There's a petition going around to end plastic bags at all Target stores across the country. As of this writing, the Change.org movement sits at more than 522,000 signatures.
An organization called Customers Who Care started the petition. The motive of the group is to eliminate plastic pollution that is created by retail stores. In the message that goes along with the request, the organization says they know it's not an easy move to transition to no plastic bags, but that it's something shoppers at superstores like IKEA and Costco have been familiar with for a few years, "We know we can survive without plastic bags." The post notes that two million single-use bags are consumed every minute with the majority of those ending up as pollution in waterways or on land, "These bags have a massive carbon footprint."
If Target rids itself of plastic bags, the organization says paper bags won't be the answer, either, explaining that the carbon footprint of that material is "even bigger" due to the use of trees that could otherwise be absorbing carbon dioxide. Instead of single-use bags, Customers Who Care suggests customers bring their own reusable bags, a trend that has been picked up in many retail stores and grocery stores across the country. Target can also sell reusable bags, the petition suggests. "We want Target to act swiftly," the petition concludes. "Target's plastic bags are choking the earth."
Also included in the petition was an example of the impact ridding plastic can have on an environment. In Ireland, plastic bag use dropped by 90 percent following a tax according to the information provided. The petition also discredits the current plan Target has, which is a 5-cent incentive for those who bring bags on their own now.
The movement appears to be gaining some traction as it lies a little more than halfway to its goal of one million signatures. One user who signed the document wrote, "We're doing just fine in California without the single-use plastic bags. Please bring this to the rest of the country!!" Another user wrote, "Single-use plastics are bad for our environment. We should all learn to bring our own bags." A third person who signed the petition noted that he's fed up with seeing plastic bags on the ground, "Enough is enough see them everywhere from the southern borders to the northern borders hanging and lying everywhere."