Here's What You Need To Know About Asbury Park Plastic-Bag Ban

ASBURY PARK – City Council has voted to ban single-use plastic bags. Here's what that means.

• The ban begins January 1, 2020.
• Once the ban is in effect, single-use plastic bags cannot be provided by retailers or food establishments at customer check-out.
• Instead, businesses may provide single-use paper bags or reusable bags at a minimum fee of $0.10 to the customer (maximum $0.25 on paper, no maximum on reusable bags), or customers may bring their own reusable bag.
• Exceptions include supermarket bags without handles for produce and meat to prevent cross-contamination; prescription drug bags; hardware store bags for screws and bolts; laundry and dry-cleaning bags; and newspaper delivery bags.

“We continue to create policies and regulations that promote environmental stewardship and hope this small change in Asbury Park will create a big impact for future generations,” said Mayor John Moor. “Other municipalities who have passed plastic bag bans have seen a dramatic increase in reusable bag use and a decrease in plastic bags found in storm drains and clogging up recycling operations. We look forward to seeing those same results in Asbury Park.”