Do Reusable Bags Help or Hurt? Banning plastic bags is a hotly contended issue within the United States. While some argue that a plastic bag ban will help our environment by limiting the plastic waste which ends up in the landfill, others dispute a ban will hurt the economy as potential manufactures will lose business and workers will end up unemployed. Like most issues, the topic is far more complex than one might gather at first glance. Simply looking at the numbers of the issues:
Presented with these appalling statistics, it appears as though there is a dire need for people to switch away from classic plastic bags and instead select an option which may be sturdier (provide a material less likely to rip or be damaged such as cotton or a thicker plastic), and provide more uses. But is forcing consumers to switch to alternative bagging options really best for our environment? The answer isn’t as simple as one bag preference over another, but instead is in the lifetime use of the bag. In a study conducted by the Environment Agency of the United Kingdom, completed 2011, the lifecycle of various supermarket carrier bags was analyzed in order to assess the environmental impact each has. This study found that while polypropylene (PP) bags or cotton bags may be preferred alternatives to traditional HDPE (high density polyethylene) bags, the global warming potential (GWP, measured in kg CO2 eq.) far exceeds that of conventional bags. Figure 5.1 provides a visual representation of the global warming potential associated with each bag type tested. One may notice that cotton bags is excluded from the figure; this was due to the fact that its GWP was 10x greater than any other carrier bag (Edwards/Fry, 2006). The primary conclusion from this study which is of interest is that cotton bags must be used a minimum of 131 times, and non-woven PP bags a minimum of 11 times, in order to ensure that they have a lower global warming potential (GWP) than traditional HDPE bags. From this data, we can conclude that the type of bag used is not as important as the frequency of use. If you choose to purchase a reusable bag, make sure that it is a staple in your shopping routines. If you choose to continue using store bags (HDPE bags), be sure to recycle them (either in bins provided by your local supermarket or re-use them on the next shopping trip), or find uses for them around the house (such as garbage bin liners in smaller trash cans). Be mindful, be creative, and chose to use plastic bags responsibly. The Stance of Indiana On March 23rd of 2016, then governor Mike Pence, signed House Bill 1053 into law in the state of Indiana. This law, written by Representative Ronald Bacon of Indiana’s 75th District, prohibits local governments in the state of Indiana from “(1) regulating: (A) certain activities with respect to reusable or disposable auxiliary containers designed for one time use…; or (B) a manufacturer of, a distributor of, or a food or retail facility that sells, provides, or otherwise makes use of, auxiliary containers…; or (2) imposing any prohibition, restriction, fee, or tax with respect to auxiliary containers”(Bacon, 2016). Companies that operate within the state of Indiana, be they local, national, or international, can still uphold their own policies on the use of auxiliary containers such as plastic bags. This law, for example would not prevent companies such as ALDI for charging for the use of a plastic bag, but it does stop the debate that was occurring in Bloomington, Indiana at the time about what restrictions that they, as a city, could place on the use of items such as plastic bags. As of the end of 2017, Indiana is one of nine states with a ban on the banning of plastic bag bans nationwide, in comparison to the seven states where some measures have been taken against plastic bags, be it outright bans, additional taxes, or reuse programs. In the states that have placed bans on the banning of plastic bags, it has been done, so that grassroots movements do not have the opportunity to give way to statewide policies as was the case in California. In Indiana an additional reason for this law was the opposition to a plastic bag ban presented by concerned business and industry groups that operated within the state.
Economic and Environmental Impacts of Plastic Bags Now that we have an idea of the impacts of plastic bags, the banning of them, and the current state of the issue in Indiana, we will now take a look at both the environmental and economic impacts of plastic bags by analyzing the banning of plastic bags in San Diego, CA to potentially get a better idea of what would happen if the state of Indiana were to swing the other way and enact legislature that would promote the banning of plastic bags. According to the Equinox Center, the numbers are clear. With plastic bag bans and fees, there would be a reduction of not only solid waste, but also greenhouse gas emissions as well as energy spent per year; the only caveat being a greater increase in fresh water consumption (Equinox Center, 2013). Now while there is a large increase in the consumption of fresh water, the benefits of such a trade off is clear. The effects of the such legislature would result in a major positive impact on the environment. Now to address the impact of such legislature on the economy, we will take a look on the impact of retailers, consumers, cities, and plastic manufacturers. To begin, a large concern is that if plastic bags were banned, retailers would lose business. To address this, a study has been done that gives us some solid numbers. It states that although in city retailers would suffer, retailers outside the impact zone would actually benefit (Equinox Center, 2013). Although there is some evidence with this study, more studies would probably have to be conducted to see how it would perform in Indiana. Moving on, regarding how policy would affect consumers, plastic bag bans would have an initial flat fee in the beginning, but in the long run would actually start to save money given some additional policy that would discount an individual’s purchase by using reusable bags. Now addressing the issue of the effects on cities, the major point to examine is how much money that cities have to spend in order to clean plastic waste. With the reduction of plastic bags, cities are projected to save a large sum of money. That is in San Francisco, an estimated $700,000 in total. Of course this is in another city, but we can see how it might work similarly in Indiana. Finally to address plastic manufacturers, the ban of plastic bags may affect jobs of employees of such companies. This could be potentially true, but it is more likely that the companies’ revenue streams would take the hit before the jobs and with reusable bags being made out of different plastics, switching could prove to be a good solution. Overall, there is no clear winner when it comes to the economic effects, which isn’t amazing, but is good considering the very positive environmental ones. Sources: Associated Press. “Indiana Senate Approves Bill Banning Local Plastic Bag Restrictions.” Indianapolis Star, AP, 23 Feb. 2016, www.indystar.com/story/news/politics/2016/02/23/indiana-senate-approves-bill-banning-local-plastic-bag-restrictions/80813858/. Bacon, Ronald. “House Bill 1053 - Regulation of Packaging Materials.” Indiana General Assembly, 5 Jan. 2016, iga.in.gov/legislative/2016/bills/house/1053#digest-heading “Banning Local Restrictions on Plastic Bags | Hoosier Environmental Council.” Hoosier Environmental Council RSS, Hoosier Environmental Council, 2016, www.hecweb.org/bill-watch-2016/hea-1053-banning-local-restrictions-on-plastic-bags/ Edwards, C., Fry, J.M. “Life cycle assessment of supermarket carrier bags: a review of the bags available in 2006.” Environment Agency (UK), February 2011, https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/291023/scho0711buan-e-e.pdf “Fees, Taxes and Bans: Recycling and Reuse” National Conference of State Legislature, 7 May 2017, http://www.ncsl.org/research/environment-and-natural-resources/plastic-bag-legislation.aspx “Plastic Bag Ban: Analysis of Economic and Environmental Impacts.” Equinox Center, 23 Oct 2013, https://energycenter.org/sites/default/files/Plastic-Bag-Ban-Web-Version-10-22-13-CK.pdf “Stop Banning Plastic Bag Bans.” Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 12 Jan. 2017, www.latimes.com/opinion/editorials/la-ed-bag-preemption-2017012-story.html.
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AuthorsThese blog posts are written by students in the POL 327 Spring 2017 class. Archives |