Santa Fe County bans plastic bags despite evidence to contrary

The idea of actually wanting to achieve policy goals as opposed to virtue signal. Sadly, the Santa Fe County Commission chose the latter when it banned the use of plastic bags in Santa Fe County despite a similar policy in New Jersey that caused overall plastic usage to triple. The ban also extends to polystyrene containers like Styrofoam in unincorporated areas of the county. The new law carves out a handful of exceptions, such as bags used for newspaper deliveries or to package restaurant takeout with a high liquid content.

Businesses can also choose how to pass the cost of alternatives on to consumers, although the county “encourages” retailers to charge a fee for recycled-content paper bags, which would incentivize consumers to bring their own reusable bags.

Santa Feans both county and city will now be using more plastic than before thanks to these policies.