New York shops recycle plastic bags

Americans across the state of New York will no longer have to walk far to find a place to recycle plastic bags.

Shops throughout the state that offer free plastic bags are now legally required to provide recycling facilities.

New York is the second state to pass this plastic bag legislation, following in the footsteps of California.

This means that the two most populated states on the East and West coasts of the US are now seeking to recycle rather than throw away plastic bags.

Whilst this is brilliant, it fails to tackle the root of the problem: that we live in a throwaway society.

Yes, recycling is better than landfill. But it still uses energy and creates carbon emissions.

Far better than recycling is re-using. A sturdy re-used bag effectively has no carbon emissions for its second use, or its third use, or for any number of uses after that.

Plastic bags: The facts