Hertwich and Peters, 2009). There are two types of carbon footprints
- primary and secondary. Primary footprints, which are
under our direct control, are the result of direct emissions of CO2
from the burning of fossil fuels including domestic energy
consumption and transportation (Ex: Usage of electricity and
transportation, etc.). The secondary footprints are related to the
indirect CO2 emissions from the whole life cycle of the products
human beings use - those associated with their manufacture and
eventual breakdown (Ex: Usage of clothes and other products,
recreation and leisure, etc) (Hertwich and Peters, 2009). Human
beings are the major source of carbon emissions and they will be
the most affected by the emissions, particularly those deemed
serious.
Production, usage and consumption of any product pose a threat
to carbon footprint. Shopping bags, a symbol of the throw-away
society, exacerbate the seriousness of the human carbon footprint.
It is worthwhile studying the entire life cycle phase of different
types of shopping bags from the manufacturing stage to the
disposal stage. Once the product is decided to be disposed of, there
may be three possibilities: reuse of the product for the same or for
different purposes; recycle the product; dispose it off to landfill.
Human dimensions in consumer behaviour rule the decision of
a product’s disposal phase and consequently the environmental
impact. Apart from human dimensions, governmental policies also
assume greater significance in the environmental impact. There are
many dimensions of environmental impact caused by shopping
bags; of which global environmental change is one of the prime
concerns and this is discussed in detail in this article. Out of all the
phases of a product’s life cycle, the disposal phase is very critically
related to the environmental issues and is solely decided by the
consumer’s attitude and the governmental policies to facilitate
recycling of the product.