❎ NJ bag ban may be bad for environment
❎ Assemblyman calls for a repeal
❎ NJ 101.5 callers say they miss plastic bags
Nearly three years after New Jersey implemented a ban on what the law calls single-use plastic bags, there is growing evidence the ban has done more harm than good.
A study from the market research company Fredonia Group has found plastic consumption has nearly tripled since the ban took effect.
In other words, despite proponents claims it would greatly help the environment, it has had the opposite effect.
When he signed the law, Gov. Phil Murphy proclaimed: "With today's historic bill signing, we are addressing the problem of plastic pollution head-on with solutions that will help mitigate climate change and strengthen our environment for future generations."
Not only is there evidence to the contrary, but people have been buying more plastic bags so they can continue to use them for trash can liners, cat litter, dog waste, and other purposes. These bags use far more plastic than the single-use bags that were banned.
Labeling the plastic shopping bags "single-use" was a misdirection from the start.
Callers to the New Jersey 101.5 Morning Show with Eric Scott listed all kinds of uses they had for the bags once they unpacked the groceries.
From preserving leftovers to scooping cat boxes and collecting dog waste, it's clear these bags rarely were single use.
The argument these bags were harming the environment was also questioned by listeners, including a woman who just got back from Florida.
Nicole, from Howell, told us: "Bring back the bags! I just returned from Key West where they still use plastic bags and straws. Surrounded by nature and reefs and they are able to make it work."
Some callers said they still buy the plastic bags online. Although Joe, from Freehold, also had an ulterior motive. "I buy plastic bags on Amazon," Joe told us, "I bring them to grocery stores just to see reactions. I own them, so they can't say anything. Trolling the lefties."
Assemblyman John Azzariti Jr., R-Bergen, says it's time to admit the bag ban was a failure.
He is introducing legislation (A5338) that would completely repeal the ban on plastic bags, plastic straws, Styrofoam containers and paper bags.
The bill follows President Donald Trump's executive order to bring back plastic straws and studies demonstrating how reusable bags actually increased waste in New Jersey.
Appearing on the New Jersey 101.5 Morning show, Azzariti said the data just isn't there to support the ban.
"Just because your intuition tells you something is going to be true, science can prove you wrong," Azzariti said.
He says landfills are now filling up with the reusable bags no one wants anymore.
"New Jersey's 9 million residents started accumulating massive amounts of woven and reusable bags after the plastic bag ban went into effect. It became so overwhelming that these bags eventually ended up in the garbage, because they aren't recyclable or biodegradable," Azzariti claims.
The future of this legislation is uncertain. It is unlikely the Democrats who control the state legislature will post it for a vote.
Still, Azzariti remains hopeful.
"There's been no consensus on if the ban has worked, and in fact, there's only evidence to suggest that prohibiting single-use plastics may even have the opposite effect."