Plastic bag ban: Delaware shoppers will have to use reusable bags from New Years onwards, Philadelphia and New Jersey shoppers will wait longer

WILMINGTON, Delaware (WPVI) – Starting Friday, Delaware buyers may need to bring their own bag.

The state’s new plastic bag ban law comes into effect on January 1.

This means that stores will no longer be able to distribute single-use plastic bags.

The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control says consumers should bring reusable bags to stores and clean / disinfect those bags between uses.

“The ban is aimed at reducing beach and roadside litter, saving landfill space, increasing recycling efforts and preventing recycling facilities from being forced to close when bags plastic are stuck in the machines, ”officials said.

DNREC Secretary Shawn Garvin said every Delaware resident uses around 434 plastic bags, which means nearly 2,400 tons of plastic bags end up in landfills across the state.

“A public decrease in plastic carrier bags can alleviate much of this waste and help our environment by reducing the amount of plastic bags on our roads and waterways that can harm us and our wildlife,” said Garvin said.

Retailers may choose to offer paper bags, cloth bags, or a type of thicker plastic bag designed to be reusable. Or stores might decide (as they always could have done before) not to provide customers with bags at all.

The law allows retail stores to charge a fee for the bags they provide at the point of sale.

DNREC advises consumers to wash or disinfect their reusable bags by turning them inside out and wiping them down with a disinfectant after each use.

Officials explain that by law, plastic take-out bags will no longer be available in department stores (over 7,000 square feet) as well as small stores with at least three locations in 3,000 square foot Delaware. each or more. Supermarkets and big box stores are affected, as well as convenience store chains. Restaurants are not subject to the ban, nor are small stores with one or two locations.

DNREC has created a list of questions and answers to guide retailers.

Ban on plastic bags in Philadelphia

For the people of Philadelphia, you have a little extra time before a baggage ban goes into effect.

The ban in the city has been delayed for six months.

So instead of starting on New Years Day, it will officially go into effect on July 1.

Businesses will need to hang signs informing customers of the ban by July 31, 2021. The plastic bag ban will begin October 1, 2021.

However, the city plans to give businesses warnings, not fines, until April 2, 2022, when it fully enforces the ban.

“Implementation has been delayed due to the impacts of COVID-19 on the business community, especially small businesses,” city officials said.

Officials said companies are encouraged to start phasing out their supply of plastic bags as soon as possible.

The Philadelphia ban will affect all retail establishments of all sizes in the city that make bags available for take-out items (such as food, clothing, housewares, etc.) and / or for the delivery. These businesses include establishments, indoor or outdoor, where food or other products are offered to the public for sale – including supermarkets, convenience stores, stores, gas stations, department stores, clothing stores. , restaurants, food trucks, farmers’ markets and delivery. services.

Philadelphians use about a billion plastic bags each year, according to the city.

There is no state ban in Pennsylvania.

Bag ban in New Jersey begins in 2022

In November, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy announced a ban on single-use plastic and paper bags from May 2022.

Murphy said the ban was an important step in reducing the damage and pollution these products cause to the environment.

“Plastic bags are one of the most problematic forms of waste, leading to millions of discarded bags that flow into our landfills, rivers and oceans every year,” Murphy said the day he signed on to the project. of law. “With the historic signing of today’s bill, we are tackling the problem of plastic pollution head-on with solutions that will help mitigate climate change and strengthen our environment for future generations.

The New Jersey ban also includes disposable food containers and styrofoam cups.