Ten years after California passed landmark legislation to reduce plastic bag use, the tonnage of discarded bags has skyrocketed. What happened?

It was a decade ago when California became the first state in the nation to ban single-use plastic bags, ushering in a wave of anti-plastic legislation from coast to coast.

But in the years after California seemingly kicked its plastic grocery sack habit, material recovery facilities and environmental activists noticed a peculiar trend: Plastic bag waste by weight was increasing to unprecedented levels.

According to a report by the consumer advocacy group CALPIRG, 157,385 tons of plastic bag waste was discarded in California the year the law was passed. By 2022, however, the tonnage of discarded plastic bags had skyrocketed to 231,072 — a 47% jump. Even accounting for an increase in population, the number rose from 4.08 tons per 1,000 people in 2014 to 5.89 tons per 1,000 people in 2022.

The problem, it turns out, was a section of the law that allowed grocery stores and large retailers to provide thicker, heavier-weight plastic bags to customers for the price of a dime.

  • originalucifer@moist.catsweat.com
    56·
    9 months ago

    this isnt just california. they rolled out these thicker bags everywhere so they are no longer ‘single use’ except to the people that use them.

    • QuarterSwede@lemmy.world
      191·
      9 months ago

      In CO this doesn’t seem to be much of a thing. Almost everyone is using reusable fabric bags or no bags at all. I can’t recall seeing thicker bags for sale at any of the retailers I frequent. Many don’t have bags at checkouts at all anymore even though you can buy the thin ones for a dime.

    • The_v@lemmy.world
      8·
      9 months ago

      Those thicker bags, tear easily and usually don’t survive longer than the trip home. It’s a stupid loophole. They also can’t be washed. So if you do reuse them, it’s a great way to buildup bacteria and molds.

      In reality they are thicker single used bags.

      • Patches@sh.itjust.works
        2·
        9 months ago

        They literally aren’t even worth using to pickup dog shit here in Florida. Because you’ll get it on your hands.

        • EdibleFriend@lemmy.world
          2·
          9 months ago

          Yep. I’m instacart so I shop basically everywhere. The only places between here and Kansas that I see with good bags are Target and sprouts.

      • JJROKCZ@lemmy.world
        1·
        9 months ago

        And they give me a look and roll their eyes when I place my reusable bag on the counter or have to fight the self checkout machine at Schnucks or Dierbergs to accept that I brought my own bags.

    • its_prolly_fine@sh.itjust.works
      3·
      9 months ago

      Interesting, here in NY grocery stores can’t have any plastic bags. The only bags they have are paper. Restaurants can have plastic bags though.

      • TK420@lemmy.world
        1·
        9 months ago

        Correct.

        NY did not totally fuck up like NJ did, but that’s a song almost as old as time for the most part.