Cotton or plastic: which kind of bag is better for the environment? Many of us would naturally say that the cotton bag is best, but that might only be true if you use that bag thousands of times. Surprised? Keep listening and we'll explain. 

棉质或塑料：哪种袋子更环保？ 我们中的许多人自然会说棉质袋子是最好的，但只有当您使用该袋子数千次时，这才可能是正确的。 惊讶吗？ 继续听，我们会解释。 

There is no doubt that plastic is damaging for the environment in many ways. Producing it can cause toxins to be released into the atmosphere. It's used in great quantities and often disposed of after a single use, meaning even more then needs to be produced. Thrown-away plastic can sit in landfill sites for centuries, or alternatively can contaminate the sea causing harm to wildlife and breaking down into polluting microplastics. 

毫无疑问，塑料在很多方面对环境造成损害。 生产它会导致毒素释放到大气中。 它的使用量很大，并且通常在使用一次后就被丢弃，这意味着需要生产更多的东西。 丢弃的塑料可能会在垃圾填埋场存放几个世纪，或者可能污染海洋，对野生动物造成伤害并分解成污染性的微塑料。

Because of these factors, many people are looking for ways to reduce their plastic use. However, the picture is not straightforward. Let's return to our cotton bag. It's certainly more biodegradable than plastic, but this might be where the advantages end. The industrial production of cotton requires far more energy, along with water and pesticides. As the bags are heavier, transporting them will lead to higher carbon emissions. An article from Columbia University suggests that cotton shopping bags need to be used over 7,000 times before they are more sustainable than plastic ones. 

由于这些因素，许多人正在寻找减少塑料使用的方法。 然而，情况并不简单。 让我们回到我们的棉布袋。 它肯定比塑料更容易生物降解，但这可能就是它的优势所在。 棉花的工业生产需要更多的能源、水和农药。 由于袋子较重，运输时会导致更高的碳排放。 哥伦比亚大学的一篇文章表明，棉质购物袋需要使用 7,000 次以上才能比塑料购物袋更具可持续性。

It's not just about shopping bags. Lightweight plastic components in cars and planes help reduce fuel use and emissions. If we didn't use so much plastic in clothing and footwear, the amount of land, water and chemicals that would be needed to produce enough natural textiles and leather would be enormous. Researchers have been looking to see if carbon could be sequestered during the production of plastics, reducing the amount in the atmosphere. 

这不仅仅是购物袋。 汽车和飞机中的轻质塑料部件有助于减少燃料使用和排放。 如果我们不在服装和鞋类中使用如此多的塑料，那么生产足够的天然纺织品和皮革所需的土地、水和化学品将是巨大的。 研究人员一直在寻找是否可以在塑料生产过程中封存碳，从而减少大气中的碳含量。 

One other characteristic of plastic might actually be the key to this issue. The fact that plastic lasts for centuries is what causes much of the environmental harm, but it also means it can be used to make items that can be re-used again and again. The problem is that we often don't. Plastic can cause serious harm to the environment, and efforts to throw less of it away can reduce this. Re-using it more could be one way to achieve this. 

塑料的另一个特性实际上可能是解决这个问题的关键。 塑料可以使用几个世纪的事实是造成大部分环境危害的原因，但这也意味着它可以用来制造可以一次又一次重复使用的物品。 问题是我们常常不这样做。 塑料会对环境造成严重危害，努力减少塑料垃圾的丢弃可以减少这种危害。 更多地重复使用它可能是实现这一目标的一种方法。 

词汇表

environment 自然环境
toxin 毒素
atmosphere 大气
dispose of 扔掉，处理
thrown-away 丢弃的
landfill 垃圾填埋场
contaminate 污染，毒害
microplastic 微塑料
biodegradable 可降解的
carbon emission 碳排放
sustainable 可持续的，不破坏环境的
plastic components 塑料零件
textile 纺织物
sequester 封存
harm 危害