At the beginning of 2023, Colorado began enforcing a 10-penny charge on all single-use plastic and paper bags at major retailers in the hope it would encourage the use of reusable ones. This hope sprung into a massive success.

A report from 9News claims that Colorado used 1.5 billion fewer plastic or paper shopping bags since the implementation of the Plastic Pollution Reduction Act of 2021 that entered into force at the beginning of last year.

The 10-cent charge amounted to $5 million in revenue for the state, which was spent on a variety of programs including the free distribution of durable reusable shopping bags and educational resources for community groups.

Only stores with three or more locations were required to charge the bag fee.

“It took many years to get it passed, but we have become now a leader in the nation,” said Randy Moorman director of policy and community campaigns at Eco-Cycle, the non-profit advocacy group that came up […]