WHY? STOP USING PLASTIC BAGS, STRAWS AND STYROFOAM

• Minnesotans throw out 500 tons of plastic bags and packaging every day.

• U.S. citizens throw away 25 trillion Styrofoam cups every year that end up in the landfills and waterways.

• On average, Americans use 1.6 straws per person a day. Most of them end up in the waterways.

• More than 40% of plastic produced is used once and then tossed.

• The MPCA states that in Minnesota fewer than 10% of plastic bags are recycled.

• A recent study found that people ingest an average of 5 grams of plastic a week, the equivalent of a credit card.

• Single use plastic bags cost a grocery store $60,000 per year.

• Plastic bags get caught in sorting machines in recycling facilities.

• Places that put a fee on plastic bags have seen a 70 to 80% reduction in use.