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Plastic Bag Purchases Drop 90% at Major England Retailers After Bag Fee Is Introduced
Shoppers push shopping carts towards a Sainsbury's supermarket on April 29, 2018 in London, England. Chris J Ratcliffe / Getty Images
Charging grocery shoppers a small fee for plastic bags works.
At least that’s what the UK government has found. Since it introduced a five-pence fee for plastic shopping bags in 2015, plastic bag sales at England’s seven biggest retailers have fallen 90 percent, NPR reported.
“No one wants to see the devastating impact plastic waste is having on our precious wildlife,” UK Environment Secretary Theresa Villiers said as her agency released the findings Wednesday. “Today’s figures are a powerful demonstration that we are collectively calling time on being a throwaway society.”
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