Even Paper Bags Will Be Banned From N.J. Supermarkets
The bill, which would make the state the first to ban single-use paper bags at supermarkets, would also ban single-use plastic bags in stores and restaurants.
By Mihir Zaveri, New York Times
Paper or plastic? In New Jersey, try neither.
The state Legislature on Thursday voted to make New Jersey the first in the country to ban single-use paper bags in supermarkets along with all single-use plastic bags in stores and restaurants.
Eight other states, including California, New York and Vermont, have bans on single-use plastic bags either in effect now or scheduled to go into effect in the coming years.
But by banning both plastic and paper single-use bags, as well as disposable food containers and cups made out of polystyrene foam, environmental advocates said the New Jersey bill is among the most stringent in the United States.
“This bill is probably the strongest, most comprehensive bill in the nation dealing with plastics and packaging,” said Jeff Tittel, the director of the New Jersey Sierra Club, which had been helping lead the campaign for the ban. “It will go a long way in our battle with plastic pollution.”
Opponents of the bill had argued that it would hurt businesses and that the ban should be limited to plastic bags, since many view paper bags as an environmentally friendly alternative.
But Mr. Tittel said by banning paper bags, New Jersey would be pushing people to use bags made out of recycled or other sustainable materials.
Heidi Brock, the president and chief executive of the American Forest and Paper Association, which represents companies that are part of the paper industry, said that she hoped the governor would block the ban on paper bags.
“The New Jersey Legislature has undermined an environmentally responsible option for consumers,” she said in a statement on Thursday. “Furthermore, the ban on paper bags sends an alarming message in devaluing family wage jobs, which are often union labor, in addition to the indirect jobs supported by
Related news stories:
Plastic and paper bag ban passed by lawmakers, heads to Murphy
Nation’s toughest ban on plastic and paper bags
