Plastic bag ban just the start, more changes will follow

Monday, 14 January 2019

OPINION: I recently read an opinion piece on Stuff titled 'Have we been blinded by the success of the plastic bag ban?' and I felt compelled to reply.

Firstly I must be transparent and let you know I am the sustainability consultant behind the Bags Not behaviour change campaign that was generously funded by New World, and am heavily in favour of the steps the major supermarkets have taken regarding plastic bags.

However, the author is totally right, the plastic bag is a minimal part of the overall plastic pollution crisis and there is a huge amount still to do. But, it’s a start. And this is the key point I want to make.

Collectively, as global citizens, we all have to make huge changes, really quickly, to how we are living, and that is a pretty overwhelming task when you think about it for too long.

We need to halve the global carbon emission in 12 years, eat less meat and dairy (in a country where meat and dairy are the backbone of our economy and culture), be conscious of how we consume, and fundamentally change our relationship with plastic.

**READ MORE:

* New Zealand's plastic stockpile is at 400 tonnes and could be going mouldy

* Banning plastic bags is the right move, but New Zealand needs more to be an environmental leader

* It's time to turn off the pollution tap, stop single-use plastic

* Improving New Zealand, one piece of plastic at a time

* How the supermarkets' plastic bag bans will work**

But change has to start somewhere, and I have always believed that the plastic shopping bag was the best place to start. They are ubiquitous with our consuming habits and ingrained in our lives.

If we can coach Kiwis through the process of remembering to always take a bag shopping, and support them through living without plastic shopping bags to line their rubbish bins, or pick up dog poo, then we can show them that everything is OK. The world is still spinning, the Black Caps are still winning, their dog still loves them, and their produce hasn’t been bruised, only then we can move onto the next plastic challenge.

But dragging our feet on plastic bags, pointing fingers, and blaming others is holding us back. Instead, can we not build on the learnings about plastics from plastic bags, build a more collective momentum, take responsibility for our own plastic usage, and crack on with the next solution?

And to the author's point that “(supermarkets have) avoided the broader conversation on the vast quantities of other plastic they sell us every week”, I wanted to say that what we know about behaviour change is that it is always more successful to focus on one behaviour at a time rather than multiple behaviours.  Changing a behaviour takes time and conscious effort.

If the narrative had been on all plastic in supermarkets, rather than just the plastic bag, we all would have been frozen with confusion, frustration would have boiled over, and we would have risked the ultimate fail that everyone just gives up.

Yes, the supermarkets absolutely have to take responsibility for the plastic in their stores, but so do their suppliers, transport companies, and customers. We are all in this together.

I am in no way defending the supermarkets, I am just not a fan of pointing the finger at others. Instead, I think we should look to focus on ourselves and our purchasing decisions. As a wise man once said, “Be the change you wish to see in the world.”

We have influencing power. We as customers can choose where to spend our money. We can support businesses, farmers markets, and refillery stores offering alternatives. We can buy meat from our local butcher and ask them to wrap it in paper or take our own containers, grow some of our own herbs and vegetables, or get packaging-free food boxes delivered, can’t we?

I think we all know we will see some pretty quick changes at supermarkets if their bottom lines start to drop!

I totally agree that we should hold the supermarkets, and any business, accountable for any greenwashing. It is hugely damaging for everyone, and I think there should be much more proactive efforts by the government to shut that down. But let’s not be dictated by how much plastic we are forced to use. Let’s take ownership of how much we use and make an effort to reduce our usage step-by-step.

As was highlighted, there is still a frighteningly shocking amount of plastic still in our supermarkets, and when we know that the recycling of plastic is fundamentally and economically flawed, then it really is an overwhelming problem to solve.

But solve it we must. And solve it we will.

If the solution to many of the plastics currently requires behavioural changes, such as customers bringing their own reusable produce bags, produce being put in a flax basket, or simply putting produce in the corner of the trolley supported by a cereal box so it doesn't roll about, then how the first step of bringing your own bags has to work.

Nick Morrison is the Co-Founder of Bags Not and the Director/Founder of Go Well Consulting.