| Wednesday, March 31, 2010 |
| Massachusetts As a Model |
What's the best way to get consumers and businesses to switch from using single-use plastic or paper bags to reusable bags?
Across the country, municipalities and states have discussed taxes, bans, and other measures. In DC, the new "bag tax" has reduced plastic/paper bag distribution by anywhere from 50 to 90 percent, according to businesses. Taxes and bans are effective in that they DO cut plastic (and paper, depending on the legislation) bag use. But they inflict heavy costs on consumers, and can often cost businesses more, too.
But Massachusetts may have discovered another way to reduce bag use without taxing the consumer or banning bags altogether: build off of the successes of businesses.
Around the country, businesses like CVS, Target, Wal-mart, Ikea, and others have launched their own initiatives for reducing plastic/paper bag use. Many of these businesses have "consumer credit programs" that actually offer the customer incentives for using reusable bags. At Trader Joe's in DC, for example, you get 5 cents off each time you use your own bag instead of using theirs.
Like many states, cities, and towns across the country (and the world), Massachusetts has been considering different ways to reduce plastic and paper bag distribution.
Many places (including Boston, Sturbridge, and Plymouth) have discussed plastic bag bans. However, many businesses dislike bans because they automatically increase the amount businesses must spend to buy bags. Plastic bags cost businesses roughly 2 cents per bag, so if you ban plastic, businesses have to switch to paper, which costs them around 5 cents per bag. That's an automatic 3 cent increase per bag! And, unfortunately, bans don't really help the environment all that much, as there are plenty of reasons disposable paper bags are bad for the environment, too. They consume more energy to produce and create more pollutants, and they also take up more space in landfills! Massachusetts has also considered charging a fee for bags. Legislation appeared on Beacon Hill last year that would charge consumers two cents for plastic bags.
But the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection and the Massachusetts Food Association (an organization with over 500 member groceries and supermarkets) teamed up. They signed a "Memorandum of Understanding" in which stores pledged to reduce plastic/paper bag distribution by 1/3 in the next five years.
The Boston Globe covered the MOU here. You can read the text of the MOU here.
This is a great first step towards changing consumer and business behavior. States around the nation should follow Massachusetts's lead and work with businesses to change supplier and consumer behavior. |
posted by Students for Responsible Bag Policy @ 10:50 AM  |
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Students for Responsible Bag Policy is an independent organization founded by students at Georgetown University in Washington, DC. We seek progress on issues pertaining to single-use bag legislation in the best interest of our nation's energy, environment, and security.
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