Plastic Bags
Plastic bags are plaguing our planet. They are used for an average of 12 minutes but can last for more than 500 years. They are the most common synthetic item found in the stomachs of sea turtles and are increasingly being found in the bellies of whales washing up on shore dead. When these bags do break down in the environment, they contribute to the ever-growing threat of microplastic pollution. And plastic bags are not just polluting our oceans, they’re also clogging gutters, streams, rivers, lakes and ending up in our woods, roadsides, meadows, and trees.
At least 15 million metric tons of plastic (which includes a whole lot of plastic bags) enter the ocean each year. By 2025, experts predict that there will be one pound of plastic in the ocean for every three pounds of fish.
Wondering what can you do?
You can work on passing a local plastic bag ban! It is an effective way to reduce plastic pollution and help grow the movement against single-use plastics!
See our resources below for tools and tips for getting your state or local government to pass a plastic bag ban.
MODEL LEGISLATION
You can download our model “Beyond Plastics Bill” and use it as a starting point with your elected representatives. It is drafted to ban plastic bags, polystyrene, plastic straws (except upon request), splash guards, stirrers, and balloons. We recommend doing all of these items at once, if possible!
START A PETITION
If you’d prefer to limit your efforts to just polystyrene, you can use this sample petition language to start an online petition to raise awareness and put pressure on elected officials to act.
GET THE FACTS
Check out our handy Plastic Bags Fact Sheet – available to download as a PDF.
If you’d prefer, we also have this fact sheet available in Spanish. Haga clic aquí para descargar en Español.
Find MORE INFORMATION
Like facts? (We do.) Want to arm yourself with more information? We recommend reading the two reports below to help you make your case: