How plastic bags were invented to help save the planet

The plastic carrier bag is one of main causes of plastic pollution, but the family of the man who created the plastic bag say his design was actually supposed to help the planet.

The son of Sten Gustaf Thulin told BBC Environment Reporter, Laura Foster, that his dad would be shocked and upset to see what it's become.

A lot of countries have introduced plastic bag charges or banned them altogether, so people are using more paper and cotton bags.

One of the issues is that making paper bags uses more energy and water, while cotton needs a lot of land and water to grow.

The best solution is to use the bags you already have as many times as possible.