Slowly but surely more states are showing their ‘green underbelly’ this year and more are sure to follow. After all, not only is our environmet in peril, it trendy and feels good. New York City may follow this international trend and crack down on plastic shopping bags, seeking to cut their use with a plan officials hope will be a model for other cities. Proposal introduced on Monday requires stores larger than 5,000 square feet to set up an in-store recycling program and sell reusable bags.
Some 700 food stores plus large retailers such as Target and Home Depot would have to collect used bags and provide a system for turning them over to a manufacturer or to third-party recycling firms.
Stores would be required to use bags printed with a reminder to consumers: “Please return this bag to a participating store for recycling.”
Environmentalists have targeted plastic bags as a scourge that take years to biodegrade and contaminate soil and water.
