Plastic bag bans, fees reduce coastal litter but challenges remain, study finds

​​​​​​​By Fatma Zehra Solmaz

ISTANBUL (AA) - Plastic bag bans and fees significantly reduce litter along US coastlines, but enforcement challenges and broader plastic pollution continue, according to a study published in the journal Science.

Researchers analyzed data from more than 45,000 shoreline cleanup events across the US to assess the effect of local plastic bag policies. The findings indicate that communities enforcing regulations, such as bans or fees, reported 25% to 47% fewer plastic bags in coastal debris compared to areas without the measures.

While the findings highlight the effectiveness of targeted policies, the study that was published Thursday revealed that plastic bags still made up a growing proportion of litter in regulated and unregulated communities. While the policies helped slow the increase, they did not fully prevent or reverse the trend raising concerns about enforcement and consumer behavior.

Plastic bag regulations are slowing the rise in litter but not solving the problem, researchers warned.

“Most of these bans and fees don’t cover every type of plastic bag,” said Kimberly Oremus, co-author and associate professor at the University of Delaware, in an interview with the Washington Post.

Lead author and environmental economist Anna Papp emphasized that comprehensive policies were more successful in curbing plastic litter, while partial bans yielded the weakest and most uncertain results.

The research also indicated that bag fees might outperform bans in effectiveness, although they are less widely implemented and require further study to evaluate their impact.

Papp added that state-level measures proved more effective than local ones, noting that larger-scale regulations are generally more successful because “litter can travel between borders.”

Erin Hass, senior director at the Plastics Industry Association, argued that plastic bags make up only a small fraction of shoreline litter and questioned why regulators have made them the focus, while more common items such as cigarette butts and food wrappers are being overlooked.

She pointed out that even the study lists other items as the leading sources of beach litter, challenging the rationale behind targeting a single product.

“If the goal is reducing marine debris and advancing sustainability, the smarter approach is to invest in scalable recycling systems, not sweeping bans that shift the problem rather than solve it,” she said.