Rethinking OurPlastic Bag Problem

It’s a sight that’s widespread in cities:an abandoned plastic shopping bag fluttering in the wind. These bags often endup in natural spaces such as rivers, leaking toxic particles into theenvironment. In an age when we’re struggling to fight plastic pollution, theseflimsy pieces of garbage seem to symbolize the worst of human wastefulness. Butthere is a different story behind the bag—and the questions it raises about ourplastic-using habits may surprise you.
Before plastic bags, people relied on papershopping bags to carry their goods home. However, these had a detrimentaleffect on the environment because making them required cutting trees down, andthey didn’t usually last through multiple uses. To lessen the problem, Swedishengineer Sten Gustaf Thulin developed the plastic bag in 1959. These bags werewaterproof, as well as lighter, more portable, and more robust than paper bags.Thulin’s intent was for people to use the same bags over and over, and this wasa habit he put into practice in his own life. In a recent interview, his sontold the BBC that his father would find the concept of simply discarding plasticbags after one use “bizarre.”
Where did we go wrong with plastic bags?Well, with their cheap and fast production, they soon became first-choicedisposable containers. Plastic bags comprised 80% of Europe’s bag market by1979, and they went global after US supermarket chains Kroger and Safewayconverted to plastic in 1982. Globally, one trillion plastic bags are nowproduced every year, and by 2050 the volume of plastic in the ocean will dwarfthe marine life there. With such bleak prospects, is it too late to change theway we use these bags?

【字汇】
1、particle(n.) 微粒；粒子
Kimcould see particles of dust floating through the rays of sunlight coming intoher room.
金可以看到灰尘的颗粒漂浮在投射进她房里的几缕阳光中。
2、waterproof(adj.) 防水的
Itwas raining, so to keep his socks from getting wet, Jeremy wore a pair ofwaterproof boots.
当时正在下雨，因此为了不让袜子湿掉，杰瑞米穿了一双防水的靴子。
3、robust(adj.) 坚固耐用的；强壮的
Thetable wasn’t very robust, and it broke when Kelly leaned on it too hard.
这张桌子不是很坚固，当凯莉太大力靠在上面时它就坏了。
4、bizarre(adj.) 古怪的；奇异的
Topeople from past centuries, our modern habit of constantly checking oursmartphones would seem quite bizarre.
对过去几个世纪的人来说，我们不断察看智慧型手机的现代习惯似乎很奇怪。
5、disposable(adj.) 一次性的；用完即丢的
Zoracarries a reusable coffee cup everywhere she goes, so she doesn’t have to usedisposable ones.
卓拉随身携带可重复使用的环保咖啡杯，因此她不需要使用一次性的杯子。
6、comprise(vt.) 构成；包含
Mygraduating class comprised 600 students, but only 500 of us went on touniversity.
我的毕业年级有六百名学生，但其中只有五百人继续读大学。
7、dwarf (vt.) 使……显得矮小或量少
Thehome team crowd dwarfed the visiting team’s supporters, and their cheersdrowned out the visitors’ booing.
主场群众的气势压过客场支持者，他们的欢呼声盖过了客场的嘘声。
8、bleak (adj.) 无希望的；惨淡的
Thesituation is looking bleak for John; he’s incredibly sick and seems to only begetting worse.
约翰的处境很凄惨；他病得很重，而且似乎只会越来越严重。
9、prospect(n.) 前景；可能性
SinceI’ve gotten really good grades throughout senior high school, my prospects foruniversity are looking great.
因为我在整个高中时期有非常好的成绩，我的大学前景看起来很好。