CustomEarthPromos - Eco Blog US

The city of Boulder in Colorado, USA, is planning to hold an open house soon on one of the weekday's evenings in order to get the residents' opinion regarding the proposed few on disposable bags. According to a recent proposal the council members have been looking into, shoppers will be charged a fee of twenty cents for each disposable grocery bags that they are provided with at all the retail stores. Fee Applies to Both, Plastic and Paper Bags in Boulder The fee mentioned in the proposal is going to be imposed for both, plastic and paper covers and bags, which ate offered at grocery and convenience stores. Out of the twenty cents fee, merchants are supposed to return at least four cents in order to cover administrative expenses, remaining money collected from customers for these single-use disposable bags will be given to the city, and will be used to raise awareness about the harmful effects of using disposable shopping bags. Boulder Proposal Encourages Use of Organic Paper and Wholesale Reusable Bags Apart from imposing a fee on each bag, the city officials hope this will help in encouraging the residents to utilize the free wholesale reusable bags given out to most of the residents, especially the people with fixed or low incomes. If the residents vote in favor of the proposal then the city will surely see a decrease in the levels of garbage generated. Most of the residents of the city are already in favor of the proposal, especially the student activists from Fair view High School. Students from Net Zero Club, which is the environmental activism club of the school, have demanded the city officials to impose a citywide ban on all plastic disposable bags, along with the proposal. Bout other environmental lawyers argue back saying that the ban will only make people to shift to paper bags, which is known to leave a large carbon footprint. Opposition advocates suggest that the fee on booth these bags will ensure that people will shift to using reusable totes and recyclable paper bags. The City Council members plan to discuss the proposal for the fee in bags, at its October 16th meeting. Also, the city is accepting the feedback of residents on its website as well, until 22nd September, till about 5pm. The open house held will also see the discussion of the issue in detail with the public at the West Boulder Senior Center. Source

Recycling any type of resource is no longer an option for people in most states of the United States of America. It is now considered to be a way of life. The need of the hour is for people to be environmentally friendly as the climate changes due to global warming; rising levels of pollution because of plastics and other issues are scaring people and threatening the harmony of the environment. Finding environmentally friendly ways of disposing water bottles, paint cans, glass jars and aluminum cans is extremely necessary and will help the country in going a long way by not damaging the environment. People have already started to become eco-minded by using seed paper and wholesale reusable bags while shopping, switching to CFLs and harvesting energy. Households in US Usually Have Paint Cans Adding on to the Piles of Garbage Almost every household in America has their own share of paint cans piling up in garages or in attics. First step towards disposing these cans in an eco-friendly manner is to calculate how much you need when you're buying them initially. Take the time out to sit and calculate how much paint you might require for the house or other purposes. Doing this will allow you to control the wastage of paint and also helps in reducing the number of paint cans that need to be disposed. If the paint in your cans is very little then accumulate it all in one paint can instead of leaving it around in all of them, solving the problem of storage. Before disposing the paint cans, put in some cat litter or saw dust into the cans and let the remaining paint to solidify. You can later scrape this out into trash bags, which will later be sent to trash segregation centers. You could also buy over the counter paint solidifiers in order to dispose off the paint in the same way. Use Eco-Friendly Wholesale Reusable Bags and Reuse Paint Cans for Sustainable Living Reuse the cans and the paint. If you are utilizing latex paints, then blend them with other paints and reuse them. Once the can is properly emptied, reuse them for other purposes such planting small plants, storing other household items and others. It is one way of reducing waste around the house, and you also get more storage space. Recycling the cans is another important part of disposal. Source

The final step towards banning single-use plastic covers and bags in Darien seems to be on the horizon at the moment as the Representative Town Meeting has finally decided to discuss and vote on the matter on September 24th. Karen Armour, who is the Representative Town Meeting (RTM) moderator and also the Rule Committee Chairman said that the ordinance is brilliantly crafted and might just get all the votes in the meeting. Karen said it is really and achievement that the town Government Administration and Structure Committee have come up with this very clear proposal. The ordinance is apparently copied from a similar Westport ban, with just a few changes. In Westport, the Conservation Department has enforced the ban and in Darien, the Environmental Protection Commission is supposed to enforce the ban. Also, once the ban is imposed, the Committee hopes to encourage shoppers to use wholesale reusable bags instead. Enforcement Will Depend on Decision and Co-Operation of People in Darien The citizens of Westport were eco-minded enough to inform their authorities that even after the ordinance was imposed, stores continued to utilize plastic bags. Darien officials also hope that once the ban is imposed, its enforcement will be effective and also gain people's support just as the case in Westport. After San Francisco, Westport became the first East Coast town to ban plastic bags in the country. Taking Westport and Darien as examples, countries such as India and Australia are also looking into similar rules. New York Banned Bags and Encouraged Use of Wholesale Reusable Bags in July New York passed its ban on plastic bags last July and became the second Long Island Sound Community to have imposed the ban. Also, East Hampton, Rye and South Hampton, imposed bans last year and if Darien passes the ordinance, then it will become the second Connecticut town to ban bags. According to the Darien proposal, businesses will be given about 6-9 months to eliminate inventory of these toxic bags, before the ordinance finally kicks in. If any business isn't in compliance after the imposition of the ban, then the town would give it a verbal warning and some time to comply. In case the business continues to not be in compliance with the ordinance, the town officials can slap a fine of up to $150 on them. However, some plastic bags would still be made available, which could be used to wrap newspapers, laundry and produce. Source

According to the Pay-Less Supermarkets' announcement recently, the company has stopped the circulation of plastic bags in all its stores and has reached its goal of getting rid of almost 1.1 million bags. The promotion, which is also called as ‘Mission Zero Bags', was first launched in January and Pay-Less Supermarkets had kept the end of 2012 as its deadline, within which it was supposed to achieve its goal. As of 13th September, 2012, the company is proud to announce its claim that over one million plastic grocery bags were removed from circulation. The executive vice president, Kathy Sgro, was very excited to tell the world of the company's achievement, which they fulfilled three months before they hit the deadline. Every Wednesday, all through the year, customers of Pay-Less Supermarkets are constantly motivated and encouraged by the company to utilize wholesale reusable bags for shopping purposes. Apart from Reusable Totes, Paper Bags Are Also Available at Pay-Less The supermarket chain also offers its shoppers paper bags, which are sold for 5 cents each, so that the shoppers will become more eco-minded. Money that the company gets from selling paper bags goes towards ‘green initiative', which is sent through the Mini Grant program that the pay-Less Community Foundation organizes. All of the grants go to communities that promote environmental sustainability and interests. ‘Mission Accomplished': Pay-Less will Give Away Wholesale Reusable Bags Since the company has so far achieved its goal, Pay-Less plans to host an event titled Mission Accomplished, on the coming Wednesday. The entire event will not only feature samplings but also have reusable bags given away to shoppers, and customers can also win reusable totes as a chance to win the grocer's shopping spree. Pay Less Supermarkets stores are also planning to announce the names of the recipients who will be awarded the mini-grants at the same event, said a company press release. Apart from all this, the Mission Accomplished event will also feature and include quite a few exciting announcements and also some brilliant savings for the company's shoppers and regular customers. Marketing manager of Pay-Less Supermarkets, Carina Pegarido, also said that this is the company's way of thanking the entire community for all their support of turning the Mission Zero bags program into a huge success. With the results seen, the company continues to encourage its shoppers to use reusable totes in order to protect the environment. Source

What Boulder city, Colorado officials are aiming at is to reduce the usage of single-use plastics and disposable paper bags, and instead promote wholesale reusable bags.  Shoppers in Boulder, Colorado may very soon end up paying a 20-cent bag fee if they choose to use a paper or plastic disposable grocery bag. The environmental official of the City recommended this action only after the City Council approved the theoretical idea earlier in the year. It was also found by a city consultant that in order to cover the costs of providing disposable bags to residents, a 20-cent fee is necessary to be imposed on the community. The Environmental Advisory Board of the City will soon discuss the proposal for the fee in a meeting, which will also include feedback from the public. Feedback will be collected through online forums and at the meeting that will take place next week. Fee Proposal Will Apply to All Grocery and Retail Stores in Boulder City October 16th is when the City Council is scheduled to meet and vote regarding the ordinance dealing with the fee on disposable bags. All disposable bags will need to be paid for and if the ordinance is approved; it will come into effect only by July 2013. It is going to take so long as the city officials want to give the stores and residents some time to get used to the idea and figure out their alternatives. Main Goal Is to Get Boulder City Residents to Start Using Wholesale Reusable Bags The main aim of imposing this fee is to get the shoppers of Boulder to switch to reusable totes. By doing so, there will be less money coming in eventually for disposable bags, as shoppers use handy reusable and recyclable totes. Eventually, the city officials aim at making the entire state a ‘no disposable bag' zone as well. Apart from this, the city plans on distributing reusable grocery bags for free, as part of the education program for all the citizens. The city officials want to go ahead in full swing and also want to reach out to people, especially from low-income communities as well, so that they aren't affected by the ordinance. Most of the council members are vying for an outright bag ban, wherein the entire city will be prohibited from using single-use plastics. However, the recycling industry of the city is hoping for a fee on the bags instead of a ban. Also, many of the shoppers support the idea of a fee as they feel they can forget to bring their reusable totes, can pay a fee and use the disposable ones instead. Source

Monadnock Paper Mills is one of the oldest and continuously operating paper mills in the USA. It was founded in 1819 and currently operates from Bennington, NH. The paper mill company has exemplified the transforming mind-sets of other brands by willing to change all their process in order to ensure performance with conscience. A bunch of fiber-based solutions were launched by Monadnock sometime recently, for environment-friendly brand owners. The solutions are made as an alternative to plastics and comprise of high-quality materials, called as Envi Portfolio. Monadnock's sustainability-seeking packaging clients so far include Burt's Bees and Gap Inc., according to recent reports. Fiber-based solutions to plastics are another addition to the list of eco-friendly promotional items. Gap Inc. And Burt's Bees Love Making Sustainable Choice with the Sustainable Packaging Project According to a spokesperson from Gap Inc., the company is dedicated to making choices that are sustainable and work for the customer base and for the entire environment. Monadnock's new project, Envi Portfolio, comprises of recycled paper, environmentally friendly and gift card item, which allows Gap Inc. to bring the entire effort to their stores. Burt's Bees said something similar and added that Monadnock Paper Mills is helping brands like them to make more number of sustainable packaging choices, without giving up on aspects such as performance, budget or beauty. Envi Portfolio is an Eco-Friendly Promotional Item: Verified and Certified Monadnock has used renewable and responsibly sourced post-consumer and fiber waste, which is ESC Certified, and put together in a chlorine-free manufacturing process. The Envio Portfolio is a hundred percent carbon neutral and is manufactured under green electrical energy, and is independently verified under ISO 1400. The entire process is also certified under the Environmental Management System ad has been audited as well. Monadnock is completely dedicated to environmental stewardship. How Long Will the Sustainable Packaging Project Take to Be Embraced by Public? Since the project is brand new, the company doesn't really know as to when this expedition will be completely embraced by other brands. But on the bright side, brands increasingly understand the use of sustainability in their work processes. In fact, numerous reports even state that sustainability is directly tied to increasing revenues, and less harm is done to the environment as the brands are stopping the usage of plastic. Delaying the switch from using plastic packaging to sustainable materials, might just turn bad for the company, as investors are more eco-minded these days and prefer eco-friendly items.

Plastics covers and bags take almost thousands of years to disintegrate and in the process release a lot of harmful substances and are toxic to the environment. It is found that in a year, almost 60 pounds of trash is generated by one person and all of this is lunch waste. If this is the amount of lunch trash a person generates, then imagine the amount of plastic trash thrown out by schools and companies every year. Million of dollars are spent each year while buying these toxic bags and double the amount is spent while disposing them. Custom imprinted reusable bags and seed paper sandwich wraps looks like the better alternatives, which are eco-friendly and pocket friendly.  Schools can print their own logo on the bags and use them over and over again promoting school spirit and an eco friendly culture. Online Sandwich Wraps Sellers with Imprinted Reusable Bags Most residents of cities in the USA are turning eco-minded in many ways, including the materials they use to pack their lunch with. Quite a few companies are selling reusable and renewable sandwich wraps and bags only in order to encourage this eco-friendly practice. The backs come in different varieties and sizes. Popular reusable lunch bags come in two sizes; a sandwich size and a snack size. The bags and wraps look more like pouches and are usually made out of cotton on the outside, and lined on the inside with a food-safe nylon. Reusable lunch wraps and bags also are made out of organic materials such as seed paper, and can be used for quite sometime before safely disposing them. Apart from looking handy and nice, these wraps/bags are quite durable as well. Being One of the Eco-Friendly Imprinted Reusable Bags, They Can Spread Germs as Well Even though these wraps and bags are meant for reuse, they will need to be frequently washed to avoid spreading of germs and diseases. You could put them in the dishwasher or in the washing machine for washing. If the food you are packing is extremely liquid or semi-solid, then packing it all in reusable containers is the best solution. Most of these reusable lunch bags are hand-sewn, and open out into a circular placement. So, after undoing your lunch you also have a plate-like surface to keep your food on and eat. Using these reusable and renewable lunch wraps and bags will help save almost thousand plastic bags stay out of the trash bins and save a lot more money, which is put into manufacturing them. Source

It has been almost 18 months since the town of Telluride decided to ban usage of plastic bags and since then residents have easily and quickly accepted wholesale reusable bags and organic paper bags as the best alternative. In fact, even the retail stores are spreading the word. When you reach the door of Clark's Market, there is a sign hanging there which usually send the shoppers back to their vehicles to get their own reusable totes. The residents openly and proudly accept that they have become more educated about the lethal impacts of plastic bags and no longer want to use these bags as they choke the wildlife. The Scene at Durango The City Council of Durango has asked the staff members to do research on a particular policy, which directs retailers to charge ten cents per paper and plastic bag. It has not been presented yet to the council and once given the members will look through it and consider it for formal adoption. Residents are so disgusted with the harm that use of plastic is causing that they even stopped using Tupperware items. Even though the residents took some time to get used to the ban, they are extremely thankful to the council as the residents feel they are even more eco-minded and environmentally responsible. Durango Will Offer Seed Paper and Other Bags Durango will similarly follow in the footsteps of Telluride but will ask grocery stores to charge about 10 cents for each paper and plastic bag sold. Durango will follow all the other 81 cities that have succeeded in banning the usage of plastic bags till now. Even though there is a lot of opposition regarding imposition of this proposal, the residents of Telluride feel that it will all die down once the law has been executed. Although the Mayor's and the manager of the town's number were provided on the internet, not one consumer called to complain in Telluride once the ban was imposed. The officials expected the residents to create uproar, but so far there have been no complaints. People are happy being more eco-minded than before. The residents of Telluride find the ban on plastic bags to be completely refreshing and necessary as it is necessary to give back to the environment and stop being irresponsible. Wholesale reusable totes are the best alternatives as they are not just eco-friendly but also cost-effective measures. Source

After the long and unending discussion at the Homer Council meeting on Monday, the members gave single-use plastic shopping covers and bags a thumbs down and instead, decided that reusable shopping bags are the better option. Most of the discussion was focused on 12-36 Ordinances, which is about banning retail sellers from offering their shoppers disposable shopping bags. The rest of the discussion dealt with controlling traffic movements at the Sterling Highway and Main Street intersection. Mayor James Hornaday somehow found the entire bag ban quite difficult to understand, but the other council members and ordinance sponsors disagreed and stuck to the final decision. According to the Ordinances, plastic bags are stated to be non-biodegradable bags that aren't suitable for constant reuse, unless the bag is more than 2.25 mils thick. Disposable Bags a Complete No-No in Homer Since the plastic bags are causing a lot of environmental damage to the planet, it is completely necessary to ban disposable plastics that are about 2.25 mils thick. Carryout bags are included in this category; not the ones used for packaging meat and other produce. Members argued that since there is no plastic bag ‘cops' the ban on these lethal bags is extremely necessary. Wholesale reusable bags were the suggested alternatives. The members also clearly stated that the ban needs to be followed by every citizen of Homer and not following the imposed ban would just mean that the entire policy is bad. Few members argued about the economical impact it would have in the city as there were quite a few citizens employed in plastic manufacturing firms. Wholesale Reusable Bags Help Bring Savings to Retailers When the entire topic of low economy was raised, few of the council members suggested the use of reusable totes as they would bring in savings for the retailers. Keeping reusable totes in the stores would mean no necessity to restock and supply like what was being done with the plastic covers and bags. Other reasons for supporting this ban were also added by the council members such as less need for production and disposal of plastics. All this meant less carbon dioxide emissions, less marine debris and absolutely no danger to the marine and terrestrial species. It also meant less waste in landfills in the city. The council decided that the ordinance would take effect starting January 1st and will penalize retailers who refuse to follow it. Source

Ever since the country started going on an eco-friendly practicing drive, the States have started taking strict measures to help making it a zero-waste country. Banning of plastic covers and encouraging recycling are some of the many measures initiated by the country.  Also, by providing shoppers with wholesale reusable bags, the stores and the officials are doing their bit in encouraging the residents to become eco-minded. It's the turn of ShopRite supermarkets to make a difference. Select supermarkets belonging to the giant chain, ShopRite, in New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and Delaware, are planning to provide shoppers with a reusable shopping tote, which is also biodegradable and compostable. The supermarket chain claims that it is the first ever compostable and reusable bag to be introduced into the world. Shoprite Compostable Bag Made from Natural Materials The compostable reusable bag is going to be made out of tapioca and corn fibers, along with by-products from the process of food manufacturing. Water-based inks are going to be used while printing these bags, and they are going to be sewed with cotton thread. Eco-friendly bags provided by the shopping chain, contain no petroleum and also are ASTM 6400 certified. The certification is necessary to prove that the product is a biodegradable and compostable product according to the US Composting Council. New Bag Is Another Eco-Friendly Item at Shoprite The reusable totes are machine-washable and can be used for at least hundred times before composting them at any commercial facility for composting. Once composted, the bags that can hold up to fifty pounds will biodegrade within a period of ninety days. Since ShopRite stores encourage the shoppers to purchase and utilize wholesale reusable bags, they also offer the customers who use non-disposable bags a rebate. Almost 58 million covers and bags were reused by ShopRite shoppers in 2011. Also, the ShopRite customers have helped in keeping almost 200 million covers and bags out of the landfills in the states, in the past five years. ShopRite Has Always Been Innovative The chain of supermarkets has always taken pride in its long history of innovative ‘green' business practices and they continue to look for more eco-friendly measure that they can incorporate in their business as the days go by. ShopRite is by far one of the best eco-minded retail stores and they must be proud of their latest practice of giving out compostable reusable shopping bags to their customers. Source