8,800 Local Jobs Threatened by Bag Bans

AUSTIN, Texas, Jan. 30, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --  Mark Daniels, Hilex Poly, and Chairman of the American Progressive Bag Alliance (APBA) will provide comments before the Community Forum on Single Use Bags this evening regarding Austin's proposed ordinance to tax and ban single use plastic bags.  The American Progressive Bag Alliance is made up of plastic bag manufacturers who care that their products are used, reused, recycled or disposed of properly.

"8,800 Texan jobs are threatened by the proposed ordinance to ban and tax plastic bags.  Plastic retail carry-out bags are 100% recyclable and made from clean natural gas by American workers. Those in Texas interested in reducing litter and protecting the environment would be far better served supporting a statewide reduce, reuse and recycling program rather than a regressive tax on grocery bags. The truth is singling out one product that makes less than one percent of the U.S. municipal solid waste stream will have no meaningful impact on reducing litter. Instead, it will result in forcing consumers to use products such as reusable bags, which are mostly imported from China, made from foreign oil and are not recyclable.

"Plastic bags are 100% recyclable, and nine out of ten Americans report reusing them for other household uses.  In 2010, nearly 900 million pounds of used bags and wraps were recycled according the EPA.  The Austin City Council has the opportunity to show real environmental leadership and enact a comprehensive recycling plan that actually reduces litter, protects Texas jobs and preserves consumer choice."

The American Progressive Bag Alliance (APBA) was founded in 2005 and is a group of American plastic bag manufacturers that represent a thriving and growing industry employing 30,800 American workers in 2010.  APBA's current areas of focus include:

• City proposals that could impact consumer use of plastic bags
• Increasing recycling opportunities
• Litter prevention
• Increasing bag reuse
• Correcting misperceptions concerning litter and waste

More information can be found online at www.plasticbagrecycling.org and www.bagtheban.org.

SOURCE American Progressive Bag Alliance