Got bags? 'A Bag's Life' helps recycle

AUSTIN (KXAN) - Tuesday a website called " A Bag's Life " was launched at the state Capitol by a dozen retailers from more than 2,000 stores statewide.

"Even in the rural areas people are going to have an opportunity to collect plastic and reuse it or recycle it," said Buddy Garcia of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.

The company went online with the support of state and local government officials and Texas plastic bag producers to reduce the number of bags and other materials in landfills.

"These are plastic bags, the flexible bags that you get at the grocery store," said Ronnie Volkening, president of the Texas Retailers Association .

"Dry cleaning bags, the bags that your newspaper may be wrapped in, shrink wrap like when you buy bottled water or paper towels, that come bundled together. Because the simple fact is plastic bags are completely recyclable and they can be recycled into useful consumer products," Volkening said.

The Texas Retailers Association said one local store has taken three billion pounds out of landfills and put those bags to good use -- such as the bench that was on display at the Capitol on Tuesday.

The large bench was made of sawdust and recycled plastic bags. It will be donated to Bluebell Elementary School because of its dedication to recycling.

A statewide reduce-reuse-recycle pilot program has been in the bag for about three years, and the TRA said it is working.

They said in June 2006 there were 215,000 pounds of plastic recycled. By late 2008 more than 278,000 pounds were recycled; by 2009, it was more than 374,000 pounds. With numbers like these Volkening said there is no need to completely get rid of plastic bags altogether as some cities suggest.

"Whether it's bringing groceries home from the store, whether it's your local paper being wrapped in a plastic bag so that it doesn't get wet on rainy days -- there are certain uses that would really be hard to find a suitable replacement," he said.

Volkening said the key is to repurpose with a clear purpose.

A Bag's Life will soon hold a contest for Texas high school students to win cash for videos they have created, called "Caught in the Act." It is a chance for students to show creative ways to reduce, recycle and reuse plastic bags.

Key dates for the Texas high school video contest:

May 27, 2011 at 5 p.m. Eastern Time — Deadline to submit videos.

In Texas, up to 10 videos will be selected by a panel of judges and then posted here. They will be chosen based on originality, content of message, relation to theme and video/audio quality.

June 3, 2011 — Finalist videos posted online and voting begins at 9 a.m.

June 26, 2011 at 5 p.m. — Online voting ends.

July 1, 2011 — The six winners are announced (three in each category).

Creativity is key for winning the contest. See the Contest Tips for ideas.

Categories and Prizes

There are two categories — Reuse Fun and Recycling Educational.
Two Grand Prize Winners in each category will win $1000 each.
Two Second Place Winners in each category will win $500 each.
Two Third Place Winners in each category will win $300 each.

Click here to view the contest rules on A Bag's Life website.

Click here for tips on Creating a Great Entry.