New Jersey Assembly Fails To Pass Ban On Plastic Bags After Clearing Senate
TRENTON, N.J. (CBS) -- New Jersey State Senate passed a plastic bag ban on Monday, but the State Assembly failed to act on the bill. The bill would ban most retail store bags, foam food containers, some utensils and plastic straws.
The bill also calls for a ban on paper bags at grocery stores and other retail establishments.
The State Assembly did not vote on the bill.
"The Assembly should have passed this ban today, but they didn't. Their failure to act will mean that our plastic waste problem will continue to get worse. Plastics will continue to kill whales and get into our environment and into us. Microplastics have already been found near our drinking water supply, so we could literally be drinking plastic. Plastic bags have been known to clog storm drains and fill up detention basins, affecting our water quality. Animals, especially birds, get strangled and suffocated by plastic bags," said Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club.