What Happens Next to Plastic Bags

So you’ve parted forever with your plastic bags, leaving them at a local drop-off. What happens to those faithful bags that helped you get your groceries to the kitchen?

According to Toolbase Services, most plastic bags are recycled into composite lumber, which is half wood fibers (recovered from sawdust) and half waste plastics (like your friendly, neighborhood plastic bag).

The lumber can be used for a variety of structures, including:

• Outdoor Decking
• Door Frames
• Window Frames
• Exterior Mouldings

Unlike conventional treated lumber, composite contains no toxic chemicals- another benefit to the environment. Also, manufacturers say the lumber is more durable than conventional preservative-treated lumber.

Plastic bags also can be reprocessed into post-consumer resin, according to plasticbagrecycling.org. This is used in the production of new bags, pallets, containers, crates and pipes.