# Plastic bags banned in Cleveland **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [June 2, 2019, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plastic-bags-banned-in-cleveland/834914 "2019-06-02T15:40:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![excavating\_for\_a\_mind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e8c25b/32.png) [@excavating\_for\_a\_mind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/excavating_for_a_mind)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plastic-bags-banned-in-cleveland/834914/21 "2019-06-03T02:37:30Z")
> [@purplehorseshoe](#): > > I don’t think the stores replace plastic bags with paper sacks, certainly not at a 1-to-1 ratio. Shoppers are expected to bring their own bags, or they can purchase bags from the store. > > **Wal-Mart bags suck anyway. I am a dedicated [del] hoarder [/del] recycler of plastic bags, and theirs usually have holes & tears before I’ve even gotten my original groceries into my car, let alone had a chance to re-use them.** Grocery stores where stuff costs a few pennies per ounce more have better quality bags using sturdier plastic IME. Interesting (my bolding). A little more than a decade ago, I was a judge for the city’s “science fair” (the city was Houston, Tx) where one of the participants was testing the quality of various stores’ shopping bags. This participant found that Wal-Mart had some of the highest quality bags among the typical retailers in the area. The tests were performed by dropping weighted “darts” and seeing what height was needed to cause failure. It seemed the participant’s father worked for QC at a local chemical plant (which is where the “darts” were borrowed), but between the local grocery chains, dollar stores, and convenience stores, the Wal-Mart bags consistently outperformed the others. As I said, this was in the early 00s and Wal-Mart may have changed their specifications, but as little as 15 years ago, Wal-mart was making sure their bags didn’t “suck”. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plastic-bags-banned-in-cleveland/834914/22 "2019-06-03T04:34:46Z")
Oh, that seems plausible. I don’t recall Wal-Mart bags sucking so bad until a few years ago … maybe 3 or 4, five years tops? They also used to have bigger bags, about twice as tall, for large purchases. Those disappeared within the last couple years. ---
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plastic-bags-banned-in-cleveland/834914/23 "2019-06-03T04:59:14Z")
In Hawaii, the 15 cents is kept by the merchant. Though since it’s revenue, it’s taxable. FAQ about the Law and it’s requirements from a plastic bag distributor: [https://www.islandplasticbags.com/faq.html](https://www.islandplasticbags.com/faq.html) ---
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 5:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plastic-bags-banned-in-cleveland/834914/24 "2019-06-03T05:09:10Z")
Here’s a recent thread about plastic bag bans. [https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=875824&highlight=plastic+bags&page=2](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=875824&highlight=plastic+bags&page=2) ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plastic-bags-banned-in-cleveland/834914/25 "2019-06-03T05:15:08Z")
> [@lingyi](#): > > Been there, done that. > … > In 2015, Hawaii passed a plastic bag ban and all stores had to switch to resuable bags. Large chains like Walmart switched to the heavier plastic bags and didn’t charge for them. Smaller local stores charged 5-15 cents per bag depending on size. So for many, shopping at Walmart didn’t change. > > Seeing that the impact of the ban wasn’t what they expected, in 2018, an amendment was passed that required stores to 15 cents for any bag, plastic or paper, no matter the size. I try to remember to keep my car stocked with cloth bags, but sometimes forget and have to buy bags, which for me goes directly into the trash, because the plastic bags are too small and flimsy to reuse more than a couple of times and the paper bags are a haven for roaches. Thanks for that, you saved me having to post Hawaii’s situation. I haven’t had any roach issues related to paper bags myself, but I"m sure circumstances vary. (I was tented for termites not long ago, and between that and my cat, the only roach I’ve seen in months was a decapitated specimen whose head was … in my kitty’s tummy? :eek: Probably. Yuck. Not thinking about that, nope, not…) I do my best to keep my shopping bags in the car and would say that 85% of the time, I’ve got them when I need them. ---
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plastic-bags-banned-in-cleveland/834914/26 "2019-06-03T05:25:47Z")
Paper bags and corrugated cardboard are two the favorite places for roaches to hide and lay their eggs. There’s something about the glue that they love! I just thought of something. The plastic bag ban has changed my shopping habits. I buy less on my store visits, especially if I forget my bags and have to pay for new one. Even if I bring my own cloth bags, I try not to buy more than 2-3 bags worth of stuff because I’m a shorty and the handles are too long for me to carry comfortably (hanging a couple of inches off the ground or dragging when full). ---
**Author:** ![lingyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d2c977/32.png) [@lingyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lingyi)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plastic-bags-banned-in-cleveland/834914/27 "2019-06-03T05:42:40Z")
Sorry for the flood. Just read that there’s a proposal to ban not only plastic straws, but takeout boxes (Hawaii’s the home of the plate lunch), forks, spoons and knives. Thank goodness almost everyone knows how to use chopsticks! 😃 Soup? Eat it Japanese style by slurping from the bowl and picking up the solid bits with your chopsticks! 😛 Also, I remember growing up, before styrofoam boxes, plate lunches were served on paper plates and covered with foil or wrapped in butcher paper, so losing the boxes aren’t a big deal unless you’re traveling more than 20-30 minutes with your food, which will get cold. Seriously though, this is insane, but understandable since we’re surrounded by the ocean and a lot of the waste ends up there. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 6:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plastic-bags-banned-in-cleveland/834914/28 "2019-06-03T06:24:47Z")
> [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](#): > > We started buying dog-poop bags from Amazon. They are around one cent per bag in a bulk purchase. Not as good as free bags from the Jewel like we used to get, but it’s a lot better than seven cents a pop. And more importantly than that, I’ll be damned if I’ll give the crooks at City Hall one cent more than I absolutely have to. I found that the produce bags which are still given out for free work great for dog poop - much better than the plastic grocery bags, in fact. Plastic bags are great - if you like clogged waterways and dead fish. I’ve gotten along just fine with my cloth bags. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 12:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plastic-bags-banned-in-cleveland/834914/29 "2019-06-03T12:53:36Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > I found that the produce bags which are still given out for free work great for dog poop - much better than the plastic grocery bags, in fact. So if pet owners glom on to this idea the use of produce bags will increase, defeating the bag bans, which will lead to bans on plastic produce bags, then… Maybe education is a better idea overall, pending development and widespread usage of biodegradable plastic bags. For starters, asking people buying stuff at retail “Do you need a bag for that?” instead of automatically jamming all purchases in one would help. I avoid using bags fwhenever possible, though being semi-paranoid, I carry the sales receipt conspicuously to avoid drawing suspicion from store security who see someone carrying out an item not in a bag. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plastic-bags-banned-in-cleveland/834914/30 "2019-06-03T13:20:46Z")
I plan on reusing the paper bags I get from Trader Joe’s and Whole Paycheck. Even when I have to re-glue the handles. But I’m still stockpiling the plastic bags for used cat litter. In our community, we have to put the recyclables out in blue plastic bags, otherwise they won’t be picked up. I wonder what alternative we’ll have to use. ---
**Author:** ![racer72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/racer72/32/3075_2.png) [@racer72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racer72)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plastic-bags-banned-in-cleveland/834914/31 "2019-06-03T15:09:05Z")
The whole state of Washington has a ban that will go in effect soon. My wife howled about it, she uses the store bags for cat litter. Found a box of 1000 small trash bags at Costco for about $9, it should last for a few years of cat box cleaning. I have also been using plastic bags to carry my lunch to work. I’m retiring soon to fix that problem. Edit, just checked, the bag ban didn’t pass the state legislature. Guess I didn’t need to buy that box of trash bags. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plastic-bags-banned-in-cleveland/834914/32 "2019-06-03T15:27:10Z")
> [@The\_Vorlon](#): > > Screw them all, have Walmart or Amazon deliver them in a nice hefty box. This – at least the Amazon part. Especially in Cleveland since the FC/SC/AMZL operations are as large and reliable as they are. There will be glitches but I experience those even when shopping and hauling the crap myself. Just not for large bagged stuff like dog food. You don’t want to know what the usual Associate thinks of people who order dog food. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [June 3, 2019, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plastic-bags-banned-in-cleveland/834914/33 "2019-06-03T15:43:54Z")
> [@kopek](#): > > Just not for large bagged stuff like dog food. You don’t want to know what the usual Associate thinks of people who order dog food. 😃 I’ll bet they bitch about it. :flees: ---
**Author:** ![Alley\_Dweller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alley_dweller/32/430_2.png) [@Alley\_Dweller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alley_Dweller)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2019, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plastic-bags-banned-in-cleveland/834914/34 "2019-06-04T00:04:52Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > I’ll bet they bitch about it. > > :flees: Fleas? ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2019, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plastic-bags-banned-in-cleveland/834914/35 "2019-06-04T01:35:16Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > So if pet owners glom on to this idea the use of produce bags will increase, defeating the bag bans, which will lead to bans on plastic produce bags, then… If it forces people to buy more veggies, it will probably save long term on healthcare. In any case, plastic bags filled with dog poop tend to get disposed of properly. Plastic bags filled with dog poop have another advantage - they make you feel safe in the park. Someone comes up to you and you can start swinging the bag and say “do you feel lucky, chump?” ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2019, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plastic-bags-banned-in-cleveland/834914/36 "2019-06-04T06:07:18Z")
Produce bags are neither large enough nor possibly strong enough for cat litter. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2019, 9:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plastic-bags-banned-in-cleveland/834914/37 "2019-06-04T09:41:21Z")
Because I am a pedestrian, I alays go shopping with my backpack. Inside I have a couple of the reusable bags too, for the excess or otherwise necessarily separated items (hot from cold, etc). This is fine for when I know that’s my purpose, but it’s no good for a spontaneous purchase, where I’d have to carry the item home unbagged or buy a new reusable bag, which are huge and ungainly things anyway. So I try to anticipate a bit by have a tiny foldable bag in a pocket in case the fancy takes me. We’ve only had the bag ban here for less than a year, so I imagine I will get used to it eventually, and having the right bags with me in case I need them will become second nature. Still, it seems to me that this is not optimal, and better systems ought to be figured out. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2019, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plastic-bags-banned-in-cleveland/834914/38 "2019-06-04T17:15:06Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > I’ll bet they bitch about it. > > :flees: I knew if I tossed the bone out there someone would fetch it. And throw a stick of their own. 😃 > [@Alley\_Dweller](#): > > Fleas? Scratch it. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2019, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plastic-bags-banned-in-cleveland/834914/39 "2019-06-05T17:28:54Z")
> [@lingyi](#): > > First, Ohio is trying to pass a state law to block **countries** from banning plastic bags, so it’s not a done deal. Who knew that Ohio wielded that much power over international commerce. Oh, you meant _counties_.😛 ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2019, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plastic-bags-banned-in-cleveland/834914/40 "2019-06-05T18:12:31Z")
They have also been banned in Paramus, New Jersey, a borough with 4 shopping malls. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plastic-bags-banned-in-cleveland/834914.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/plastic-bags-banned-in-cleveland/834914.md?page=3)