Senator Brian A. Joyce’s efforts to prod consumers away from plastic bags received a big boost recently when supermarket giant Stop & Shop announced a discount plan for customers shopping with reusable bags.
Beginning this month, Stop & Shop will take five cents off each customer’s total shopping order for every bag a customer brings from home to use while shopping. In addition, the company plans to launch a campaign to heighten awareness of the negative impact plastic bags have on the environment.
“This is going to have an enormous impact in terms of further bringing this issue to the forefront,” said Senator Joyce, who has filed legislation calling for a small fee on plastic shopping bags. “Stop & Shop is a multibillion-dollar corporation and the largest food retailer in New England. By providing cash incentives to use reusable bags, they reward their customers for being good stewards of the environment while setting a great example for the rest of the industry.”
According to the EPA, over 380 billion plastic bags, sacks, and wraps are consumed in the United States each year. Of those 380 billion plastic bags, research from 2000 shows that only approximately 1% is recycled. This creates pollution in our streets, our parks, and in our oceans where hundreds of thousands of sea turtles, fish, and other marine life die each year from eating plastic bags mistaken for food.
“We believe we are in an excellent position to lead and help motivate communities and our customers to find solutions to today’s environmental concerns,” said Stop & Shop President & CEO Jose Alvarez in a letter to Senator Joyce. “The use of reusable bags in our stores is one such solution.”
Senator Joyce’s bill aims gently to persuade consumers not to choose the “plastic” option by introducing a small fee on plastic bags at the checkout of large retail establishments. Customers would be exempt from the fee if they brought their own reusable bag, didn’t use a bag, requested a paper bag, used a compostable bag provided by the store, or reused a plastic bag.
This fee is similar to the “Plastax” instituted in Ireland in 2002 – a fee on plastic bags that affected a 90 percent drop in their consumption in just one year. The fee would gradually increase each year beginning at $0.02 in 2008 and reaching $0.15 per bag in 2014.
“This legislation is about educating consumers about the detrimental impact of plastic bags on the environment, and asking individuals to seek alternative options," said Senator Joyce. “I am thrilled to have such a successful and socially responsible company like Stop & Shop as a partner in this effort.”
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