Which bag should you use? - Luka Seamus Wright and Imogen Ellen Napper
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- Опубліковано 28 вер 2024
- Explore the environmental impact of three types of bags- plastic, paper, and cloth- to find out how they’re made, used and disposed of.
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You’ve filled up your cart and made it to the front of the grocery line when you’re confronted with yet another choice: what kind of bag should you use? It might seem obvious that plastic is bad for the environment, and that a paper bag or a cotton tote would be the better option. But is that really true? Luka Seamus Wright and Imogen Ellen Napper explore the environmental impact of each material.
Lesson by Luka Seamus Wright & Imogen Ellen Napper, directed by JodyPrody.
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My mum uses plastic bags again and again till they themselves plead for retirement...😅😅😅
literally same!!!!
Me too.
Unsung heroes of the environment
In my country there even is a thing called "bag drawer" where we keep the plastic bags and reuse them when needed
i do that too. my mom doest like the added effort of reusing.
"Plastic bags are disposable"
Asian moms: *allow us to introduce ourselves*
So proud of that practice tho.
Are we comparing drawer size now?
As an Asian who lives in asia. I can relate.
lol my mom literally dedicated a whole wooden cabinet filled with "disposable" plastic bags that come in all sizes.
And middle eastern too
TedEd: which of these three bags is best?
TedEd: this fourth bag is the best
What is the name of that 4th bag
@@siddarajpatil629 Like vinyl bags
And *WHERE* do we get this 4th type of bag { in Australia } ⁉️🧐🛒🛍️🏪👣
@@Friendship1nmillion Well since we have a screwed up MP and PMs that thinks the people's health isn't worth to stop fracking in QLD and NT, Drilling oil in the Bight, and building new coal powered plants everywhere, we don't have these bags.
That is a whole point.
I remember back when I was in school in the early 90s, my teachers told us that plastic bags were better for the environment than paper because it saved trees. Pretty sure almost NOBODY even considered back then where the plastic went after we threw it away.
I remember saying that paper rots and plastic doesn't (being familiar with decaying books and old plastic stuff that stuck around ages).
Same!
Same
Am I the only one who feels the conclusion a bit hasty? I was basically: "Hey, here is this bag that combines the benefits of all other bags". Ehm.. ok, doesn't it also combine all of the disadvantages? Also, I feel like a few options are neglected, like.. you know... a backpack, that you have anyway. Also, for plastic you mentioned coal powered facilities. Are they coal powered everywhere or only in the US?
I agree. There is a lot more to explore and talk about here.
I had a similar problem with their “metallic glass” video.
Agreed
Ted ed is generally small short and sweet wideos
I like to watch ted x, ted talks etc as they have bigger vids
Ted-Ed be like: Whatever you click you won't regret.
That is a Ted-Ed lol
Cashier: Would you like a bag?
*Me literally putting my groceries into my backpack* : huh?
relatable
I put them in my socks lol
lol same! stuff everything in the backpack
anyone with a motorcycle
I remember a whale watching trip up in Maine that really changed my outlook on what I use everyday. I was told by friends and the guides that you may not get to see anything out on these trips. Luckily, we spotted a beautiful humpback whale that kept diving in and out of the water. It put on a great show for us and made a lasting impact on me. Once you witness how beautiful nature is its hard to contribute any harm to it anymore.
I use cotton bags; been using them for years. Threw them in washer and dryer a couple of times, and they still look new. 🌚
Too much work compared to polyester. Spray alcohol done!
@@clept8847Thank you for your suggestion, Mr. Clean!
For the first time I have heard plastic bags are the best
My brain: imma head out
Yes but specifically the reusable durable ones.
shiiii, me too man, my brain over here like "wait a dayum minute" lol
Use jute
That is why this video is missleading. CO2 is not very problematic sifeeffect.
No they mean at durable ones like rip stop nylon or those heavy duty women things that last forever.
Bags made from plastics of any kind come from non-renewable sources. We can grow more cotton and trees, not more oil. And don't forget the process of extracting oil from the earth is itself environmentally risky if not outright damaging in itself, and occasionally it's catastrophic. I think TED needs to recalculate environmental impact.
Not true. It take energy to process these materials and in general that energy comes from fossil fuel.
@@crissd8283 We agree about that.
I don’t use any bag, metal cart, the load the stuff up. The employees always hassle me thinking i’m a thief, they should know me by now though, i could just reuse bags that doesn’t mean I didn’t steal just because i don’t have bags
You are doing great.
Those employees need to watch less movies, seriously.
How about repurposed clothes turned into shopping bag?
I have been using the same 15 plastic shopping bags I picked up from Trader Joe’s for years. They are plastic like and extremely durable. I highly recommend them.
HmmMmMm, how bout removing bag system at stores, so that shoppers carry their own bag.
Excessive sale and piling of bags might be reduced then
Surely I can imagine that.
Ultimately, it's the individuals at micro level who need to change instead of blaming govt or authorities at macro levels to do eveything, though institutional assistance is needed till a certain level.
@Suraj Jha you had me in the first half ngl
The animation efforts in these videos never ceases to amaze me.
Although it's good that these studies have shown some of the truth
concerning which bags are best. There are many other factors that are
not even considered, like Particle Plastic dispersal, which are higher
with these so called reusable plastics fabric bags. As well as viral or
germ contamination potentials, cleanliness factors, which actually favor
disposable plastic bags in preventing such. For there's less of a
chance for distributing contagions. With that indicated, Plastics are
not the problem, it's how they're dealt with after its used, or end of
life. Proper educations & really actions are the right way forward,
and we see these studies and video's of this nature, as a great starting
points.
That's why I always bring my satchel...
It's not a purse
LMAOOOOOOOOOO
I love how at the end is just a combnation of every bags best trait
I love how whatever the theme of the video is, the intro and outro music always matches with it... :)))
Love the info in this video. So glad my reusable plastic tote bags are regarded as one of the best shopping bag alternatives.
Another option has been missed. Buying secondhand materials and crafting your own bags! There are all kinds of guides on how to make DIY reusable bags. :)
In my country, we fill a plastic bag with a bunch of other plastic bags and use them when it's necessary
Ima just mark my comment here, than edit this later in 10 years.
it currently says " ima just mark my comment here, than edit this later in 10 years"
now it says " ima just mark my comment here, than edit this later in 10 years"
same ig
Ima book this place
We'll be watching this comment with great interest
Here in Sweden plastic bags are REALLY expensive.
For groceries, a good option would probably be the net-type nylon bags. You can wash them and use them for several months or even years. However, sometimes cost becomes a factor. For example, in my neighbourhood supermarket, the cheapest variety of bananas comes wrapped in plastic in 1 kg portions (approx) while the ones without plastic are 1.5x the price. For a student or a person on a tight budget, it often becomes a difficult choice.
*Reused plastic and cloth gang ftw!*
Don't get bags from markets where you get your stuff. Reuse bags you get from places, and use metal containers.
Ted ed is simply insane keep rocking pal
I've had the same shopping bag since 2007 .
Great lesson uncle ted!
Plastic is not bad actually the people who are misusing/wasting/not-recycling is bad.
EVEN IF you recycle it, the material in the flimsy plastic only gets repurposed once at most. So it sticks around for hundreds of years after the second use.
I used & repaired the same bag for I think almost 10 years now
I rest my case for my cloth-bag who is truly the Lord of the bags!
1:12 Why "coal powered"? Isn't it just electricity, and therefore depends on the location of the manufacturing plant?
It's not necessarily the location. It's the source of the electricity whether it's renewable or nonrenewable, and what is the impact of the source of energy on the environment.
We have 3-4 cotton bag and we take them wherever we're going to buy vegetables or any other thing, and we have those bags for past 10-12 years
this really doesn't account for people like my mum, who always forgets her cloth bags, buys more, then throws the old ones out caz she has too many....keep trying to tell her to just use plastic but cloth is "better" for the environment.
I love Ted Ed!
When plastic bags are used as bin bags then incinerated to generate energy instead of sent to land fill, they offset some of the oil or coal that would otherwise be used. They don't all end up in land fill.
Here in indian state of Maharashtra they attempted to put a ban on plastic bags( the weak ones used at stalls and kirana stores ) . But it fizzled out.
Lol I must tell my dad that his love to vynil and pp bags is eco friendly. He loves them deearly, uses them for years and owns several of them with different print, like strawberries and flowers lol
would love to see how a bayong (a bag made of dried leaves) compare to the three
Every time I listen to this narrator I think I’m listening to one of those flat computer voices.
When i don't have my vinyl bags, i use the papers bag and reuse it for my compost bin.
Good breakdown of some factors that affect and are effected by grocery bags. I thought the calculation with carbon footprint and reuse number was quite clever.
What isn't talked about in this video is what the continuing reliance on fossil fuels means for the LARGER picture of planet-life well-being (LCA), and which farming/land-use method was taken into account when considering carbon footprint and biodegradability.
Burning natural gas or coal has local biological impacts that may cause instability amongst ecological systems further away. We don't like breathing in smog or drinking polluted water, let alone birds, etc. The average human consumes on average ~5 grams of plastic a week (so a credit card), a substance that neither our bodies nor the greater environment has had to process before (i.e. non-biodegradable).
The land-use methods I am referring to include conventional/monoculture vs. regenerative/Regrarian/permaculture practices. I'm not sure it's as easy to say that when harvesting cotton or trees, one is pulling out all of the carbon that was previously locked away. If the soil is in a proper state, much of the carbon remains there for other plants to use (carbon sequestration).
I don't want people to fall back on plastic just because of a number that seemingly correlates different materials (g of CO2e). Things are much more complex, and we all can help each other sort through it.
At the least, I hope this video gets people talking about where their grocery bags come from. Happy holidays!
Earlier this week one of my reusable (plastic) bags broke ... one of the handles snapped off at the base, and the other handle was soon to follow. The rest of the bag is fine (and it wasn't carrying anything fragile). Still, 11 months of service. F for respects.
What do we call the cottonlike plastic bags at the end? They seems interesting.
As I think bags made from old/used clothes, jute, etc are best as they're already being reused.
In india we've practicing this, bags made from used sarees which are durable + looks good & ethnic also by that we can support local small merchants
This is very relevant in Kenya where plastic bags are banned except for primary packaging.
I have been told for years PVC is the worst plastic, even when I was at university doing product design course. How is this suddenly the best now?
That's a different perspective altogether!
4:21
Clearly the PP bag is the best.
"What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make."
--Dr Jane Goodall
I swear, this channel comments at least six times per video.
@@Alkalus gotta make sure to get a good spam quote (also likes own comments)
how many agree it hurts to the core when they charge extra for carry bags
all those school speeches, essays, poems, short story and posters - damn it
I think reusable Polypropylene nonwoven bag is the best solution.
Another point is using bags you already have home. A lot of people have cotton bags home but just don’t use them
Anyone know where to buy one of the bags they mentioned at the very end? Thanks! :)
There is no simple solution, if you just look at it individually what you do doesn't matter all that much but if you try to make it matter and other people also try then it makes a difference because everyone is trying to do better. But its a constant process and we need to change society itself to make bigger impacts.
With the way things are now, it would still take us years to develop a technology for making bags that are environment-friendly and safe for all living beings.
This is so true
What about using eco friendly energy for production?
My family uses cotton bags, and we use them very often...
White is pretty sus
What bout that jute type bags? They are extremely durable and probably won't cause much environmental problems
Woven plastic bags. I got some from Aldi, been using them for 4 years now and still holding strong... I'll give them a 10 year life span. Note: for carrying groceries, not concrete.
Backpack and more backpacks..or take a carrier baggage trolley if it's too much for one time shopping!
I use my backpack when I can. I lost one about 3 years ago, but I bought it 16 years before.
Two simple answers :Reuse and Mind Your Waste
In some developed countries, the rubbish are burnt before putting into landfill, so the Biodegradability isn't really an issue at all. It is only an issue in some countries where it end up in rivers and oceans. The enviromental group should focus on those countries in reducing plastic packaging waste instead.
i knew i wasn’t crazy juggling 12 items in my arms
How about hemp fiber Vs cotton
Best method is to recycle a dress (cloth) in making of cloth bag.
All American shops, supermarkets…should enforce the “Bring Your Own Bag” policy. just bring your own bag, baskets, boxes or receptacles.
great animation, teded
Plastic bags are actually very durable. I have been using the same 3 bags for 2+ years
For environment
What about tshirts is cotton still bad or polyester is much better
How about jute bags?
i have used a jute bag more than 200 times , is it better than plastic in terms of carbon footprint.
4:22 yes
Sometimes I forget that CO2 emissions are not the only thing in a product's life-cycle that's bad for the environment
“Paper or plastic, sir/ma’am?” *Takes both* “No not both!”
I’ve heard this from a certain game. Forgot which.
I just use my backpack...
It’s also very comfortable
But what about sustainable timber farming. That way the carbon footprint of growing it should be a net 0
I always go for the cheapest and the higher performer among the available choices.
In indian villages we mostly use big grocery or vegetable bags made of durable cotton or nylon.
We use them for years after years.
We may have more than one or two bags in each house holds.
But western culture altered everything and we started using more and more plastic!!!
Just make huge pockets... 😎
The bags floating lookin like Ouroboros.
thanks for the subtitles, stranger :)
I've been using the same few reusable bags for many years, I think just not buying more than necessary of these bags are best because of the plastic in the oceans:/
So should I use a cotton plastic paper bag?
What is the carbon footprint of a cotton plastic paper bag?
please notify me when there will be Polish subtitles
Jakiś czas temu youtube wyłączył dodawanie napisów przez widzów, więc raczej nigdy się ich nie dzoczekasz.
I was reusing the same plastic bag for more than 6 months daily for groceries. Then they banned them and the one I was using was torn so I started using the paper bags they offered at the store. I never reused paper bags...
Most cloth bags are linen or hemp, not cotton...
What about...boxes?
Greatly animated
I dont agree. The last bag you mentioned has a lower footprint than cotton to be made and the same durability as a cotton one, which makes it theorically the best one. BUT as you mentioned the plastic bags are hard to decompose and take centuries to do so, while cotton ones decompose in a matter of months.
So I believe as cotton may has a footoprint bigger than plastic as a plant it also helps to renovate the CO2 it produces to be made while plastic doesnt.
So in the end cotton bags are the best. Even tho they have an higher footprint they easily decompose. It takes more for a plastic bag to decompose than the air to "clean up" from the CO2 that growing cotton produces.
What are your sources for the CO2 emissions of this different bags TED-Ed ? The emissions you consider for the tote is the same order of magnitude that a computer, it seems odd...
My backpack!
Wow ! Intro quote of Will.I.Am ! :O
Does anybody else get depressed and feel empty when the music at the beginning plays?
Jute or cloth bags all the way. Can handle a lot of weight, reusable, and is environmentally friendly.
Obviously you didn't watch the video.