The campaign to outlaw plastic bags in Minneapolis ("Ban on plastic bags clears hurdle," March 22) is based on ignorance and misinformation. It will waste energy, water and money. It will create inconvenience, waste people's time and impose health risks. It will deprive people of the liberty to exercise choice, which has produced a more efficient, economical and safer product, with less residual municipal waste, than alternatives resulting from the ban.
"Bacteria were found in 99 percent of the tested bags. … Half carried coliform bacteria; eight percent carried E. coli," reported a study by University of Arizona and Loma Linda University School of Public Health. Hospital emergency room admissions — and deaths — increased by at least one-fourth after passage of a plastic-bag ban, due to the harmful bacteria, according to a study by Profs. Jonathan Klick and Joshua Wright of the University of Pennsylvania. Various studies state that nearly all dangerous bacteria in reusable bags can be removed by washing them, but 97 percent of the people using them don't.
Manufacturing plastic bags requires less than half the energy needed for compostable plastic or cloth bags and less than a third of what's required for paper bags. In a comparison of quantities of municipal waste by weight, the production, use and disposal of single-use plastic bags produced a net 15.51 pounds of municipal solid waste; compostable plastic bags, 42.32 pounds; paper bags, nearly 75 pounds.
The United Kingdom's Environmental Agency found that paper bags were more environmentally harmful than plastic bags in each of the nine categories studied: global warming potential, abiotic depletion, acidification, eutrophication, human toxicity, fresh water aquatic ecotoxicity, marine aquatic ecotoxicity, terrestrial ecotoxicity and photochemical oxidation. It also found that plastic bags were environmentally superior to reusable cloth bags. It said cloth bags would have to be used 104 times to surpass the environmental performance of plastic bags.
Edmund Contoski, Minneapolis
The writer is a retired environmental consultant.
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We visited Ireland a couple of years ago, and bought a lot of groceries at a supermarket. No bags available (plastic or paper), and not even for sale! We loaded up the groceries in our arms and carried them back to the car. Big deal. We survived. Then we noticed the sides of the roads — no trash! Let's hope that the City Council sees the wisdom of a ban on plastic bags. The Irish and other European countries did this years ago, and never turned back.
Philip Lowry, Minneapolis
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Let's go all the way not only in Minneapolis but all of Minnesota, implementing a heavy-duty, reusable-bag-only policy. I agree that we can do better ("More work to do on plastic bag ordinance," March 25). Banning plastic bags is a start, but charging only 5 cents for a paper bag is no real incentive to change a very wasteful bad habit. Deposits on soda bottles never gained total acceptance, and more plastic bags are likely trashed than recycled even after years of "consumer education." Paper bags just create tons of extra paper recycling effort.
We need the "one choice" policy of heavy-duty reusable bags. Forget your bag? Fill your hands and arms, or buy another reusable bag from any cashier counter. The paper and plastic industries will find other products to produce; retailers and consumers will adapt. Consumers won't shop in other cities merely to avoid the ban on wasteful bags, and retailers will profit selling reusable bags. Minnesota alone could eliminate 200,000 tons of trashed and recycled bags, saving us all money. We can set the standard for a more conservation-minded America with a "practical non-choice" mandate that the entire country can replicate.
Michael Tillemans, Minneapolis
LIGHTING AND SAFETY
The brightest bulbs sometimes cast the deepest shadows
A March 23 commentary about streetlights ("Technology now allows best practices") makes a strong case for smart lighting. A film about light pollution I saw years ago showed a college with traditional lighting. It had pools of bright light that created deep shadows where molesters could hide. The next scene was the same campus with low level lighting. The deep shadows were gone.
Similarly, residences with bright security lights shining in the eyes of friendly passersby created deep shadows next to the houses. Lower-level lights pointing back at the houses created the security the owners were seeking.
John Kaplan, St. Paul
MINING, BEER AND SPEECH
Silver Bay City Council action leaves a bad taste in my mouth
Minnesota's North Shore is a great place to visit, and Silver Bay is a wonderful little city, but the next time I head that way, I'll drive right through it. No gassing-up, no dining, drinking or shopping.
Shame on the Silver Bay City Council and the men and women who compose it. To use an arm of government to punish a private business for exercising its right of free association (in this case, for its opposition to the PolyMet mining project) is unconscionable ("Bent Paddle fights Silver Bay council beer ban," March 23).
Consumers who disagree with the positions of the Downstream Business Coalition are free to vote with their wallets and patronize whatever businesses they wish. As for beer, Bent Paddle is just one of many great Minnesota beers. Drink what you want, but to pull it from a municipal liquor store (don't even get me started on those) is just a petulant act of some petty local politicians.
Like many Minnesotans, I'm torn over the issue of the PolyMet mine. But I'm certain I believe in the rights of free speech and association. Whether I agree with its mining position or not, I'll be stocking the fridge with some Bent Paddle.
Mark Gortze, Maple Grove
CUBA TRIP
That was presidential
President Obama's visit to Cuba has understandably been overshadowed by the terrorist attack in Belgium. Nonetheless, it was a historic event that should be acknowledged and applauded. The thawing of the relationship between the U.S. and Cuba is long overdue. The embargo was and is ineffective and unjust to the Cuban people. I am pleased that there is bipartisan support from Minnesota's congressional delegation for lifting the embargo.
The president's speech to the Cuban people was inspiring and eloquent. I was reminded why I admire him and grateful that he is president. I fear that our next president — whomever it is — will not measure up to him.
Eric W. Forsberg, Golden Valley
FORT SNELLING PHOTO
The power of an image
This is a letter of appreciation for the beautiful photo of a snowy Fort Snelling that was in the paper a few days ago. It touched me very deeply, for, you see, my husband is resting somewhere in this cemetery, having passed away five years ago.
You may understand why the photo brought instant tears to my eyes. Thank you.
