N.J. should ban all single-use bags - both paper and plastic - business group says

The New Jersey Food Council (NJFC) is the only statewide business organization supporting a ban on both paper and plastic single-use bags, and we’re surprised at unfounded attacks from an environmental group. Unfortunately, public discourse has been reduced to blatant mischaracterizations and false narratives to promote an agenda. Let’s review the facts.

Last year, the NJFC took a major step against plastic pollution, supporting a bill to impose a 5-cent fee on both plastic and paper bags at the point of sale. The NJFC was the only business organization to support such an initiative, and we even met with The Association of New Jersey Environmental Commissions (ANJEC), which wrote a guest column criticizing the Food Council on the issue, and others environmental leaders to explain our reasoning.

Fees on plastic and paper bags help reduce pollution and promote reusable bags. Counties that have imposed a 5-cent fee on bags, such as Suffolk County, New York, and Montgomery County, Maryland, saw significant reductions in bag usage. Suffolk County showed an impressive 80 percent reduction in plastic and paper bag usage in 2018 – that’s 1.1 billion bags eliminated!

Even the Surfrider Foundation, a national leader in reducing single-use bags, says fees are “by far the most effective way to change consumer behavior and reduce overall carryout bag usage,” and recommended laws that include a fee on all bag types to discourage use.

The NJFC saw the passage of a statewide fee bill as the best method to change consumer behavior, decrease plastic and paper bag usage, increase the use of reusable bags and eliminate customer confusion. Such a bill would have laid the groundwork for a future ban on plastic and paper bags in New Jersey.

Much to our surprise, the ANJEC balked after initially expressing a willingness to work with us.

Rather, the organization opposed legislation that would have immediately reduced plastic and paper bag use because the bill, apparently, did not go far enough. Jennifer Coffey, executive director of the ANJEC, called it a “weak plastic bag bill” that would have “increased plastic bag use.” This statement is puzzling. How can a policy proven to reduce both plastic and paper bag usage by 80 percent be weak?

As a result of such pressure, Gov. Phil Murphy vetoed the legislation. Today, almost all of New Jersey continues using these bags.

ANJEC opposes a statewide solution because it represents local municipal environmental commissions. A statewide ban would preempt the ability of local towns to regulate bag use. In other words, this organization is prioritizing local governmental control, rather than solving the problem of pollution.

Because New Jersey is so densely populated, a statewide approach is the only workable solution.

Residents routinely travel to different towns to shop. If each town has its own rules, shoppers will struggle to know the bag requirements. Moreover, store owners with locations in different towns will have to navigate various local ordinances, a logistical and operational nightmare.

Most importantly, not every town is going to act. Ms. Coffey even admits, in her op-ed, that out of the 565 towns in New Jersey, only 50 or so ordinances have been proposed. Less than 10 percent of towns are taking action on their own.

The NJFC is asking mayors to support a statewide solution, rather than take local action. No one wants 565 different town ordinances regulating how consumers shop.

It is at the taxpayer expense for municipal officials to develop and pass their own ordinances; this does absolutely nothing to solve the overarching problem. Reducing waste statewide is a good thing; let’s not allow a zip code to dictate disposable bag policies.

Linda Doherty is the president and CEO of the New Jersey Food Council.

Original article was published on NJ.com. August 13, 2019.