According to the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Report, plastic today represents 95% of the total waste that floats in the Mediterranean waters settling down on its shores, with plastic bags accounting for a large portion of this waste, as in other seas and oceans.
This is no wonder since it is estimated that more than 500 billion plastic bags a year are used globally. The bags we get or buy in retail are mostly used for less than 25 minutes, after which they are thrown in the trash or, which is even worse, dumped in the environment. To degrade, a single bag needs more than 100 or even up to 500 years, depending on the conditions in which it decomposes. Plastic bags first decompose into smaller parts turning into plastic dust, which then contaminates the ecosystems and ends up in our food and waters.
This is one of the reasons why plastic bags have been completely banned from sale in some countries or regions. As of 1st January 2022, the Republic of Croatia also banned light 50 microns plastic bags, which cannot be reused due to their thinness, meaning they are a significant polluter. However, the use of very light 15 microns plastic bags is still permitted, as they are used solely for sanitary reasons or as the primary packaging for bulk food, or food that is not industrially packaged when this helps less food being discarded. These are the bags that are used in the supermarkets for fruit, vegetables, or meat, and they can often be found next to the self-checkouts.
The aim of the information and education activities of the Fund is to communicate to the citizens about the quantities of plastic bags we use every day and motivate them to reduce this quantity.
Less use of plastic bags is the goal of the project entitled #musthave, which is aimed at encouraging the citizens to use plastic bags only now and then or use them multiple times, and to replace plastic bags with the environmentally friendly alternatives, such as baskets, canvas, or other reusable carrier bags.
Many influencers joined the initiative on social networks with the hashtags #musthave and #zaljepsunasu to convey this message to their followers.
We invite you to join the campaign and not to be part of this shocking statistics. Next time you leave the house, don’t forget to take your tote bag!
A tote in the handbag is a definite season’s #musthave, just like taking care of the environment.
DID YOU KNOW...
This is no wonder since it is estimated that more than 500 billion plastic bags a year are used globally. The bags we get or buy in retail are mostly used for less than 25 minutes, after which they are thrown in the trash or, which is even worse, dumped in the environment. To degrade, a single bag needs more than 100 or even up to 500 years, depending on the conditions in which it decomposes. Plastic bags first decompose into smaller parts turning into plastic dust, which then contaminates the ecosystems and ends up in our food and waters.
This is one of the reasons why plastic bags have been completely banned from sale in some countries or regions. As of 1st January 2022, the Republic of Croatia also banned light 50 microns plastic bags, which cannot be reused due to their thinness, meaning they are a significant polluter. However, the use of very light 15 microns plastic bags is still permitted, as they are used solely for sanitary reasons or as the primary packaging for bulk food, or food that is not industrially packaged when this helps less food being discarded. These are the bags that are used in the supermarkets for fruit, vegetables, or meat, and they can often be found next to the self-checkouts.
The aim of the information and education activities of the Fund is to communicate to the citizens about the quantities of plastic bags we use every day and motivate them to reduce this quantity.
Less use of plastic bags is the goal of the project entitled #musthave, which is aimed at encouraging the citizens to use plastic bags only now and then or use them multiple times, and to replace plastic bags with the environmentally friendly alternatives, such as baskets, canvas, or other reusable carrier bags.
Many influencers joined the initiative on social networks with the hashtags #musthave and #zaljepsunasu to convey this message to their followers.
We invite you to join the campaign and not to be part of this shocking statistics. Next time you leave the house, don’t forget to take your tote bag!
A tote in the handbag is a definite season’s #musthave, just like taking care of the environment.
DID YOU KNOW...
- Almost 30 percent of Croatian citizens carry their groceries in disposable plastic bags. Are you one of them?
- 14 million tonnes of plastic waste end up in the seas and oceans around the world, that quantity that weighs equally as 70 thousand blue whales!!
- 80% of marine waste comes from the mainland, and more than half are single-use plastic items.
- Because of this, soon there will be more plastic in the oceans than fish.
- It takes more than 100 years for a single plastic bag to decompose, and then it leaves behind microplastics in the environment, which through the food chain finally ends up on our plates.
- We ingest 5 grams of plastic every week.