Category Archives: Uncategorized

New Article Posted: “Reusable Bags and Ergonomic Issues”

A new article has been posted titled “Reusable Bags and Ergonomic Issues” by Anthony van Leeuwen.

The article provides some useful information about reusable bag sizes, volume, and average weight when filled. Consumers should educate themselves about bag sizes and weights when filled, to avoid wasting money by buying bags that are too large and heavy when filled by store employees.

With more and more communities in California and the nation adopting plastic carryout bag bans ergonomic safety issues related to using reusable bags have been largely ignored.  The chief selling point often touted by proponents is that “Reusable bags hold more than plastic bags”.  What is often overlooked is that “If reusable bags hold more, they weigh more.”  This means that handling of heavier reusable bags by both store employees and customers alike, present ergonomic safety hazards that should be taken into consideration.

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New Article Posted: “Plastic Bag Alternatives Much More Costly to Consumers”

A new article has been posted titled “Plastic Bag Alternatives Much More Costly to Consumers” by Anthony van Leeuwen, Fight The Plastic Bag Ban, and Don Williams, Stop The Bag Ban. The article is work of collaboration between two engineers both of whom have a passion to defeat plastic bag bans on the grounds that bans are the wrong solution to litter problems that adversely affects residents.

The new article expands on an earlier article titled “Shopping will cost more with Plastic Bag Ban” and includes a table comparing the different bagging options available to consumers. The article looks at costs associated with purchasing your own plastic carryout bags, purchasing store supplied paper bags, and purchasing and using your own reusable bags. The cost to retailers of supplying you with “free” plastic carryout bags is also estimated for comparison. The article looks at both the cost of bags and the value of labor or personal time associated with managing bags and in the case of reusable bags the time required to wash or sanitize bags.

We show that the cost to retail stores to supply a typical family plastic carryout bags is about $21 per year; whereas, that same family would spend up to $300 per year to use reusable bags. That is a factor of more than 14 times as much.