Earth Day hope

This past Saturday as I was doing some shopping, I had some environmentally positive experiences. I was going over to Elizabeth's for dinner and a sleep-over, so I stopped by the LCBO to pick up some beverages. I came armed with the enviro-bag that the LCBO has been selling for at least a year. This reusable bag has dividers in it, allowing you to carry 4 bottles without them banging against each other. These bags are only $4.95 and they donate 50 cents from each bag to the LCBO Natural Heritage Fund, which supports projects that restore wildlife habitats in Ontario. When I got to the checkout with my booze and my bag, the cashier pulled out this cool, blue, woven bag that they were giving away for Earth Day. Even though I was already the proud owner of a cloth enviro-bag that I was happy to shell out $5 for, I was thrilled to see them giving away these reusable bags. Hopefully, getting the free bag will encourage people to use it!

I then stopped into the Ultramart to pick up some snacks for the evening. When I informed the cashier that I had brought my own cloth bag, she asked if I had an Air Miles card. When I replied yes, she told me that I would receive extra points for bringing in my own bags. Unfortunately, this was only a limited time offer to celebrate Earth Day, but it's certainly a start. Now if we could convince Air Miles and A&P to do this all year round, it might be the incentive that people need to use reusable bags and containers to cart their groceries home.

I was also encouraged to see an overflowing bin where customers could deposit their plastic grocery bags for recycling. Unfortunately, this isn't my usual grocery store. I shopped at this store that day only because it was next door to the liquor store. Hey Fortinos (and your parent company Loblaws) why aren't you doing the same thing?!?