{"id":10867,"date":"2016-06-07T12:24:24","date_gmt":"2016-06-07T16:24:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wasteadvantagemag.com\/?p=10867"},"modified":"2016-06-07T12:24:24","modified_gmt":"2016-06-07T16:24:24","slug":"in-n-j-that-plastic-bag-could-cost-you-a-nickel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wasteadvantagemag.com\/in-n-j-that-plastic-bag-could-cost-you-a-nickel\/","title":{"rendered":"In N.J., That Plastic Bag Could Cost You a Nickel"},"content":{"rendered":"
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.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
“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.”<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
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.<\/p>\n
Experts say the bags wash up in oceans, end up in landfills, clog drains, harm wildlife, and take hundreds of years to break down.<\/p>\n