Plastic Shopping Bag Fact Sheet

PLASTIC SHOPPING BAG FACT SHEET

SEPTEMBER 2010

           

           Where do plastic bags come from, and where do they go?

• Made from Polyethylene
• 80% of polyethylene is produced from natural gas: an abundant,  yet non-renewable resource
• Never to be returned to an organic state
• It takes ~500-1,000 years to break down, meaning small particles of plastic are spread throughout the soil, blocking oxygen and normal growth
• Plastic bags can be recycled into composite lumber and other functional items
• BUT, only 5.2% of plastic bags are recycled (2005 EPA research)
• The other 94.8% are put in landfills and drape Boston’s fences, sidewalks, drainage systems, and waters
  

           How do plastic bags affect Massachusetts’ Economy?

• There are few plastic bag  manufacturers in Massachusetts; most bags originate from China
• Retailers in MA provide “free” plastic bags to their customers as a matter of convenience, as has become custom.
• Customers using their own bags means the retailer does not have to fund that convenience, and MA does not have to fund the clean-up and disposal of that product down the road.
• Retail customers currently do not pay to carry their items in a bag after purchase, as it presents no cost, and is included in trash-pick up taxes when they are ready to dispose of that convenience

           What can we do?

• “PlasTax” or plastic bag tax may be implemented:
• Decrease plastic usage: This will discourage customers from using plastic bags wastefully, and encourage them to carry their own reusable bags
• Decrease plastic litter: Will also decrease clean-up efforts, fund clean-up efforts, and prevent more plastic from invading ecosystems
• E.g. Ireland decreased plastic bag usage by 94% in the first months of imposing a tax, and raised 3.5M Euros for environmental clean-up
• “B.Y.O.B. Day” or Bring Your Own Bag Day promoted in Boston, MA:
• People think twice about accepting/giving out plastic bags: Consumers and retailers begin to understand how mindless usage of plastic bags affects the world around them
• Consumers remember to grab their own cloth bags before going to the grocery store: Making this issue top of mind increases likelihood of a consumer remembering to B.Y.O.B.
• E.g. Boston implemented a “Reusable Bag Day” in November 2007, but the outcome was not tracked.  Goals were to make consumers more aware of simple actions
• Ban on Plastic and Paper bags:
• Consumers understand where plastic bags come from and go, motivating to B.Y.O.B.
• There will be an increasing social pressure to curb  plastic bag usage
• E.g.  Bangladesh banned plastic bag use in 2002, after attributing flooding in 1998 to polyethylene choking drainage systems, thereby causing public health and sanitary issues.