At that time, I wondered what had happened. America was much more developed than Singapore then. Why we used plastic bags and they used paper bags?

In October 1984, My wife and I went for a trip in Hong Kong and China.

When we arrived in Guangzhou, we were given a soft shoulder bag each. The tourist guide told us to carry it and use it as a shopping bag.

When we went shopping, the shopkeeper wrapped up what we bought with old newspaper and put it in our bag.

<< The shoulder bag I carried (looked like film-shooting?)

When I was young, my mother went to market with a rattan basket. The meats or vegetables she bought would be wrapped in newspaper and placed in the basket. Many years later, we started to get plastic bags when we went shopping. I then thought that we were more developed.

I did not realise that using plastic bag was not environmental friendly until I attended a talk in April 2002.

It was Bring Your Own Bag (BYOB) Day on 18th April 2007. It was the launch of this year's first BYOB Day. From May 2007 onwards, BYOB Day will be held on every first Wednesday of the month.

Singapore uses about 2.5 billion plastic bags a year - or about 625 bags per person each year.
Singapore incinerates the bulk of its plastic bags so they do not contribute to landfill. But burning the bags releases cancer-causing dioxins and carbon dioxide - and contributes to global warming.

When the National Environment Agent made a first stab at changing shopper behaviour last year, only 2 per cent of shoppers used recyclable bags. The response from shoppers on the first BYOB Day this year seemed positive and there was progress from last year.

Major supermarkets will support BYOB Day. More than 200 retail outlets under Dairy Farm, FairPrice, Sheng Siong, Carrefour, Cold Storage, Shop N Save, Giant Hypermart and Prime will take part on the BYOB Day. Shoppers will be asked to bring their own carriers, or to pay 10 cents for every plastic bag as a donation to the Singapore Environment Council for green projects.

Singapore used to strive in many aspects for Number One, the government now has to educate the people in reducing waste and taking care of the environment.