Plastic Bags, Carbon Footprints and Turn Lyme Green

While I am completely in agreement with the aims of the TurnLymeGreen campaign to make Lyme Regis bag free, there are other questions that need to be answered. Yes, it is true that plastic in the oceans creates terrible problems for the world wide marine environment, and its true that plastic bags do not decompose in landfill, its also true that plastic bags are made from petro-chemicals, but if the genuine aim is to 'save the world' and reduce global warming then we have to look at these questions from an entirely different viewpoint.
The whole world political and science communities are now agreed that the greatest danger to our future, and the future of our children is caused by carbon emissions, most of which come from the human addiction to private motoring and aeroplanes. That is to say, even if the whole world became plastic bag free, it would make hardly any percentage difference to our 'carbon footprint'.
I've always beleived that environmental change begins at home, as with plastic bags, its collective public pressure that creates the legislation that rids us of them. Its the personal choice of individuals that persuades supermarkets and companies not to offer them as a 'free' persuasive gift to encourage us to consume more. The desire for oil, or the addiction to motor cars, creates war aswell as global warming, and if we really want to make a difference we would consider using motor cars a lot less, and flying a lot less. Our greed and materialism in these matters is also a vast and awful misuse of our wealth which creates terrible poverty in other places, so while we're all feeling sorry for the albatrosses in Hawaii, lets add a measure of compassion for the tens of thousands that die in Africa, much of it caused by the rampant consumerism of the Western world.
So, while I'm happy to see Lyme 'thinking globally and acting locally' (a phrase I first came across in the early Seventies), its all beginning to look like a cynical campaign to put Lyme Regis on the tourist map, rather than a real effort towards cleaning up our town, where, incidentally, the carbon monoxide fumes in Broad Street are almost unbearable on some days durng the Summer months!
I was at the TurnLymeGreen Traders Meeting at Woodmead last week, was very interested to hear about Sir Ghillean Prances many world travels in the past year, and the rep from Global Packaging listing how many countries he visited in the past few months. It seems likely that the total global footprint of those involved in TurnLymeGreen far outweighs that of the people they're trying to influence. Which is why I would like all involved to answer these questions:
1. How many cars do you each own, how big is the total carbon emission from your motoring, and how many miles do you travel in an average week?
2. How many air flights have you made in the past year, and whats the total mileage?
3. How often do any of you use public transport?
We all know that finding new methods of getting a free plastic bag (or several) every time you go shopping is NOT the answer. The answer is to acquire long lasting shoppng containers, and use them time and time agan for a period of years. Its not about global packaging. The involvement of the Co-op in this is laughable, ("Oh, we're so lucky to have a Co-op in Lyme!") if you walk around the Co-op, you'll see that every shelf is full of plastic packing, that nearly all goods are over packaged, its clear that plastic bags isn't even an Nth of its plastic output, and we're consulting them? And, just to add to the argument a little, whatever was said at the meeting, when I was in the Co-op last week, I purchased 3 items, and as I was pickng them up, I was offered a plastic bag!
I've just received the new mail-out from TurnLymeGreen today, which only adds to the confusion. They now say that its ok to use paper bags, implying that paper is a renewable resource and less damaging than plastic. Answer is that it isn't. This type of farming creates soil depletion (another serious environmental danger), takes land away from food production, and doesn't include the carbon cost of transporting it around the world. So you pays your money and you takes your choice. Six of one is no worse than half a dozen of the other.
I hope I'm not making too much of this, my intention isn't to offend, hurt anyones feelings, or pour floodwater on the efforts of others, I'll still continue to give support to any intentons, including TurnLymeGreen, that seek to make our town, and the world, a better place to live, but a campaign that isn't going to produce genuine heartfelt change is not the answer. Everyone is now aware that global warming is increasing far more quickly than predictions even 5 years ago. Events that were predicted to be happening in 20 years time are happening now. Not in the future. Now. Sea levels are now rising so fast as to make our own lovely new sea defences valueless in 20 years time, you want evidence, you only have to look at recent flooding on our own doorstep, and local environmentalists talking about the Somerset Levels beng underwater withn your lifetime. If you truly want to put Lyme on the map, act now, but it will take a lot more personal sacrifice than making Lyme bag free.