Banning plastic bags works
A large-scale study, the first of its kind, shows that fewer plastic bags are found abandoned on beaches when single-use bags are not distributed for free, or even banned. Given the damage this pollution causes to marine life, it is an argument in favor of an international treaty against plastic pollution.
Banning single-use plastic bags or charging for them in supermarkets has reduced the number distributed in these establishments, recalls Popular Science . Does this decrease in the number of bags in circulation have repercussions on the environment? In other words, are there still just as many littering beaches, lakeshores, and riverbanks? To find out, Anna Papp of Columbia University and Kimberly Oremus of the University of Delaware analyzed data from collection campaigns carried out by the ocean conservation NGO Ocean Conservancy between January 2016 and December 2023 in the United States.
And their results, published in the journal Science , provide “the strongest evidence yet that these bans make a difference to the environment,” says Scientific American .
The researchers applied scientific rigor and cross-referenced collection data with local regulations on plastic bags. “They found that in places with such regulations, the number of discarded plastic bags had significantly decreased,” explains the Los Angeles Times . “On average, this reduction was between 25% and 47%,” explains Popular Science . And it seems this is accompanied by a decrease of about a third of animals found suffocated or trapped by plastic.
To rule out the possibility that their results actually reflect a general trend toward plastic-free disposal, regardless of current laws, they examined data on other common plastic waste, such as straws, plastic bottles, and caps. “And for these,” Scientific American reports, “there was no change,” demonstrating that the decline in discarded plastic bags can be attributed to regulations.
For the Los Angeles Times, which notes that 175 countries are still negotiating an international treaty to end plastic pollution, which is expected to triple by 2060, these results provide proof that environmental protection strategies based on regulations are getting results.
