Dear Tee Cee: I appreciated your column last week about dog waste, and I have a follow-up question. I am a dog owner, and I never leave poop on the ground. As a conscientious dog parent, my question is about bags. I often pay extra for poop bags labeled as BPI Certified Compostable, but am I doing the right thing since they still go in the trash? I don’t live near trails or parks piloting the “com-poo-sting.”
Thanks! — Sofia
Dear Sofia: Thank you for being a res-poo-nsible pet owner (first and last poo pun, I promise). Like we talked about last week, there’s no perfect solution for pet waste yet, so let’s get creative in lessening our impact. Here’s my advice for dog parents seeking the “least bad” bagging option:
Don’t fall for misleading labels. Many dog poop bags are labeled in such a way as to mislead you into thinking you can pop them in the trash and they’ll decompose. The problem? Organic materials need oxygen to break down, and landfills are airtight. So, the bag and the waste inside won’t decompose in a landfill as you might think. It’s great that you’re choosing BPI Certified Compostable bags, and voting with your dollar for something plastic-free. But since they won’t be composted, you might consider some wag-worthy alternatives like those below.
Instead of buying bags, get creative with reuse. Once you start looking for plastic bags to reuse for dog poop, there’s no limit to what you’ll find. Newspaper bags, produce bags, bread bags, and other single-use packaging will do the trick. Many of these would go to the landfill anyway, so this is a great way to give them another life and reduce demand for more single-use plastic bags.
Ask a neighbor. If you don’t get a newspaper or generate smaller bags, ask around. Someone in your neighborhood is likely burdened with extra plastic bags and would be relieved to give them to you for reuse. Many communities also have tubes in public spaces where neighbors can leave smaller plastic bags for dog parents to grab on the go.
Buy recycled. If you’ve exhausted your reuse options and still need to purchase bags, I recommend looking for ones made with post-consumer recycled plastic. This way, you’re reducing your impact while supporting recycling markets. This option saves compostable bags for composting, reduces demand for single-use plastic, and should save you some money.
Thanks for barking up the right tree and examining your impact as a pet parent and consumer.
Tee Cee
Got Zero Waste questions? We have answers. Email Eco-Cycle at rosie@ecocycle.org, call 303-444-6634, check the Eco-Cycle A–Z Recycling app, or visit ecocycle.org.
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