Bismarck, North Dakota - News

LEXINGTON, Ky. - Reusable shopping bags are everywhere, it seems. A few include pictures of the Earth and trendy phrases: "I'm saving the planet - what are you doing?" Some are colorful string bags, some organic cotton fabric, some made of recycled materials. Some are insulated. Many are compact and easily foldable. But it's not their design that matters. It's their purpose.

Bluegrass PRIDE program director Esther Moberly has used reusable bags exclusively for grocery shopping for about six months. She owns 12.

"It took me a while to accumulate enough for large loads from the grocery," she said.

Moberly, whose work with Bluegrass PRIDE includes helping local businesses improve their recycling programs and waste-management practices, is a reusable-bag advocate. She likes the variety, and she said that because many have sturdy rectangular bottoms, they can fit into the trunk of her car easily with a smaller chance of spilling her groceries.

And with ever-increasing public awareness about environmental issues, the plastic-bag debate has been getting a lot of attention. In addition to -taking up landfill space, plastic bags are an -unsightly blot on local landscapes, Moberly said.

"You see them stuck on power lines and in trees, they clog up and pollute rivers, and they're not great for aquatic animals that eat them," Moberly said.

Good Foods Market and Cafe has sold reusable bags for at least 10 years.

"Many of our shoppers are environmentalists and have been living green lifestyles for many years," marketing manager Crystal Stites said. "Bringing your own bags is a part of our culture, and it's just one of the things that you do when you go grocery -shopping. We are glad to see it catching on everywhere else."

Reusablebags.com creator Vincent Cobb said mainstream awareness about reusable bags built up steam in the United States about 18 months ago, when the idea of using the bags was included in a top-10 list of suggestions for consumers who wanted to help the environment, published about the time of Earth Day 2007, which was April 20.

"It helped rebrand what reusable bags are, from kind of an eco-extremist thing to something that a mainstream progressive individual would be doing," he said. "It went very quickly from a no-brainer thing to do to a fad, but the underlying thing is there is a trend there, and there's no going back."

Rider Thompson, who created the Web site sustainableisgood.com, said that although reusable bags are popular overseas, there is relatively little awareness in the United States of their benefits.

"As a society, we've become conditioned to take or ask for a bag when shopping, rarely if ever questioning whether we need it," he said. "Also, retailers use bags as a way to know items have been paid for, so it will require some changing of business processes."

Thompson thinks the increasing interest in the bags is due in part to promotions by major stores.

"It's really stores like Target ... that are driving trends in this country," he said. "As grocery stores and retailers push these more and bring them more mainstream, consumer acceptance will increase, as will awareness."

Most of the reusable bags available at grocery stores and retailers are relatively cheap - about $1 each - and are made of polypropylene. Some stores offer rebates to customers who use reusable bags. Good Foods Market and Cafe offers 5 cents a bag, and Kroger offers 4 cents a bag.

In the Lexington area, here's what some stores are doing:

n Kroger has sold reusable polypropylene bags since March 2007, spokesman Tim McGurk said. He said nearly 20,000 reusable bags have been sold in and around Lexington.

n Target has sold reusable bags nationally since January. At Target, polypropylene bags sell for $1.49, and a compact version that can be folded and zipped up to carry more easily costs 99 cents.

Moberly doesn't think reusable bags will eliminate disposable paper and plastic bags.

"I still get plastic bags if I buy meat and it's leaky," she said. "I ask for a plastic bag, and then I reuse it at home or recycle it at the store."

Bluegrass PRIDE doesn't have a specific campaign to promote reusable bags, but Moberly said it works with companies to find ways to minimize waste and encourage the reuse of plastic bags.

Good Foods Market and Cafe allows customers to bring in their used plastic grocery bags for reuse in the store. Frederick said Kroger has recycling receptacles at each store where customers can deposit used bags. Moberly suggests that consumers use plastic bags for household chores, such as cleaning up after pets.

"When you think about it, a lot of work and energy goes into making a plastic bag," she said. "You go to the grocery store, get the bag, bring it home and then throw it out. That bag was useful for an hour, tops. The plastic is thin, so the lifespan is not that long, but by reusing them, you expand that lifespan a little more."

Thompson said he thinks consumers will get used to reusable bags.

"I do think as we become unconditioned to expect plastic/paper bags for everything, the reusable bag will become something that will be here to stay," Thompson said.

"Let's face it, we've all had that huge mass of plastic shopping bags piling up in our closets at one point or another. Just eliminating that mess will be -incentive enough for many people."

Eco-friendly consumers aren't the only reason for the influx in reusable bags on the market.

Rider Thompson, creator of the Web site www.sustainableisgood.com, attributed the rise of reusable bags to laws regulating plastic bag use in several cities in California. In November, San Francisco banned non-biodegradable plastic bags at large grocery stores and pharmacies with five or more locations in the city.

"Without question, chains ... pushing reusable bags (are) going to be a huge help in furthering the cause," he said. "But remember: Companies ... just started offering the bags to comply with laws in California. Thanks to their action, the bags are now available across the country."

According to Target's Web site, the company began offering reusable bags in California in June 2007, in response to "a regulatory requirement." Target expanded availability nationwide in January.

"We had a great response from our guests, and they expressed interest in more bags across the country," Target Corp. spokesman Steve Landers said.

Reusablebags.com creator Vincent Cobb said such bans are silly and send the wrong message to customers. He said he would prefer to see a program similar to one in Ireland called a "plastax," in which customers pay for plastic bags.

"People don't value what they don't pay for," he said. "I've heard tons of examples of people accumulating these cheapies (inexpensive reusable bags), and they sit in the closet and people don't use them. We suggest people get a handful of high-quality ones that you'll use."