The Effects of Pollution On Our Environment

Almost every time I go to any store, I bring cloth shopping bags with me. I happen to own really stylish bags and it’s fun to carry these beautiful parcels out of the stores. But sometimes at grocery stores while I am unloading my cart, the grocery bagger will have already begun putting my purchases into plastic bags. If he has only begun and I have noticed, I’ll speak up, “I don’t need that. I brought my own bags.” But sometimes with small purchases or my own distractions, the items are bagged in plastic before I have a chance to say anything. I would never ask the clerk to undo a lot of bagging, after all I was the one not paying attention. It would also be inconsiderate to the people in line behind me. For a small purchase, though, I don’t hesitate to tell the clerk that she can keep the bag, thank you.

I would like to see it become store policy that all clerks would ask, “Do you need a bag?” “Do you need a bag for that box of organic pasta?” “Do you need a bag for this bottle of shampoo?” Simply asking the question would help jar a lot of us from our reveries and remind us to say, “Oh! No thanks, I brought my own bags,” or “No thanks, I can carry that out.” It would save the store some money and save the Earth some pollution.

My family just returned from a long trip to Kauai. Six of us flew on an airplane and, no, I did not buy carbon offset credits. Honestly, I’m not sure how I feel about that business. I haven’t made up my mind about whether I think it is a legitimate and significant global warming reduction service, or if it is just a racket - some snake oil to make people feel less guilty.

I do try to live a very conscientious lifestyle when I am at home. With the exception of this year, I almost never travel. When I am on vacation, though, I do try to maintain my organic ways. Some of the things I packed for my trips this year were three beautiful cloth shopping bags. They didn’t take up much room in my suitcase, and as I shopped only a little every day, three bags were more than enough to carry some groceries, souvenirs and beach gear.

Another item I brought along was a bag of soap nuts. I think these are the greatest things. They are little nuts that grow on trees and contain a natural soap. Three nuts can wash about five loads of laundry in a washing machine and then they can be tossed into a garden. I only had to bring a dozen little nuts which weighed barely an ounce. This saved a purchase of a plastic bottle of soap at our destination which we probably would not have finished up anyway.

Try these ideas on your next trip and you can have a green vacation, too. If you have any green travel tips, please share them with us!