Paper or plastic? New Jersey lawmakers could answer that typical checkout question for consumers under a bill that aims to curb plastic-bag use statewide.
If passed, most major retailers, supermarkets, and drugstores would be prohibited from freely giving out nonbiodegradable plastic bags. Customers who insist on plastic – or paper – would pay 5 cents for every single-use bag beginning in June 2017. Proponents hope consumers, instead, will use reusable carryout bags.
The bill, introduced by Assemblywoman Grace Spencer (D., Essex), is the latest attempt in New Jersey to reduce one-time use of bags. While it includes paper, it’s focused on plastic. Similar measures have been pushed but stalled.
“It is important that we find more ways to better address pollution,” Spencer said. “As a country, we must begin to recognize that part of the destruction of our planet comes from how we dispose of materials we use in our everyday life.”
California is the only state that has imposed a statewide ban on plastic bags, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. In Hawaii, every county has adopted a ban.
Across the country, a growing number of major cities and smaller municipalities, including Los Angeles, Seattle, and San Francisco, have clamped down on plastic-bag use. New York City will impose a 5-cent bag fee beginning Oct. 1.
Experts say the bags wash up in oceans, end up in landfills, clog drains, harm wildlife, and take hundreds of years to break down.
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