Letter to Editor in support of Plastic Bag Ban...

Dear Editor,

Urging Medfield residents to vote YES to approve the Single Use Plastic Bag Ban (Article 21) at Town Meeting April 29

Have you ever thought about how long you use the plastic bags you get at the grocery store? On average, single-use plastic bags are used for 12 minutes. If you fill your cart with groceries, your items are likely to get placed in 8-10 (or more) plastic bags. Those bags go from your cart to your car, from your car to your kitchen…and then what happens? For the most part, they end up in landfills, where they take hundreds of years to decompose.

On April 29, we have a chance to make a difference, by voting to approve a new Town bylaw outlawing certain types of single-use plastic bags in Medfield. This new regulation will only ban single-use bags provided at checkout – it will not impact single-use bags provided for produce, dry cleaning, or newspapers. 93 cities and towns in Massachusetts have already adopted similar bylaws, and others are voting on them at their upcoming Town Meetings.

Our family made the switch to reusable bags years ago. After just a couple shopping trips, we had ourselves re-trained and were able to break the plastic bag habit. Reusable bags are typically larger and sturdier than plastic bags, so they also make for an easier time getting those groceries into the house.

I hope you’ll join me in supporting Article 21 at Town Meeting, April 29!

Becca Kornet, 23 Curve Street, Medfield