(Photo Credit: Brian Yurasits, Unsplash)Maine and New York State have delayed plastic bag bans in response to concerns about the covid-19 pandemic.
New York State’s ban on single-use plastic bags began on March 1. However, it quickly came under criticism as cases of the novel coronavirus rose. City Journal columnist John Tierney called the ban “unsanitary.” New York State Senate minority leader Republican Senator John Flanagan urged fellow lawmakers to suspend the ban, saying it “could lead to additional cases,” according to Plastics News.
On Thursday, the New York State Department of Conservation (DEC) posted a notice saying that enforcement on the plastic bag ban will be pushed from April 1 to May 15, the New York Daily News reported. Also on hold: a lawsuit brought by businesses in the state that say they need more time to prepare for the transition.
“DEC continues to encourage New Yorkers to transition to reusable bags whenever and wherever they shop and to use common-sense precautions to keep their reusable bags clean,” a department spokeswoman told the Daily News.
Lawmakers in Maine voted this week to postpone the start of a state-wide plastic bag ban until next year in response to concerns about the covid-19 pandemic. The ban was supposed to go into effect next month.
Governor Janet Mills signed the bill in July 2019 prohibiting single-use plastic bags from grocery store check-out lanes by April 22, 2020, the Associated Press reported. Under the legislation, stores could charge at least five cents per recyclable paper bag or heavier-duty reusable plastic bag. Restaurants were exempt from the fee.
On Tuesday, Mills and the state legislature came up with a package of emergency measures to respond to covid-19. They included “delaying the effective date of the single-use plastic bag ban to January 15, 2021.”
“These emergency measures will support the state’s response to the coronavirus and mitigate its spread in Maine,” Mills said.
Restrictions on single-use plastic items such, including bags, have long received pushback from some industry groups, including plastic bag manufacturers. The critics argue that bans would only lead to heavier reusable bags going into landfills, the Associated Press reported.
Covid-19 complicates the debate with concerns about virus transmission. Scientists studying how long the novel coronavirus stays on different materials say it can survive for as long as three days on plastic, but they haven’t proven yet that the virus is spread through inanimate objects, Technology Review reported.
