Plastic-bag ban won’t work

Following are reasons to oppose the proposed plastic bag ban.

Littering is already illegal. One of the main concerns over plastic bags is reducing litter. If litter is the problem, we should be penalizing residents and visitors who litter, not law-abiding citizens who use plastic bags lawfully and in most instances re-use and recycle them.

Cost to consumers. The math is simple. Plastic costs 1 cent per bag; paper is 7 cents per bag. This adjustment would cost the average grocery store $20,000 per month. To recoup those costs, prices of goods will be raised and the cost of the ban will be passed to consumers.

Bags are not even the No. 1 source of litter. As stated at the Beaufort County Council Natural Resources Committee meeting on Aug 22, single-use plastic bags are the fifth most prevalent type of litter picked up by conservationists. Cigarette butts are No. 1. Almost no municipalities that pass plastic-bag bans see a reduction in litter (“Clemson University Life Cycle Assessment of Grocery Bags in Common Use”).

A bag tax will follow. Most residents will not feel an impact of a tax but those at or below the poverty line certainly will. Any proposed ban will hurt these residents the most.

Exemptions. Ziplock and newspaper bags will not be part of any ordinance. I fail to see how marine life in Beaufort County will be able to distinguish a grocery bag from a newspaper bag.

This story was originally published September 8, 2017 at 6:00 AM with the headline "Plastic-bag ban won’t work."