Dear Plastic Bag,

You and I, I thought we were meant to last. I thought we were made for each other, and that when we first met, it was to be the beginning of a long and beautiful story together.

Having you by my side made my life less complicated. I was grateful for your discretion and your lightness when I went shopping. You were always so kind and reliable to carry my lunch to work in the mornings.

Together we did everything, I could always count on you and your convenience. But one day I learned of your betrayal. While you were friendly to me, behind my back you were harming the places and creatures I love, and all my dreams of a happy life together quickly disappeared. 

I thought we had something special until I realized that astronomical quantities of bags exactly like you are being produced every minute around the world. There are so many of you that you’re regularly abandoned in nature, lost and forgotten. Any marine animal that has the misfortune of crossing your path risks suffocation. I’ve tried to make myself clear, but you just won’t leave! You stick around, plaguing our oceans for hundreds of years!  

Even the crowd that you associate with are not who they say they are. We were introduced to your friends, Bioplastics (Biodegradable Plastics and Biosourced Plastics), as eco-friendly and respectful alternatives, but this too has turned out to be a lie. Because, just like you, they’re still only good for a single use and the chemicals used in their creation are dangerous to the places where I play.

Now I see clearly that our relationship was a mistake, and that it is time for a final goodbye. But I am not worried, Plastic Bag, because it’s not me. It’s you. 

You’re just a bad habit that I am ready to break. Sure, at first it will be tough to remember to bring my own bag and say ‘No’ when you’re offered to me, but in time it will become a healthy routine, and today I’m making the choice to do better not only myself, but our oceans and marine landscapes too.  

Farewell, Bag!

Surfrider Foundation Europe