Letter of the Day | Give reusable fabric shopping bags a try!

THE EDITOR, Sir:

The National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA) would like to respond to Ms Monique Davis’ Letter to the Editor, titled ‘Paper bags don’t have much use; give plastic bags another try’, published in The Gleaner of Tuesday, March 12, 2019.

We would like to commend Ms Davis for wanting a better and cleaner Jamaica. We empathise with Ms Davis’ feeling of embarrassment, stemming from her purchase of reusable shopping bags that are not sturdy and having her goods exposed.

We are encouraging all Jamaicans to invest in reusable bags made from fabric. The average household may visit the supermarket or local shop at least twice per month. On each trip, a customer may have been given at least five plastic ‘scandal’ bags to carry the various items purchased.

The average plastic bag may had have to be doubled due to the weight of the goods.

Several of these plastic ‘scandal’ bags cannot be reused. Oftentimes, these very plastic ‘scandal’ shopping bags end up in the landfills, gullies, waterways, and eventually our food chain, taking up to 500 years to break down.

Having invested in a reusable bag, you may never have to buy another bag in the near future. Reusable fabric bags are washable, durable, and can be reused multiple times. A reusable fabric bag can handle the load if customers decide to shop every day.

We understand that it may be challenging to remember to take your reusable bags with you every day. To overcome this, we recommend that you pack your reusable bags in your handbags, back packs and cars as soon as you have finished using them.

Let us preserve our land and support the plastic ban!

PETER G. KNIGHT, JP

Chief Executive Officer/

Government Town Planner

National Environment &

Planning Agency (NEPA)