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The bag fee in New York City is particularly troublesome because the money collected will not go toward environmental programs. Most plastic retail bags, on the other hand, are recyclable, highly reused, and produced in America from natural gas. The popular thick plastic reusable bags generally imported from China are made from oil and often end up in landfills when they’re thrown away because they’re not recyclable. For example, alternative products, such as reusable bags, produce more waste and consume more resources than plastic bags. A recent study suggests that the total number of plastic bags used in Washington, D.C.,* has actually increased since 2010, when a 5-cent fee went into effect.īag fees also have negative environmental side effects.
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That makes it impossible for such policies to achieve a meaningful reduction in overall waste. This is partly because plastic retail bags make up a tiny portion-less than 0.3 percent-of the U.S.
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Other communities that have taxes and fees on plastic bags have seen little, if any, environmental progress. Furthermore, the fee amounts to a tax that will make life more difficult for families who are struggling to make ends meet. Unfortunately, the new law in New York City requiring stores to charge at least 5 cents for each bag won’t help us achieve our environmental goals. To achieve real, sustainable environmental progress, we need to focus on proven programs that encourage all citizens to reuse and recycle plastic bags. *Some studies about Washington, D.C.’s bag fee have found it to be effective others have not. But with our new bag law, New York City will be off to a strong start. We’ve still got a lot of work to do to improve our environment and cut back on waste. We’ve also committed to giving away tens of thousands of reusable bags at events across the city so everyone will be ready for the change. That’s why low-income residents who buy their groceries with food stamps will be exempt from paying the fee. We want to make this new law work for all New Yorkers. Some experts predict that a 5-cent fee will lead to a 60 to 90 percent reduction in the use of plastic bags in New York City. But according to research, fees have already proved effective in reducing plastic or paper bag use in a number of places, including Washington, D.C.,* Los Angeles, Germany, and England. It’s hard to believe that a small charge could have such a big impact on protecting our environment. In other places that have adopted fees for bags, that’s exactly what people have started to do. We can all remember to bring reusable bags when we shop. We bring a backpack when we go to school and keys when we leave the house. Instead, we want this small charge to encourage people to use reusable bags. Our new law will require stores to charge at least 5 cents for each paper or plastic bag.īut the goal is not to collect the fee. That’s why New York has joined cities across the country and around the world in trying to reduce our use of plastic bags. Plus, plastic bags often jam recycling equipment, leading to expensive repairs. In New York City, we pay an estimated $12.5 million to ship 91,000 tons of plastic bags to landfills each year. Birds, fish, sea turtles, and other animals get tangled in plastic bags or mistake them for food and choke. They get caught in trees, clog storm drains, and harm wildlife. And all those plastic bags do a lot of damage. Americans go through a lot of plastic bags-more than 100 billion each year.