Community Corner

Question of the Day: Do You B.Y.O.B. (Bring Your Own Bag)?

The daily question that asks what's on the minds of Mineola residents.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, each American uses 300 to 700 disposable plastic shopping bags a year, resulting in 100 billion annually.

These bags often end up as litter, polluting the highways and beaches, and harming wildlife.

The Citizens Campaign for the Environment (CCE) released a report titled “B.Y.O.B (Bring Your Own Bag): Reusable Bag Policies at Long Island Grocery Stores.” CCE staff analyzed and evaluated reusable bag policies of , which all sell the reusable bags.

Find out what's happening in Mineolawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Stores were graded on sale and promotion of reusable bags, signage within the store and in parking lots to remind consumers to bring bags, monetary incentives, educating employees and willingness to engage in consumer education on reusable bags. Whole Foods and Stop & Shop both received the highest grade, an A+.

The report graded King Kullen – which has a – with a grade of ‘F,’ but the chain does sell reusable bags at its stores. Waldbaums, which has a location on Westbury Avenue, received a ‘B’ rating.

Find out what's happening in Mineolawith free, real-time updates from Patch.

For today’s “Question of the Day,” a feature you will see on this site daily, we're asking you, the experts on your community, whether or not you bring your own reusable bags when you go shopping.

Let us know in the comments.


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