South Jersey (KYW Newsradio) — People who do their grocery shopping online are amassing stockpiles of reusable bags in New Jersey, an unintended consequence of the state’s recent ban on single-use bags. Lawmakers in Trenton want to fix that.
State Senator Bob Smith (D-Middlesex) says the ban on single-use bags, which went into effect in May, is going very well so far. For evidence of that, he says, look around your neighborhood.
“You’re not going to see those blowing plastic bags everywhere in our sewers and on our roadways and our beaches,” Smith said. “There’s been a magnificent improvement”
But Smith says he found a glitch, and that glitch is food delivery services.
While people look for places at home to store the ever-growing stockpile of unwanted reusable bags, the state is acknowledging something many saw coming a mile away — there was no viable solution for grocery delivery. Smith says this will be addressed through legislation later this month, and it’ll get a hearing in Trenton next month.
There are a few options on the table. One is to allow grocery stores to use paper bags for delivery only. That has the potential to ultimately stay in line with the original bill’s intention to reduce waste, noting that delivery is still just a fraction of the grocery shopping market.
Another would have deliveries coming in used cardboard boxes, a similar model to how Costco and Aldi store their produce. And the third, Smith says, would require delivery services to collect used bags from customers.
“I’m kind of leaning toward the one where the delivery service has to take the bag back, give you credit for it, clean it up and reuse it,” Smith said.
The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection says it is also aware of this issue and is working on innovative solutions. In the meantime, a DEP spokesman says if you have a bunch of unwanted reusable bags, you can donate them to a local food pantry.
And if you want to put a few non-perishable food items in there before you drop them off, that’s welcomed as well.