North Augusta shopkeeper advocates for International Plastic Bag Free Day

In an effort to combat plastic pollution, an issue that continues to negatively impact the environment, International Plastic Bag Free Day is dedicated to using alternatives to single-use plastics.

“I think International Plastic Bag Free Day is a fantastic idea,” said Ashley Murphy, owner of ABĒCA Naturals. "If everyone does their part, even if it’s just for one day a year, it would make a significant impact on how much plastic we have floating in our landfills and oceans.”

Zero Waste Europe established International Plastic Bag Free Day in 2009. The day is celebrated on July 3 to raise awareness about the environmental impact of plastic bags and encourage people to reduce their use.

ABĒCA Naturals, located in North Augusta at 503 W. Martintown Rd., offers an array of plant-based preventative wellness products from vitamin supplements, creams and teas.

Murphy said the concept of ABĒCA Naturals has always been about sustainability.

“The concept has always been that we don’t want to send you home with anything that’s going to end up in your trash can,” said Murphy. “We use reusable products. We only send merchandise out in either reusable plastic bags that people donate or we use brown craft bags. We also like to sell things in glass jars. At the very least we make sure we are able to compost the materials that we’re working with.”

The annual production rates of synthetic polymers, or plastics, have increased over the last 70 years. To date, nearly 10 billion metric tons of plastic have been produced globally, according to a study conducted by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Although most of this plastic waste is buried in landfills, recycled, or incinerated, an estimated 12% to 18% of plastic waste ends up in the environment through inadequate management and littering.

“From a consumer's perspective, your home is full of reusable containers,” said Murphy. “When you’re leaving your house and you know that you’re going somewhere to buy something, just grab something to place that item in. If you’re in the checkout and the only thing you grabbed is a lip balm, skip the bag. There's always a way to reduce your impact.”

Experts say that due to the synthetic nature, plastics don’t appreciably decompose; rather, they continually fragment into smaller and smaller pieces. This trait combined with the explosive growth in mismanaged plastics suggests that the mass of accumulated mismanaged plastics may be increasing at a rate of 2- to 10-fold on a decadal time scale.

“When we're talking about plastic bags, specifically, the biggest concern is when they escape from the waste system,” said Shelie Miller, professor of sustainable systems at the School for Environment Sustainability at University of Michigan. “If a plastic bag gets into the environment, it causes a number of different environmental effects. It can cause various physical damages to wildlife.”

Miller said the best alternative for a single use plastic bag is no bag.

“Of course, that's not always feasible,” said Miller. “It’s a great idea to keep your reusable bags in the car. Reuse those reusable bags as many times as you can. Sometimes we forget our reusable bags at home. There’s the question, ‘Should I buy a new reusable bag just to be able to have a reusable rather than a disposable bag?’

“Usually it's best to do a disposable option today and remember your reusable bag tomorrow, rather than buying more reusables. We don't want people to have closets full of reusable bags.”

Tips for International Plastic Bag Free Day:

• Saying "no" to single-use plastics for the day
• Consider using reusable straws instead of single-use straws
• Consider using reusable cloth bags instead of plastic bags, or compostable garbage bags
• Reuse old plastic bags for multiple shopping trips.
• Re-purpose plastic bags as trash liners or pet waste bags.
• Refuse a bag for easy-to-carry purchases.
• Buy products in bulk.

This reporting content is supported by a partnership with several funders and Journalism Funding Funding Partners.

Erica Van Buren is the climate change reporter for The Augusta Chronicle, part of the USA TODAY Network. Connect with her at EVanBuren@gannett.com or on X: @EricaVanBuren32.