Plastic bags kill. That sounds like a drastic statement, but it's true--when plastic bags get loose in our communities, they strangle wildlife, are ingested by fish and other animals, and break down into microplastics that pollute waterways and food sources, causing illness and death. These bags are made from petrochemicals--oil and oil derivatives, which are produced using highly polluting drilling and chemical processes. Call New York State Assembly Speaker Heastie today at 518-455-3791 and tell him you support a plastic bag ban with a disposable bag fee.
we know that plastic bag recycling programs aren't enough--even with recycling efforts, the average American family takes home almost 1,500 bags per year, and less than 5% of those are recycled.
It's time to change, and our state senate has proposed a budget measure that gets to the heart of the problem--the bill will ban plastic bags and impose a small five cent fee on other disposable bags. Long Island's Suffolk County has a similar system in place and it decreased the number of bags used there by 80% in one year. In Suffolk County alone, 1.1 billion bags were cut out of the waste stream.
Call Speaker Heastie today at 518-455-3791. Tell him you support the BYOBag Bill as proposed in the State Senate's budget.
Your call will make all the difference--these issues are being hashed out right now as part of the state budget process, in the final days of negotiation before the bills are due on April first.
In the past, some leaders have proposed banning bags without imposing any fees. Unfortunately that approach just doesn't work. When Chicago and Honolulu tried that approach—only banning plastic bags—they repealed their laws within months. Retailers responded by switching to heavier single-use plastic bags, and paper bag use skyrocketed.
New York deserves better and a plastic bag ban with a fee on other disposable bags is the right way to tackle this problem. The ban will help phase out the bags that are killing wildlife, littering the Catskills, and threatening our families' health. And the small fee will provide an incentive for shoppers to bring their own bag. Please call Speaker Heastie today at 518-455-3791 and tell him to support the BYOBag Bill.
Sincerely,
Katherine Nadeau, Deputy Director
