Matt Seaholm

Special to The North Jersey Record

It’s unfortunate that some politicians and environmental activist groups would have New Jerseyans believe that a statewide ban on plastic bags will help address New Jersey’s litter and waste issues. The truth is, bag bans haven’t meaningfully reduced litter or waste anywhere they’ve been tried and carry unintended economic and environmental consequences.

Plastic retail bags are 100-percent recyclable and highly reused. They make up only a tiny fraction of overall waste – just one half of one percent, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. A recent study conducted for the New Jersey Clean Communities Council found that when evaluating the amount and composition of litter statewide, plastic retail bags were not among the top five items found—nor even in the top 10. The common plastic retail bag from grocery stores made up just 0.8% of New Jersey litter.

Reducing waste and litter is a universally important goal, but drastic policies that focus on such a minor driver of the problem limit any significant outcomes and ignore the reality that alternative products are worse. For instance, in California, one year after a statewide bag ban and tax were implemented, Ocean Conservancy data found a negligible 0.2 percent decrease in plastic retail bag litter as a percentage of overall litter across the state.

Independent government studies go on to show traditional plastic retail bags are actually the most environmentally friendly option for consumers at checkout. A study from Recyc-Québec, a government recycling agency based in Canada, found that the overall life cycle of the plastic bag — from production to end of life—has far less environmental impact than other bags: Paper bag production uses more water and emits two times more greenhouse gases than manufacture of a plastic bag; Cotton bags must be used between 100 and 2,954 times for their environmental impact to be lower than a common plastic bag used once.

Some cities have claimed bag ban “success” simply because fewer bags are used at the checkout. But New Jersey should look no further than Austin, Texas, where bag regulations forced consumers to buy replacement “reusable bags” made of thicker, heavier plastic and led to more plastic landfill waste.

A bag ban in New Jersey will also hinder the great progress we have made in plastic film recycling. Currently, nearly all major grocery stores in the state have recycling bins for customers to return their plastic grocery bags to be recycled. Other plastic films, such as dry-cleaning bags and the plastic around toilet paper and paper towels, are also able to be returned to these bins and recycled. Once New Jersey bans bags, these bins will go away and with it the ability to easily recycle plastic film in the state.

It’s troubling when environmental activist organizations don’t mention these points, but perhaps more disappointing is their dismissal of the economic burden a bag ban will place on New Jersey families who can afford it the least. Bag bans make groceries more expensive, plain and simple. Retailers will need to purchase more expensive bags and will pass those costs on to customers. Standard recyclable plastic bags are low cost, sanitary, abundantly reused and the preferred choice for most retailers and consumers.

New Jersey already has a statewide Clean Communities Program to address litter. Revenue from this program, generated by taxes on items like the ones being banned by this proposed law, support recycling grants for local counties and municipalities and funds litter pickup, removal and recycling. Litter statewide has been reduced by 53 percent since 2014 through this program, proving real progress is possible without a bag ban.

New Jersey has an opportunity to show leadership on this issue. Lawmakers should reinvest in recycling and educational programs rather than increasing costs for businesses and consumers or pushing shoppers toward alternatives that are worse for the environment.

Matt Seaholm is the executive director of the American Progressive Bag Alliance.

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