New Jersey’s “straw law” goes into effect Thursday, preventing restaurants and food-service businesses from giving out plastic straws unless customers ask for them. This is just one part of the Murphy administration’s clampdown on single-use plastics that contribute to millions of plastic fragments floating in the waterways around New Jersey. Those fragments make their way into the food chain and threaten human health and the entire ecosystem.
The law will also ban all thin single-use plastic bags. Some exceptions will be made, including dry-cleaning bags or bags used for loose produce. Paper bags will also be banned, along with any items made with polystyrene, also known as Styrofoam. Those bans will start in May of next year after which New Jersey will have the most aggressive stance against single-use plastics in the nation. Businesses that break the rules will face fines.
