After reading your article on New York’s plastic bag ban, I too was surprised to learn this legislation had not already been in place. Living in California where people are so environmentally conscious and forward thinking, it is hard to imagine that the mindset of people living in different states can be so different than ours. I think the plastic bag ban is a step in the right direction, but I feel like more should be done in order to truly benefit the environment.
With the plastic bag ban, businesses are no longer allowed to bag consumer’s goods in plastic bags, or else they will be fined. Instead they must bag them in paper bags, or reusable bags provided by the customer. I think businesses should charge ten cents per paper bag in order to incentivize people to bring their own bags. Not only will this reimburse the business for the paper bags purchased, but this also reduced the amount of trees needed to be cut to produce paper bags. A lot of the time we see paper bags as environmentally friendly, since they are compostable and are not a threat to wildlife. However the inconvenient truth is that trees still need to be cut down, and there is still a lot of transportation, manufacturing, and processing involved that contributes to climate change in order to produce a single paper bag. Eliminating this in addition to plastic bags is the solution our environment truly needs.
For people who do not care about the environment and will continue to use paper bags in New York instead of bringing their own reusable bags, I feel like charging them ten cents per bag is the only way to get them to make the switch. Or maybe their paper bags will break after carrying heavy cans of soup and they will bring a sturdy reusable bag with them next time. I hate how laws have to be implemented in order for people to make a change in their daily lives. I wish people would just willingly want to change their habits in order to be more environmentally conscious. Unfortunately most people are lazy and convenience is the most important criteria to them. Legislation like this forces them to make a change in their lives, which is the only way change will ever happen.
I also feel like plastic bag bans are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to reducing the amount of waste we produce. I look forward to all single use plastics being banned, as well as coffee and styrofoam cups. I hope one day all stores will be bulk stores where customers are required to bring their own jars, containers, and bags to fill up on detergent, produce, snacks, shampoo, and more. Imagine how epic it would be if Walmart was just one massive bulk/zero waste store! That is a world I would love to live in, and I hope to see changes like that implemented within my lifetime.
zucchinifries00 