I am sure this is not the first petition you have encountered on eliminating plastics. Why do we disfavor them that much? It takes them tens to hundreds of years to decompose. If they could last that long, what is wrong with that?

With the long period it takes for plastics to decompose, they stay in the environment. It is somehow good if they are stored nicely in households and other facilities that make use of it. However, plastic pollution in the world is still in a worse condition. In 2014, an estimated 15-51 trillion microplastic particles (tiny pieces of plastic which come from larger ones that have degraded over time) were floating in the world’s oceans, weighing between 93 000 and 236 000 tons (World Animal Protection, 2017). This increases the chance of diseases, affects reproduction, and makes marine animals suffer for a long time before dying. Chemicals it contain are also harmful for humans.

Knowing these, what we can do is to support the use of papers to replace plastic bags in grocery stores, since it is one of the facilities that use it the most. Unlike the other, paper only takes 2-6 weeks to decompose. It won't stay long in the environment. Locally, some stores already make use of paper bags instead of plastic ones. But it would be better if all stores in the vicinity would do that. 

"What about wet products? They could tear the paper." Thicker paper bags could work.

"If we use more papers, we will be cutting more trees." And if we need more trees, then we should plant more. That would be a different (from this petition) but still a related goal. 

Papers are greater than plastics. Be eco-friendly!