Back in 2012, Dallas had big plans to go zero waste by 2040. There was even talk of increased recycling and banning disposable items such as plastic bags. Talks have stalled and Dallas has not completely given up on this ambitious goal, but with this single-use bag fee setback it is not likely Dallas will reach this milestone.
Plastic pollution has such a far reaching impact, but the effect on wildlife is alarming and sad. There are so many ways plastic pollution can happen; from people carelessly tossing an item on the ground to the wind lifting items from recycling bins or landfills. Whether intentional or not, pollution happens.
Disposable products like single-use plastic bags are a problem because they typically either end up in a landfill never fully breaking down and possibly entering our water supply, or as litter that has a detrimental impact on our oceans and our wildlife. Need proof, check out these photos to understand why we all need reusable products such as shopping and grocery bags.
On April 13, 2015 Arizona Governor Doug Ducey signed Senate Bill 1241. This bill makes it illegal for any town, city or county in Arizona to ban or levy fees on disposable plastic bags. Bisbee is the only city in Arizona to have a law banning single-use plastic bags and Senate Bill 1241 will not impact this existing law. The bill came about because certain trade groups did not want to be inconvenienced by single-use plastic bag bans.
There are always plenty of changes happening on the plastic bag ban front in the United States and we are happy to report that most of these changes are positive. Getting shoppers to switch to reusable shopping bags due to cities adopting bans and municipalities researching the best solution for their towns and there have been a lot of additions to our bag ban map. But not all are on-board with the movement, read on to learn more about some of the latest updates to the plastic bag ban movement.
There is a lot of debate around encouraging reusable bags through plastic bag ban ordinances, and while there are certainly people who passionately feel such laws are a good and necessary choice, there are plenty of folks who disagree. Each ordinance is different too, some laws prohibit disposable plastic bags while others levy a fee on each single-use plastic bag handed out. There is not a one-size-fits-all approach to plastic bag ordinances, but ultimately these measures help us all.
It is estimated that every minute, 1.4 million plastic bags are used worldwide each year and 50 billion plastic water bottles are discarded just in the United States alone. So it is not surprising that UC Santa Barbara scientists approximate there to be 5.25 trillion pieces of plastic in the world’s oceans. Plastic trash can have a major impact on animals and the environment and this begs the question of what sort of impact this litter is having on the food chain. The question is so important that there are several scientists looking into whether plastic pollution is inadvertently ending up on your dinner plate.
There is certainly not a one-size-fits all approach to disposable plastic bag ordinances. In order to implement a measure that will work for an individual city, a plastic bag ordinance needs to address the concerns of the people and function in a way they can be comfortable with. Here is your latest news on cities that are working to create their own, unique plastic bag ban ordinances.
Hi, my name is Alison and I research, write the updates and drop the pins onto the Factory Direct Promos (FDP) Bag Ban Map. There are a lot of exciting changes constantly happening around the world when it comes to banning single-use plastic bags, and with our mission to help businesses and consumers go reusable, we take bag bans pretty serious around FDP.
To see the progress, and maybe get some inspiration, check out our worldwide plastic bag ordinance map. This plastic bag ordinance map is a resource that tells a story. By clicking the different pins you can see how the bag ban movement unfolds.
Governor Jerry Brown has been working with the California Legislature to seriously up the green factor throughout the Golden State. The most notable effort undertaken has been the single-use plastic bag ban, which is on hold for the time being, but that’s not the only ecological endeavor underway. The California Recycle Initiative aims to implement legislation at the state level that will encourage reusability, with the ultimate goal being to reduce reliance on landfills.
Officials in California confirmed what was long suspected and put the state’s single-use plastic bag ban on hold. A trade group was able to gather the signatures needed to get the ban on the November 2016 ballot which includes a $2 million incentive for manufacturers to convert their production facilities to produce more durable, reusable shopping bags.
The disposable bag ban landscape in the United States is always changing, and we love following the journey from idea to implementation and bringing these great, inspiring stories to you. From coast to coast here’s a rundown of what’s new on the plastic bag ban front.
In a statement recently issued by Worldwatch Institute, an independent research organization based in Washington, D.C. that works on energy, resource and environmental issues, the plastic problem is broken down. This report makes it clear that the problems caused by plastic far outweigh the advantages.
There is now a ban on the production and sale of disposable plastic bags in Jilin Province in Northeast China. The objective of the ban was to reduce trash and help streamline the waste stream. Shoppers can bring their reusable grocery bags or they can use biodegradable bags and many shoppers are fine bringing their reusable shopping bags or paying extra for biodegradable bags. Find out more about the law that went into effect on the first day of this year.
Inside the Garbage of the World is a great film that is full of so much information and insight and the more we watch it the more we want to take action, but we need help. In fact, we pretty much need the help of everyone in the world to reverse the damage caused by plastic pollution. This is definitely a big undertaking, but we are optimistic we can all help turn things around. To help inspire you here are three facts about plastic pollution you might not have known.
Keeping up with the ever-changing developments surrounding disposable plastic bag bans is a job we here at Factory Direct Promos love doing. It can be a lot of work but we actually have our bag ban expert Alison with us to keep track of the developments and it is so great to see cities pull together and make something that they believe in happen. It is also so incredibly inspiring to see neighboring cities and towns follow suit and implement bans of their own. While California still dominates the bag ban coverage, we are super excited to follow up with long overdue developments in Long Island and report on some new happenings in Kansas.
The entire journey to ban single-use plastic bags in California has been epic – there have been ups and downs and it almost seemed like when Governor Jerry Brown signed SB270 into law on September 30, 2014 that the trek was going to end on a high note and disposable plastic bags would quickly become a relic of the past.
Turns out that was wishful thinking and the journey is going to be a little longer, but we’re still optimistic single-use plastic bags will ultimately be banned at the state level.
From efforts to improve air quality and work to clean water supplies a lot happened in 2014. This was a big year in terms of environmental advancements and we could not be happier to cover these stories and share this good news with you.
I was lucky enough to get introduced to a film called Inside the Garbage of the World a couple of weeks ago on Twitter by the filmmaker himself, Philippe Carillo. You will want to follow along with him and his wife Maxine on Twitter HERE but basically, the film, explores the devastating impact pollution, and in particular plastic pollution, has on the oceans and how that in turn impacts all life on the planet. This film has lots of updated and informative info and is really worth the watch. It breaks down the plastic pollution problems, shatters myths and explains how we can work to overcome the plastic pollution problem.
When California Governor, Jerry Brown, signed SB270 into law this past September, he changed the future of the Golden State and he changed the state of the environment for the better.
“This bill is a step in the right direction – it reduces the torrent of plastic polluting our beaches, parks and even the vast ocean itself,” Brown said. “We’re the first (state) to ban these bags, and we won’t be the last.”