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English Composition 1
Argumentative Essay
June 24, 2025
Plastic Bags Should be Banned for a Cleaner and Safer Future
Single-use plastic bags remain a big challenge today despite efforts to ban them for their
effects on the environment, marine life, and human health. Plastic bags are easily accessible in
supermarkets, grocery stores, and convenience shops around the globe. Single-use plastics are
causing long-term damage to the environment, wildlife, marine life, and human health; banning
them is a good way of ensuring a safer and cleaner future (Parker, 2023). In the United States,
only a few states have banned or restricted the use of single-use plastics, and this move should be
mandatory in all states to conserve the environment and human health. This argumentative essay
advocates for banning single-use plastic bags due to their adverse effects on the environment and
marine life, the waste of taxpayers' money, and the dangers to human health from toxic
chemicals.
Plastic bags are the leading cause of worldwide land, water, and air pollution. Single-use
plastic bags are made of crude oil and natural gas, which makes them non-biodegradable, hence
remaining toxic to the environment for a long time. Plastic bags accumulate in landfills from
improper disposal, contributing to increased carbon emissions that harm the climate (Sharma &
Kaushik, 2021 ). Also, due to the easy accessibility of single-use plastics in daily activities,
including shopping and the food industry, plastics mainly end up in landfills and take hundreds
of years to decompose and are transferred to rivers, stuck in trees, and sewers. When improperly
exposed, they litter neighborhoods, damaging the natural beauty of the surroundings. According
to Sharma and Kaushik (2021), single-use plastics are a critical problem in many developing
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nations, with inadequate disposal and recycling measures, polluting water sources, air when
burned, and soil and land pollution.
In addition, single-use plastic bags contribute significantly to the deaths of marine
creatures such as turtles, birds, and fish who mistakenly swallow pieces of plastic floating or
sunken on the ocean. When marine life ingests fragments of plastic, their stomachs get blocked,
and this leads to death from starvation or choking (Parker, 2023). Microplastics are small pieces
of plastics that sink into major river bodies where they are ingested by marine life, and these
microplastics are transferred to humans through the food chain, thereby endangering human
health (Sharma & Kaushik, 2021). Single-use plastics and microplastics threaten wildlife, marine
life, and humans who eat seafood such as fish, crabs, and other sea creatures. The microplastics
contain chemicals that leak into human food and drinks, increasing health complications such as
hormone imbalances and cancer risks.
Moreover, banning plastic bags is necessary since they cause financial hardships to the
federal government, cities, towns, and local communities. Despite single-use plastic bags being a
cheap and effective method of packaging and transporting grocery items, cities and towns end up
paying a lot of money for recycling and cleaning efforts. According to Sharma and Kaushik
(2021), millions of dollars are spent annually to remove plastic bags from storm drains, parks,
roadsides, and waterways. In developing nations and emerging economies such as India, China,
Indonesia, and other African countries, there are no sufficient financial resources to recycle and
properly dispose of single-use plastics, which damages the environment. The little funds
available are directed to cleaning efforts in major cities and waterways. Rather than wasting
money on cleaning plastic pollution, local governments should direct their resources to other
vital sectors such as education, healthcare, and public safety (Parker, 2023). Banning all single-
English Composition 1
Argumentative Essay
June 24, 2025
Plastic Bags Should be Banned for a Cleaner and Safer Future
Single-use plastic bags remain a big challenge today despite efforts to ban them for their
effects on the environment, marine life, and human health. Plastic bags are easily accessible in
supermarkets, grocery stores, and convenience shops around the globe. Single-use plastics are
causing long-term damage to the environment, wildlife, marine life, and human health; banning
them is a good way of ensuring a safer and cleaner future (Parker, 2023). In the United States,
only a few states have banned or restricted the use of single-use plastics, and this move should be
mandatory in all states to conserve the environment and human health. This argumentative essay
advocates for banning single-use plastic bags due to their adverse effects on the environment and
marine life, the waste of taxpayers' money, and the dangers to human health from toxic
chemicals.
Plastic bags are the leading cause of worldwide land, water, and air pollution. Single-use
plastic bags are made of crude oil and natural gas, which makes them non-biodegradable, hence
remaining toxic to the environment for a long time. Plastic bags accumulate in landfills from
improper disposal, contributing to increased carbon emissions that harm the climate (Sharma &
Kaushik, 2021 ). Also, due to the easy accessibility of single-use plastics in daily activities,
including shopping and the food industry, plastics mainly end up in landfills and take hundreds
of years to decompose and are transferred to rivers, stuck in trees, and sewers. When improperly
exposed, they litter neighborhoods, damaging the natural beauty of the surroundings. According
to Sharma and Kaushik (2021), single-use plastics are a critical problem in many developing
, 2
nations, with inadequate disposal and recycling measures, polluting water sources, air when
burned, and soil and land pollution.
In addition, single-use plastic bags contribute significantly to the deaths of marine
creatures such as turtles, birds, and fish who mistakenly swallow pieces of plastic floating or
sunken on the ocean. When marine life ingests fragments of plastic, their stomachs get blocked,
and this leads to death from starvation or choking (Parker, 2023). Microplastics are small pieces
of plastics that sink into major river bodies where they are ingested by marine life, and these
microplastics are transferred to humans through the food chain, thereby endangering human
health (Sharma & Kaushik, 2021). Single-use plastics and microplastics threaten wildlife, marine
life, and humans who eat seafood such as fish, crabs, and other sea creatures. The microplastics
contain chemicals that leak into human food and drinks, increasing health complications such as
hormone imbalances and cancer risks.
Moreover, banning plastic bags is necessary since they cause financial hardships to the
federal government, cities, towns, and local communities. Despite single-use plastic bags being a
cheap and effective method of packaging and transporting grocery items, cities and towns end up
paying a lot of money for recycling and cleaning efforts. According to Sharma and Kaushik
(2021), millions of dollars are spent annually to remove plastic bags from storm drains, parks,
roadsides, and waterways. In developing nations and emerging economies such as India, China,
Indonesia, and other African countries, there are no sufficient financial resources to recycle and
properly dispose of single-use plastics, which damages the environment. The little funds
available are directed to cleaning efforts in major cities and waterways. Rather than wasting
money on cleaning plastic pollution, local governments should direct their resources to other
vital sectors such as education, healthcare, and public safety (Parker, 2023). Banning all single-
