I'm living in a new HDB flat, so we don't have individual garbage chutes. There will be a lot of complaints to our Members of Parliament.
'Without bags, how do you expect us to carry the rubbish? In pails? It'll dirty the floor.'
A shopper in her 50s, who declined to be named, found it ridiculous to pay for plastic bags since customers were already buying things from the supermarkets.
She said: 'If there is only one reusable bag, it is not practical for shoppers to mix fresh or raw food with cooked food in it. It really puts shoppers in a spot.'
Ms Wendy Ong, 19, a sales consultant, said: 'We haven't been paying for it, so when we suddenly have to, it really hurts.'
Shoppers are also divided on the 10-cents charge, with almost half saying they would not pay.
While Japanese housewife Miyoshi Yamaguchi, 40, is used to paying for plastic bags in Japan, Singaporean retiree MadamOrokrah Mohammed, 58, is unwilling to pay.
She said: 'I'm living in a new HDB flat, so we don't have individual garbage chutes. There will be a lot of complaints to our Members of Parliament.
'Without bags, how do you expect us to carry the rubbish? In pails? It'll dirty the floor.'
A shopper in her 50s, who declined to be named, found it ridiculous to pay for plastic bags since customers were already buying things from the supermarkets.
She said: 'If there is only one reusable bag, it is not practical for shoppers to mix fresh or raw food with cooked food in it. It really puts shoppers in a spot.'
Ms Wendy Ong, 19, a sales consultant, said: 'We haven't been paying for it, so when we suddenly have to, it really hurts.'
Even though the campaign runs just once a month, almost half of those polled say they would still buy new plastic bags from now on.
Retiree STPoh, 64, said: 'If you have to pay for a bag, you might as well buy your own.'
MadamOrokrah even said she would go to Johor Baru to shop for her groceries more often.
She said: 'People are getting upset with this pay-for-the-plastic-bag policy, so who's on the losing end? Our own supermarkets.'
Retiree STPoh, 64, said: 'If you have to pay for a bag, you might as well buy your own.'
MadamOrokrah even said she would go to Johor Baru to shop for her groceries more often.
She said: 'People are getting upset with this pay-for-the-plastic-bag policy, so who's on the losing end? Our own supermarkets.'
For some, their solution is to simply not shop on BYOB Day.
This includes Mr Louis Wee, a 21-year-old student, and MsAdeline Lim, 50, a property agent.
Ms Lim, who knows that BYOB happens every first Wednesday of the month, said: 'I'll just not go shopping on Wednesdays. I don't want to keep track of which Wednesday it is.'
- Additional reporting by Janice Tai, Yvonne Poon, Joan Chew, Yeh Wei Xuan, Lynette Lim
~~~
DON'T LET BAGS BECOME BAGGAGE
Is convenience of plastic bags worth the harm their use does to environment?
IS Singapore a plastic-bag nation? From the way consumers have responded to the Bring Your Own Bag initiative, it seems so.
If people still use plastic bags - free or bought - the number of disposable bags used may not go down.
As it is, we are one of the top users of single-use plastic bags in the world.
Even in Japan, well-known for its disposable packaging culture, consumers use 60 per cent fewer plastic bags than we do.
On average, every Singaporean uses 1.7 bags a day.
But we are still much better than the shoppers in Hong Kong, who use an average of five bags per person a day.
That is why Hong Kong's Environmental Protection Department commissioned a study last year on plastic bags and was considering a levy on them.
The international experience seems to argue for such levies.
In Taiwan, although more than 10,000 people took to the streets in 2003 to protest a ban on free plastic bags, there was an 80 per cent reduction when people had to pay for the bags.
In Ireland, the first country to have a plastic bag tax, there has been a 95 per cent drop since consumers started paying about 0.15 euros ($0.31) per bag in March 2002.
This includes Mr Louis Wee, a 21-year-old student, and MsAdeline Lim, 50, a property agent.
Ms Lim, who knows that BYOB happens every first Wednesday of the month, said: 'I'll just not go shopping on Wednesdays. I don't want to keep track of which Wednesday it is.'
- Additional reporting by Janice Tai, Yvonne Poon, Joan Chew, Yeh Wei Xuan, Lynette Lim
~~~
DON'T LET BAGS BECOME BAGGAGE
Is convenience of plastic bags worth the harm their use does to environment?
IS Singapore a plastic-bag nation? From the way consumers have responded to the Bring Your Own Bag initiative, it seems so.
If people still use plastic bags - free or bought - the number of disposable bags used may not go down.
As it is, we are one of the top users of single-use plastic bags in the world.
Even in Japan, well-known for its disposable packaging culture, consumers use 60 per cent fewer plastic bags than we do.
On average, every Singaporean uses 1.7 bags a day.
But we are still much better than the shoppers in Hong Kong, who use an average of five bags per person a day.
That is why Hong Kong's Environmental Protection Department commissioned a study last year on plastic bags and was considering a levy on them.
The international experience seems to argue for such levies.
In Taiwan, although more than 10,000 people took to the streets in 2003 to protest a ban on free plastic bags, there was an 80 per cent reduction when people had to pay for the bags.
In Ireland, the first country to have a plastic bag tax, there has been a 95 per cent drop since consumers started paying about 0.15 euros ($0.31) per bag in March 2002.
So should Singapore follow suit?
Compared to paper bags, which are made from trees - a renewable resource - most plastic bags are made from crude oil and natural gas, a non-renewable resource.
However, paper bags use 40 per cent more energy to produce and generate 80 per cent more solid waste than plastic bags.
So paper bags are not the way to go either.
As for plastic bags, they are problematic when overused and not disposed properly.
However, many households cannot do without plastic bags, given that more than 85 per cent of our population lives in high-rise buildings, where refuse has to be bagged before it is thrown down the centralised chutes.
By comparison, half of Hong Kong's population lives in public housing, but they use more plastic bags.
Over-usage of plastic bags is less of a problem here than elsewhere when it comes to disposal, because Singapore incinerates almost half of its solid waste (the other half is recycled).
Plastic bags leave very little residue when incinerated, but incineration does release carbon dioxide, the major contributor to global warming.
More bags to burn, more carbon emissions.
But if people want to reduce carbon emissions, there are more effective ways of doing that than reducing plastic bag usage.
Compared to paper bags, which are made from trees - a renewable resource - most plastic bags are made from crude oil and natural gas, a non-renewable resource.
However, paper bags use 40 per cent more energy to produce and generate 80 per cent more solid waste than plastic bags.
So paper bags are not the way to go either.
As for plastic bags, they are problematic when overused and not disposed properly.
However, many households cannot do without plastic bags, given that more than 85 per cent of our population lives in high-rise buildings, where refuse has to be bagged before it is thrown down the centralised chutes.
By comparison, half of Hong Kong's population lives in public housing, but they use more plastic bags.
Over-usage of plastic bags is less of a problem here than elsewhere when it comes to disposal, because Singapore incinerates almost half of its solid waste (the other half is recycled).
Plastic bags leave very little residue when incinerated, but incineration does release carbon dioxide, the major contributor to global warming.
More bags to burn, more carbon emissions.
But if people want to reduce carbon emissions, there are more effective ways of doing that than reducing plastic bag usage.
A worse threat to the environment may not be over-usage, but the irresponsible dumping of plastic bags that end up polluting the sea and killing marine life.
Almost 9,000 bags were collected in the International Coastal Clean-up here last year - making up almost 10 per cent of all trash collected.
A study of seabird chicks in the middle of the Pacific Ocean found 90 per cent had plastic in their throats.
When the animal decomposes, the plastic that was fatally lining its stomach will be released and eaten by other wildlife - in a vicious circle of death.
Biodegradable plastic bags are not a solution because in the time that it takes for the bags to decompose, they can still cause damage if not disposed properly.
The problem of plastic litter is real, but the culprit is not the bags.
It is the user.
As someone said: 'Every piece of litter has a human face behind it.'
Stricter enforcement against littering may be what we need.
For this problem, we may not need BYOB Day because we already have another acronym - CWO (corrective work order).
Almost 9,000 bags were collected in the International Coastal Clean-up here last year - making up almost 10 per cent of all trash collected.
A study of seabird chicks in the middle of the Pacific Ocean found 90 per cent had plastic in their throats.
When the animal decomposes, the plastic that was fatally lining its stomach will be released and eaten by other wildlife - in a vicious circle of death.
Biodegradable plastic bags are not a solution because in the time that it takes for the bags to decompose, they can still cause damage if not disposed properly.
The problem of plastic litter is real, but the culprit is not the bags.
It is the user.
As someone said: 'Every piece of litter has a human face behind it.'
Stricter enforcement against littering may be what we need.
For this problem, we may not need BYOB Day because we already have another acronym - CWO (corrective work order).
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