Release: A plastic bag ban would hurt the environment

Release: A plastic bag ban would hurt the environment

The Australian Taxpayers’ Alliance, the nation’s largest grassroots advocacy group representing all taxpayers, today stands in opposition to a plastic bag ban.

“A ban on plastic bags would hurt both small businesses and the environment,” says ATA Communications Manager, Emilie Dye. “While corporate supermarkets virtue signal that they care about the environment, they care about profits more. They make good money off of  $0.15 reinforced plastic bags and $1.00 totes.”

“Small businesses lack the infrastructure to easily mass produce reinforced bags and totes. So a plastic bag ban would add one more cost to doing business. Small grocers already have it hard enough competing with Coles and Woolworths.

“To make things worse plastic bag bans fail in their core mission. Unless you use your tote 7,100 times before buying a new one you are causing more harm to the environment than if you chose to use traditional plastic bags. 

“It is ridiculous to assume households do not reuse traditional plastic bags. Because of the plastic bag shortage, people now must purchase bags for the sole purpose of picking up dog poop, lining small trash bins, and any number of other everyday chores. 

“Whether it is a plastic bag ban or an attack on plastic straws, environmental regulation tends to backfire. A plastic bag ban would endorse anti-competitive behavior on the part of large supermarket chains at the expense of the environment.”