Eight states have banned single-use plastic bags in stores, and the results of these bans have been mixed, with some improvement in plastic waste but some lingering problems.

In California, a 2016 ballot measure banned single-use plastic bags, while offering thicker plastic bags for a fee at grocery store checkouts, with the goal of having customers reuse and recycle the thicker bags. Eight years later, the state updated the law to ban all plastic bags at checkouts.

The 2016 ban quickly reduced the number of plastic bags sold to customers, as single-use bags were banned and replaced with plastic bags 10 cents thicker. A 2019 report from the state’s recycling program, CalRecycle, found that in the first six months after the law took effect, the number of plastic bags distributed to stores decreased by 85%. and the number of paper bags distributed. by 61%.

While the production of single-use plastic bags has declined, the total weight of plastic waste collected in the state has increased significantly between before the 2016 law was enacted and when it took effect.

CalRecycle found that 157,395 tons of plastic grocery and merchandise bags were disposed of in the state in 2014, but in 2021, the weight of plastic grocery and merchandise bags increased to approximately
231,072. During this period, California’s population increased by only about 1.4% and the weight of waste from paper bags increased from approximately 70,627 tons in 2014 to 35,207 tons in 2021.

The 10-cent tax on single-use plastic bags, enacted by the 2016 law, also applies to paper bags, but only the weight of plastic bag waste increases.

Despite the increasing weight of plastic waste from single-use bags, an Environment America study found that the number of single-use plastic bags has decreased in areas where bans are implemented, including California .

The January 2024 study found that banning plastic bags can reduce the number of single-use bags by 296 bags per person per year, examining bans in two states and three cities where bans are in effect . The study also found that California’s 2016 ban was a failure because it only reduced the number of bags rather than the amount of waste.

“A plastic bag ban that would increase the weight of discarded plastic bags, let alone establish a new maximum level of plastic bag waste, cannot be considered a complete success,” the study says .

The Golden State’s stricter ban on plastic bags will force stores to continue offering paper bags for a 10-cent fee, but they will be prohibited from selling plastic bags.

“Instead of being asked if they want paper or plastic at checkout, consumers will simply be asked if they want a paper bag, if they haven’t brought a reusable bag. This simple approach is easy to follow and will help significantly reduce plastic bag pollution,” Democratic Sen. Catherine Blakespear said in a statement celebrating the signing of the revised bill.

Activists also celebrated the legislation as a victory for efforts to reduce pollution, particularly its potential effects on wildlife.

“Finally, with this much-needed update to the bag ban, plastic grocery bags will no longer pose a threat to sea turtles, birds and other wildlife in California,” said Laura Deehan, Director of the Environment California group.

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The vast majority of states still allow single-use plastic bags in grocery stores without any additional taxes, and the United States accounts for only a fraction of the world’s plastic waste, as critics of the ban have pointed out. plastic bags.

California’s revised plastic bag ban will take effect on January 1, 2026, after Governor Gavin Newsom (D-CA) approved the law last month.