Plastic Bag Ban Starts Tuesday In Abington Township

ABINGTON TOWNSHIP, PA — Over four months since it was approved, the ban on single-use plastic bags will be going into effect next week.

Abington Township officials said the ban becomes effective on Tuesday.

The township will become the 37th municipality in Pennsylvania and the 15th in Montgomery County to pass legislation in the growing effort to rein in single-use plastics.

The ban includes single-use plastic bags and expanded foam polystyrene containers like plates, cups, and takeout containers.

The Abington Township Board of Commissioners approved the ban at its meeting in mid-February, with Ward 9 Commissioner Dennis Zappone casting the only "no" vote among the 15 commissioners.

PennEnvironment worked with the Abington Environmental Advisory Council (EAC) and members of the Board of Commissioners to draft the ordinance.

As the state's 12th largest municipality with over 50,000 residents, Abington's passage of a plastic bag ban can serve as a model for other large municipalities across Pennsylvania to follow suit, PennEnvironment said.

PennEnvironment estimates that Abington residents use over 21 million single-use plastic bags annually, equivalent to over 235,000 pounds of plastic waste.

While Abington commissioners approved the ban, they did not include a minimum charge for paper bags or other bags provided by retailers.

PennEnvironment said that provision encourages residents to bring their own reusable alternatives when shopping.