State & Local Government Policy, Business and Technology

Plastic bag, container bans sweep New England cities

American City and County: Several New England cities have either passed bans on plastic retail bags and containers or had such regulations instated this month.

Newport, R.I. and Middletown, R.I., had approved bans on plastic bags in March and May respectively, according to the Newport Daily News. Both municipalities’ ordinances went into effect Nov. 1. Both ordinances prohibit retailers from putting purchased items into plastic bags, with some exceptions. However, the retailers who qualify for the exceptions must have onsite recycling receptacles.

Reactions to the ordinances and to the new paper bags that many retailers use have been mixed in both cities, the Daily News reports.

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