Pantagraph.com Weather forecast, local radar and more
NewsFriday, September 7, 2007 1:59 PM CDT
Comments Comments (1) | E-mail this page E-mail this page | Print this page Print this page | Enlarge type Enlarge type | Reduce type Reduce type | Search archives Search archives | RSS RSS feeds | Add to My Yahoo! Add to My Yahoo!
Pontiac class lobbies for corn product bag
By Tony Sapochetti
tsapochetti@pantagraph.com
Advertisement

PONTIAC — Just before Pontiac Township High School sophomore Marcus Fultz gave his presentation, he turned to County Market store director Greg Besgrove and said one thing that summed up the attitude of all of the students in the room:

“Mr. Besgrove, we need your help,” he said.

The students in science teacher Paul Ritter’s Introduction to Ecology class spoke to Besgrove on Thursday on the importance of using grocery bags made of biodegradable materials instead of traditional plastic bags.

The students told him plastic bags take up to 450 years to decompose while the biodegradable bags have a shelf life of three to five years and decompose within 90 to 180 days after disposed of.

The new bags, which resemble the traditional plastic ones, are made from corn, and the ink used in the printing is made from soybeans.

Ritter said it was not his idea for the presentation. The students decided they wanted to make a local impact on the environment.

“The kids on the second week of class decided that they wanted to come up with a different way that they can help the environment,” Ritter said. “They tried to find a locally used product that was readily available, and they chose bags.”

Ritter said the students chose County Market because it was a hometown grocery store that they thought would be receptive.

Besgrove said he was interested in switching over to the new bags.

“The whole industry has a huge problem with these plastic bags and there really is no outlet to take them and recycle them,” he said. “We want to be able to find a biodegradable product.”

The presentation itself offered various biodegradable bags made by different companies to give Besgrove an idea of price and shipping options.

Ritter said the County Market can be used as an example of how the bags will work. He said he hopes other local markets will start using the bags as well.

Ritter, one of eight finalists for Illinois Teacher of the Year, has said he is an avid environmentalist who always dreamed of changing the world for the better, and it seems that that same idealism is rubbing off on his students.

“I think that this is a really good project and there is a huge need for this,” Fultz said. “I think (Ritter) is a great teacher. This is my first class having him and I’m really excited about it.”

Video
Most commented stories
Browse online archives
Recent issues:
Reader comments on this story - 1 total

Note: All views and opinions expressed in reader comments are solely those of the individual submitting the comment, and not those of the Pantagraph or its staff.

Landfill Larry wrote on Sep 12, 2007 11:21 AM:

" If these kids keep this up, I'll be out of a job! "
Add your own comments

Please read the rules before posting comments.

You must be logged in to leave comments.
If you don't have a member ID, please register.

*Member ID:
*Password:
Remember login?
(requires cookies)
  Forgot Your Password?
 
Lee Enterprises Customer Service | 301 W. Washington St., PO Box 2907, Bloomington, IL 61701-2907 | Ph. 309-829-9000 | 800-747-7323
Copyright © 2008, Pantagraph Publishing Co. and Lee Enterprises. All rights reserved. | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy