Are Plastic Bags a Problem?

Do you ever see plastic bags in places they shouldn't be? You know, a grocery store bag caught in a tree, under a bush or floating down the Mystic River? Do you think they are a problem?  When I was visiting my mother several weeks ago, I discovered that her little village outside New York City had banned plastic bags. I was speaking to  a shopkeeper and noticed his sign about the ban.  He told me that it was the businesses that had led the effort to ban plastic bags.

I started reading up on places that have banned thin grocery-store-style plastic bags.  I discovered that in the United States, such bans have only been town by town, but around the world, there are many countries that don't allow plastic bags anywhere in their countries.   Countries that have banned or severely restricted the use of plastic bags include China, Bangladesh, Rwanda and India. Several other countries tax the use of plastic bags or require stores charge for them, including Italy, Belgium, Ireland, Switzerland, Germany and Holland.

Municipalities that have banned them in the US range from large cities like Los Angeles and Seattle, to smaller places like Aspen, CO and Larchmont, NY.  While there are no states that have banned them at a state level, every municipality in Hawaii has banned plastic bags and the California legislature is now working with the grocery store lobby to craft a ban they can work with.

Today, while I was getting some work done in my yard, I found a plastic bag under our hedges!  Where have you found plastic bags?  What do you think about banning plastic bags?

Do you have a picture to share of a plastic bag where it shouldn't be?  Add it to the post!