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In various parts of the world, there has been a phase-out of lightweight plastic bags. Single-use plastic shopping bags are usually distributed (for free) to customers by stores when purchasing goods. It is a popular method that is practiced in many countries for being a strong, cheap, and hygienic way of transporting items. Lightweight bags are commonly made from high-density polyethylene (HDPE) plastic. Problems associated with plastic bags include use of non-renewable resources (such as crude oil, gas and coal), disposal, and environmental impacts. A car could drive about 11 metres on the amount of petroleum used to make a single plastic bag. In Australia alone 6 billion HDPE bags were used in 2002.〔 Usage reduced to 5.6 billion in 2004,〔 and 3.9 billion in 2007.〔 Plastic bags can block drains, trap birds and kill livestock. The World Wide Fund for Nature has estimated that over 100,000 whales, seals, and turtles die every year as a result of eating or being trapped by plastic bags. In India, an estimated number of 20 cows die per day as a result of ingesting plastic bags and having their digestive systems clogged by the bags. It’s is also very common across Africa to have sewers and drain systems clogged by bags which cause severe cases of malaria due to the increased population of mosquitoes that live on the flooded sewers.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Getting Friendly Environment )〕 The term "white pollution" has been coined in China to describe the local and global effects of discarded plastic bags upon the environment. Governments all over the world have taken action to either ban the sale of lightweight bags, charge customers for lightweight bags or generate taxes from the stores who sell them. The Bangladesh government was the first to do so in 2002, imposing a total ban on the bag.〔http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-24090603〕 Such a ban has also been applied in countries such as Rwanda, China, Taiwan and Macedonia.〔 In the United States only cities and counties have outlawed their use; however in September 2014, California became the first state to pass a law imposing a ban. == Issues == Plastic bags cause many minor and major issues in geographical terms. The most general issue with plastic bags is the amount of waste produced. Many plastic bags end up on streets and are aesthetically displeasing.〔 Even when disposed of properly, they take many years to decompose and break down, generating large amounts of garbage over long periods of time. If not disposed of properly the bags can pollute waterways, clog sewers and have been found in oceans affecting the habitat of animals and marine creatures.〔 Lightweight plastic bags are also blown into trees and other plants and can be mistaken for flowers by animals affecting their diet. Plastic bags break down, but they never biodegrade. As a result, any toxic additives they contain—including flame retardants, antimicrobials, and plasticizers—will be released into the environment. Many of those toxins directly affect the endocrine systems of organisms, which control almost every cell in the body. Research shows the average operating 'lifespan' of a plastic bag to be approximately 20 minutes. Plastic bags can last in landfill – an anaerobic environment – for up to 1000 years. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Phase-out of lightweight plastic bags」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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