Whenever a politician or environmental activist brings up plastic bags, we see pictures of beaches filled with litter and animals who died because of plastic in their habitat. While banning plastic bags is necessary, consumers should work to be more environmentally conscientious in all aspects of their lives.

Consumers have this idea once the plastic they use is out of their sight, it’s no longer their problem. However, the plastic makes its way to the ocean and other places, eventually harming everyone and the world they live in.

According to Eco Watch, 500 billion plastic bags are used worldwide annually, and continues to grow each year.

Additionally, it takes plastic 500-1000 years to naturally decay, and the litter of plastic is found from the sides of roads to the middle of the ocean.

As the plastic breaks down into small pieces, marine life ingest it and according to the Environmental Protect Agency (EPA) some of the plastic particles have been determined to contain certain chemicals up to one million times the amount found in the water alone.

With so many plastic particles in the water  it is not surprising that in a 2003-2004 study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, (CDC) 93% of 2517 urine samples taken by from people six years and older had detectable levels of bisphenol A (BPA).

However, by efforts from cities, bans have been put in to try and reduce the use of plastic bags and containers, pushing customers to use either paper or reusable bags.

These bans aren’t enough. It leads people to think that by using paper or reusable bags they are finally environmental friendly, when in fact it’s a small step.

The truth is no plastic is not a possibility for the years to come, plastic products are everywhere and there is no escaping that.

We should work to try and push towards a better future rather than undoing the marks of the past, and the first step is becoming more conscious of what we use, where it comes from, and where it ends up.