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Plastic bags are a huge risk to the world. A less severe consequence is plastic bags litter the streets, blow in the wind, float in waterways and get caught in trees, and is generally an eyesore. They are also a nuisance to deal with, by getting caught in the wires, laying on a bench, or simply drifting into a victim's face. Previously, plastic bags were jokingly known to be the state flower of South Africa; but if this continues, it might as well also be the state flower of San Diego. A more severe consequence is plastic bags kill wildlife, marine wildlife is a prime victim. They eat plastic bags mistaken them for food, and just one bite can be deadly. Plastic can block the esophagus or clog the stomach of the consuming wildlife to cause a slow and painful death. Other smaller wildlife is endangered by strangling or entanglement and die due to suffocation or drowning because they are unable to move. Marine wildlife are not the only ones at stake, seabirds are also a victim. Seabirds mistaken plastic debris floating aloft the sea to be prey and ingest prey that have already consumed plastic, effectively making seabirds ingest even more plastic. Ingested plastic can cause damage to the seabirds digestive system, causing them malnutrition then death. On land, the chemicals in plastics contaminate the soil by releasing chemicals which can continue to transfer into groundwater and their surroundings, eventually the majority of the ecosystem, causing harm to any species that drink the water. Eventually making ". the chemicals become part of our food chain." (Magaziner) Putting humans and all inhabitants on earth at risk. Plastic bags continue to contaminate the world, even when they are no longer a bag. One example is "Plastic bags photodegrade: over time they break down into smaller, more toxic Petro-polymers." (Knight) Another example is most plastic bags that are "recycled" are done by shipping them to foreign countries with lax environmental laws then incinerated and melted.
