Letter to Editor to VOTE YES on Article 21...

Dear Editor,

I'm asking everyone to vote YES for Article 21 to ban single use plastic bags at checkout in Medfield.

Did you know that plastic bags take between 200 and 1000 years to break down in the presence of light? During that time, they break into tiny particles called micro plastic, and have been found throughout our food chain?

The numbers are staggering—one trillion (1,000,000,000) single use plastic bags are used worldwide each year, one hundred billion in the US, and 4.2 million in Medfield. They are used an average of 12 minutes and end up in landfills and bodies of water, where they negatively impact
wildlife and create lasting pollution. Approximately 15 percent of the bags used in Medfield get recycled annually. This type of waste is unsustainable.

On April 29, we will have the opportunity to vote on Article 21at the Medfield Town Meeting to officially ban these plastic bags at checkout . It does not include single use bags without handles for produce and deli, newspapers or dry cleaning. If passed it will go into effect on Nov. 1, 2019.

At this time 96 towns and cities in MA have adopted plastic bag bans, and 16 more, including Medfield, will vote on the issue this spring. I urge fellow residents to join in efforts to reduce plastic waste within Medfield, and utilize reusable bags or simply skip the bag whenever
possible. Fortunately, several local merchants have reusable bag options available for purchase.

I hope you will join me in voting YES on Article 21 at the April 29 Town Meeting.

Jackie Alford
125 Green Street