Oregon bill to ban plastic bags at checkout now awaits Gov. Kotek's signature

If you’re having a bit of deja vu over a plastic bag ban, you’re not alone. When Oregon lawmakers passed the first ban in 2019, which prohibited using so-called single-use plastic bags, more than a dozen Oregon cities had already passed such bans. But the ban's environmental aim of reducing the use of plastic - and its impacts on the environment and human health - did not end up achieving that goal. Grocers replaced the thinner, single-use bags with a thicker, sturdier version that in theory could be reused but only rarely were. The new plastic bag ban lawmakers have now sent to the governor for signature would eliminate all plastic bags from grocers and restaurants in favor of paper bags. Celeste Meiffren-Swango is the state director of Environment Oregon. She joins us to share more about how this new bill is expected to actually reduce plastic waste and what she hopes people do between now and Jan. 2027, when the law goes into effect.