Was New Jersey’s Plastic Bag Ban Actually Helpful For The Environment?

It's been the question on everybody's mind for quite some time now: what are we seeing in terms of results from the plastic bag ban that rocked the entire Garden State?

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People were FREAKING OUT when they first heard the news. Honestly, most people probably never thought we'd actually see the ban come to fruition. Come, it sure did. Now, New Jersey residents can't help but wonder whether or not it was worth it.

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Did we actually cut down on plastic as a result?

According to a study conducted by the Freedonia Group has brought to light just how much MORE plastic is consumed in New Jersey now that plastic bags are a thing of the past. Apparently, we've almost tripled plastic consumption here in the Garden State since the ban took effect back in 2022.

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Reusable bags haven't replaced the convenience of one-time use plastic bags, either.

No, they have not. In fact, we're lucky enough to even remember to bring them to the store at all. What has happened is people forget their reusable shopping bags so often that they have to buy more at the grocery store. Therefore, the production of these reusable bags has called into question just how good for the environment they are.

As it turns out... not so much. You see, not all reusable shopping bags are recyclable themselves. The plastic shopping bags allowed before the ban? They were! So, how is the reusable bag initiative actually helping reduce our carbon footprint here in the Garden State?

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Did the plastic bag ban actually help New Jersey's environment?

Since it requires more materials to make the reusable shopping bags, banning plastic bags really didn't do much of anything at all for New Jersey's environmental state.

It was an okay idea in theory, at best. Take a look at the survey for yourself HERE.