Details from the Washington Post, via Tapit.

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One such product line is green office supplies, or rather school supplies. I was taken with the recycled paper blue books — dubbed and colored as “green books” — plus recycled-plastic-content pens (I prefer my fountain pen) and corrugated-cardboard ring binders. There was even a aluminum-cased USB stick in all-cardboard packaging. Other things — one I bought and will describe later — too.

Some were marginally more than their non-recycled-content companions; others, like that USB stick, were quite a bit more. Bit it’s nice to have the options and I saw it at every bookstore I visited.

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No official reports yet, but shopkeepers report half the use of disposable bags — quite an accomplishment — per this January 23 article in the Washington Post. Of course, there are naysayers and complainers. But I have a hard time thinking too much D.C. grocery and liquor shopping will move to Maryland or Virginia. Particularly the latter which has a food tax that D.C. doesn’t. And if you can’t remember to bring a bag to pick up your lunch — or eat it on-site — and won’t pay for a bag, then I feel no sympathy when it lands on the sidewalk. Twice. How embarrassing, so much so when adding meaningless “big government” sloganeering to counter it. (Nobody complains about “big government” when the city shuts down a rat-infested eatery, for instance. Why shouldn’t I have the option!)

On the other hand, it’s now psychologically and socially easier to bring my bag — I keep one rolled up in my satchel almost all of the time — to a take-out restaurant (I have featured one in the article as they use sugarcane fiber boxes and biodegradable forks and spoons) or a liquor store.

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Since I’ve heard some misinformation, I thought I would share some details about the new law.

• The financial impact statement for the bill compares Washington, D.C. to Seattle, Washington, which went though a similar process. From their stats, D.C. uses about 360 million plastic bags a year — in a jurisdiction of about 600,000 people — with about three-quarters being used in the stores affected by this law. The statement projects that by fiscal year 2013, there should be a 80% reduction in disposable bag use.
• This law effects the approximately 4,000 D.C. food retail establishments, which includes groceries, liquor and drug stores.
• Disposable paper bags used in restaurants are exempt from the legislation.
• There is, alas, only one enforcement officer budgeted for the law. The first offense fine is probably $100.
• It was passed by the D.C. Council unanimously.
• If you carry your own bag, not only will you not be charged the fee, but D.C. gives retailers an incentive to offer you a nickle rebate.

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But in France we saw an alternative — paper. Strong attractive paper bags — squared off, with a picture of a cheery market scene and big enough to hold a pound or two of apples or grapes — were the rule. I suspect they’re made of virgin pulp; kraft paper usually is

Bocca Sacs are the maker of the one I kept, if you’re an interested greengrocer.

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Not only was it attractive — red, with the logo over-pritned in black and white — and canvas — thus will biodegrade — but it was made in Lowell, Massachusetts and was large enough for all the groceries I had.

Even the tag was plastic free.

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Reportage from DCist and WashingtonPost.com.

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Fast forward to today. Now everyone has them, and it’s hard to find a big event in D.C. where someone isn’t using the reusable bag as giveaway swag. The problem is that most are made of a nonwoven plastic fiber that, after a few months use, tears and becomes unusable. More trash; the plastic bag problem only reduced and delayed. (It will probably help the river pollution problem since there are fewer of them and they’re not so light as to blow anywhere, but that’s not a solution to the plastics-in-environment problem.)

So now, when proffered a freebie bag, I say no unless it’s one of the rare ones made of muslin. They wear harder, could be prepared if need be, and will biodegrade. (The Swiss and British legations have had them at events here in D.C.)

Of course, you could buy or make a muslin, canvas or string bag: what a notion!

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I was prepared to keep using plastic-bottled shampoo because — must I say it? — dandruff. Which, as it turns out two doctor-visits ago, is really some kind of allergic thingy and not the garden variety. Since over-the-counter zinc and selenium shampoos weren’t cutting it, I decided to change tack and that — mirabile dictu! — got me away from plastic.

I bought a bar of Grandpa’s Wonder Pine Tar Soap: a Tootsie Roll-colored cake in a cardboard box. No plastic. Now, its maker is very keen to couch any claims of treating skin ailments as folklore and with deep caveats. But I also wasn’t convinced that people buy it for the scent, which is not unlike the smell of leaves burning. Not bad, but not great. I made a lather in my hands and worked it in wet hair. It tingled just for a moment the first time, but not long and not since. And dang if the flaking came to an almost complete end after two, perhaps three days. Seriously. (And of course, your experience might be completely different.) And it doesn’t itch nearly as much.

Now, as to my hair. The soap is drying, but I find if I use it to wash my scalp and treat the cleaning of the hair as an afterthought, the dryness is lessened. Of course, the weather has been very dry, my hair was far longer than usual when I started (which probably explains some flyaways) and I’ve stopped using any product. (I should probably resume; a pomade perhaps.)  If you smelled my hair — nose on head — you’d smell the pine tar. But with my nose several inches from my scalp, I’ve never noticed it.

Sometimes the soap leaves a faint residue: a very fine mist — for lack of a better word — of resin that adds some body, and which for all I know is causing the scalp to get better. I like it and recommend it for people who want a bottled shampoo substitute and have dermatitis or eczema.  I am experimenting alternating shampooings with Vermont Soap shampoo bar, which I’m also trying out as a shaving soap. Got that one at Greater Goods in bulk.  I’ll review that when I come to an opinion.

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With the new Administration comes a measure of optimism, if not certainty. And with optimism, resolve. While plastic-free bloggers can strip their use down to nil, real reduction will come only if we can convince producers to use less plastic and consumers to rely on it less. I’ve wondered if some actions — particularly around plastic-free alternatives to shampoo and deodorant — is more discouraging than inspiring. More about that later.

Unlike the maxim on saving — take care of the pennies and the pounds take care of themselves — I think plastic-reduction has address big uses first. So this is how I would start.

• give up plastic-bottled drinks. replace them with canned drinks, if at all.
• give up plastic-bottled cleaning supplies. replace them with pasteboard-boxed powders.
• don’t waste products that come packaged in plastic. recommended amounts –detergent, toothpaste — are often excessive.
• clean plastic goods to extend their life. that includes polyester fabrics.
• give up microwaving in plastic storage containers.
• if you eat at inexpensive restaurants, choose those that serve food with durable service pieces or sandwiches wrapped in paper.
• decline plastic bags, even if you don’t have your own bag, if you can carry what you bought.
• request that vendors not ship with plastic packaging. sometimes they comply.
• save money by not buying plastic kitsch for home decor, holidays and celebrations.

If you can make those changes, you’ll really drop your plastic use. Then, if you like, you can move to advanced studies.

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