The plastic bag ban and fees are working to help actually reduce litter along the coastline, researchers reveal.
A new study in the Peer-Reviewed Journal shows that bans or forced fees on plastic shopping bags is associated with a 25-47% reduction in plastic bag waste found while cleaning the coastline. Science.
Researchers found a decrease in plastic bags along all water bodies, but evidence suggests that plastic bag regulations have the greatest effect along the lake.
The study also shows that some plastic bag regulations are more effective than others. The authors write that a full ban and fee is probably more effective than a partial ban due to the exemption from thick plastic bags.
said Anna Papp, an environmental economist and a fellow postdoc association author, one of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. New York Times The survey shows that when local lawmakers implement regulations, plastic bag waste will definitely decrease.
“This isn’t a single snapshot of plastic waste, but it actually happens over and over again,” Papp says.
Environmental scientist Dr. Zoy Diana said The era The study shows that this reduction in plastic bag waste “will not have happened anyway… these policies are working.”
The ban on plastic bags and fees are becoming more popular. Research shows that over 100 countries have regulated bags, with 175 in discussions to create the first ever global plastic treaty.
In the US, At least 11 states Plastic bags are banned entirely, with over 200 counties banning or enforcing regulations.
Dr. Erin Murphy, manager of Ocean Conservancy, Ocean Plastics Research, told CNN that plastic bags are more dangerous to marine life than other types of garbage.
That’s because they’re lightweight and can be more easily infused into the environment, Murphy pointed out. Plastic bags can also kill animals that eat them or entangle them.
“They are difficult to recycle, disposable and lightweight, so they are very easy to blow away in the wind,” she told CNN. “Even if you’re trying to properly manage them, it’s easy to escape the waste management system and enter the environment.”
