The ban on single-use plastic bags began in the US state of New York yesterday, in a move aimed at ending the use of 23 billion of these types of bags per year, which often disrupt the operation of landfills and cause chaos in the streets, rivers and oceans.
The law prohibits most businesses from providing plastic bags, and requires stores to sell paper bags for five cents or to provide other bags that can be reused, and state authorities are to impose fines for violations of the ban after a grace period. Residents of New York City, the most populous city in the country, use more than 10 billion single-use bags every year, as local officials say they make up 91,000 tons of plastic sent to landfills, and $ 12.5 billion in Form annual costs for disposal.