What the New Plastic Bag Ban Means for New Yorkers
|| Photo credit to Shannon Mason.
Say goodbye to your single use plastic bags New York–as of March 1, they will be gone.
The law was passed in 2019, making the Empire State the second in the nation to implement a statewide ban with an aim to counteract the amount of plastic bags found in trees, water or littered on the sidewalk.
According to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, over 23 billion plastic bags are used every year. While the law is attempting to prevent waste removal, some are not entirely sold on the idea.
“A plastic bag ban won’t accomplish the type of waste removal people hope,” Marisa Wineriter, a senior PPE major, said.“A plastic bag ban is more of a virtue signaling tatic by companies to create the illusion of environmental consciousness.”
What exactly is the law?
On March 1 of this year, retailers that collect taxes on items are no longer allowed to distribute any plastic carryout bags to customers unless the bags are exempt. On the other side, a person that collects tax can not prevent a customer from using any type of bag that they “brought for purposes of carrying goods.” According to the law, this means you can still use plastic bags for your groceries as long as you bring them from home. Be aware, stores will not have any plastic bags to distribute for that purpose.
Plastic bags that are exempt from this law include ones:
Used solely to contain or wrap uncooked meat, fish, seafood or other food/flower/plant item
Used to contain food sliced or prepared to order
Used to contain a newspaper
Sold as a trash bag
Sold as a food storage bag
Used as a garment bag
To see the full list of all plastic bags exempt from the law, click here.
How does this affect me?
In short, this law means you will have to use reusable bags when shopping. While paper bags will be available, cities and counties in New York have the option to charge a five cent fee for customers to use them.
Regardless of some locations promising paper bags as a replacement for plastic, New York City could be facing shortages. According to The New York Post, the 30 Gristedes and D’Agostino grocery stores in the city ordered paper bags in December but only have one case for each store so far. If you aren’t 100% sure that your local grocery store or farmers market will have the paper bag option - bring your own bag!
To purchase reusable bags, look in grocery stores like Trader Joes which sells six-gallon bags for 99 cents. For an even cheaper option, the Department of Sanitation is giving out free reusable bags to New Yorkers either in person or online. Take the Zero Waste Pledge and you can get a free cutting board or reusable bag delivered right to your door. You can also attend any of the bag distribution events put on by the Department of Sanitation before March 1.
“I think for New Yorkers the transition from having plastic given out constantly to now having to carry their own bags to places is something even I am going to feel the effects of,” Mitch Manley, an MCA Junior said. “I tend not to buy reusable bags, but I guess I’ll have to start soon.”