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As towns defer to county, a plastic bag ban seems unlikely

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Southampton Town Supervisor Anna Throne-Holst examines a reusable bag at a meeting in 2011. (Credit: courtesy, Southampton Press)

Three Places That Have Banned Plastic Bags

The South Fork

On Earth Day, April 22, 2015, Southampton Town became the latest South Fork municipality to enforce a ban on single-use thin plastic bags, following similar action in Southampton Village, Quogue and Sagaponack.

The townwide ban prohibits retail stores from giving customers plastic bags at checkout, although reusable plastic bags thicker than 2.25 millimeters and paper bags are still allowed.

“I think it’s been overwhelmingly effective,” said Southampton Town Supervisor Anna Throne-Holst. “If you go into any of the village stores now, many of them offer reusable bags when you walk away with their merchandise. Overall, it’s been very positive. I think most people understand it’s a small change of habit that has a big impact.”

But Ms. Throne-Holst said she’s been disappointed to see some businesses “weasel around” the intent of the law by using the thicker plastic bags.

“I think that’s a shame because people go to King Kullen and they’re perfectly fine using their own bags or using another alternative,” she said. She added that enforcement has not been a problem, as all retail stores have been in compliance with the new law.

A similar ban in East Hampton Town was also approved last winter and took effect last month.

San Luis Obispo County, Calif.

This county of roughly 46,000 residents prohibited retail stores from handing out plastic bags with purchases in 2012. Under the law, businesses are allowed to give out paper bags for a 10-cent fee. Before it took effect, the ban faced a lawsuit from opponents, which was eventually dismissed.

Patti Toews, program director at the county’s Integrated Waste Management Authority, said the ban was intended to reduce the bags’ impact on the natural environment, upon which the county relies for tourism dollars. The bags also clogged up storm drains during California’s sudden downpours and were being blown onto nearby properties.

“What we were seeing were these plastic bags all over the place,” she said.

The ban also encountered opposition from some shoppers, but in the end, Mr. Toews said, “it is better for the community as a whole.”

“The plastic bag ban is super successful, über successful,” she added. “It’s just amazing how much cleaner our environment is.”

Several other California counties followed suit, enacting their own bans. A statewide ban was set to take effect this summer, but was pushed back after opponents, including the plastics industry, lobbied for a public referendum on the proposal in November 2016.

Meanwhile, San Luis Obispo County is now considering a ban on polystyrene containers.

Hawaii

In July, Hawaii became the first state in the nation to outlaw single-use plastic bags that are thinner than 2.25 millimeters. The ban took effect July 1, but according to an article in Hawaii News Now, only 4,000 of the 9,200 local businesses that received compliance forms replied.

About 30 percent of businesses that responded said the ban didn’t apply to their company or that they wouldn’t offer bags at all. Another 30 percent planned to use recyclable paper bags, while 10 percent said they would use compostable bags — even though there isn’t a composting facility in Hawaii, according to the article.

The remaining 30 percent have environmentalists upset, as those businesses are ordering thicker plastic bags that are considered reusable. According to the report, those reusable bags take even longer to disintegrate.

Conservationists have since criticized the law for that loophole.

“It’s a great step forward,” one conservationist told Hawaii News Now, “but a number of stores have taken a step back.”