EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. — A group in Illinois wants more people to bring reusable shopping bags when they go to the store or pay the price.
Typical plastic bags are hard to recycle and take hundreds of years to decompose, so they wind up littering streets and waterways and piling up in landfills.
The group "Bring Your Own Glen-Ed" is collecting signatures from people who'd support a 10-cent price per bag in the communities of Glen Carbon, Edwardsville, and beyond, with the hope of making it law.
That money would go to the business, but some are concerned small businesses adding these costs will push customers away.
However, advocates say it’s about reinforcing the habit of bringing reusable bags shopping, and pushing for a bigger change than just an extra dime.
"If you use a buzzword like climate change, I think people overall shut down," said Toni Oplt with Bring Your Own Glen-Ed. "But if you told them you could take this step today and this step tomorrow and this step the next day, an entire community is making a difference."
They're asking people to sign letters of support before bringing the signatures to city councils in the area. For more information, click here.
