New Jersey Plastics Policies — Local and Statewide

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Bag, Straw, and Polystyrene Ban

• All retail and food service businesses are banned from distributing most single-use plastic and paper bags.
• Plastic straws are required to be requested by customers prior to distribution.
• Polystyrene foam food service products are banned.
• Annually reduces 8.8 billion single use disposable bags from waste stream.
• Saves businesses money by not distributing disposable bags.
• Saves municipal governments waste hauling and extending life of landfills.
  Reduces toxic exposure of plastics and helps our health.
• Statewide bill (S865/A1978) went into effect May 2022, pre-empting all local ordinances.

Packaging and Paper Product Stewardship Act (Extended Producer Responsibility – EPR)

• Puts responsibility of manufacturer to reduce packaging by 50% over 10 years.
• Reduces 14 categories of toxics from packaging, thereby improving our health and medical expenses.
• Saves municipalities and tax payers money from waste hauling and puts burden on manufacturer.
• Increases recyclability of packaging.
• Addresses environmental injustices by reducing pollution to overburdened communities.
• Eliminates “greenwashing” and loopholes of “chemical recycling”.
• Generates new jobs with new sustainable technology development.
• Three (3) municipal resolutions passed in 2025. Statewide bill (S3398/A5009) now being voted on by the NJ legislature.

Skip the Stuff – Model Ordinance (Jersey City); Model Resolution (Atlantic Highlands)

• No single-use disposable cutlery and condiments can be distributed for take-out orders and no single-use disposable foodware can be distributed for dine-in with seating capacity of less than 25, unless requested by customer.
• Saves businesses money by not providing unnecessary cutlery and condiments
  that usually go unused into the waste stream.
• Reduces clutter for customers that usually do not use single-use disposable cutlery
  or condiments.
• Reduces toxic exposure during lifecycle of plastic thereby helping our health.
• Twenty-four (24) municipal ordinances and one (1) resolution passed by 2025.
• Statewide bill (S3195/A3195) now being voted on by the NJ Legislature.

Construction Dust Containment

• Requires containment procedures when cutting PVC pipes.
• Reduces exposure of microplastics that would otherwise get into our air, waterways and land.
• Eighteen (18) municipal ordinances passed in 2025 with NJ statewide bill being drafted.

Shipping Box Size

• Prohibits shipping box greater than two times the volume of the product being shipped.
• Senate passed S226 in June 2024. NJ Assembly bill (A4116) now being voted on by legislature.

Testing and Remedial Action of Microplastics in Drinking Water

• Department of Environmental Protection and Board of Public Utilities to conduct feasibility and benefits study on microplastic removal technologies.
• Requires action to be taken if microplastics are found in drinking water per testing requirements.
• Statewide bill (S3283/A1481) passed in January 2024.
   

New Jersey Counties who passed municipal ordinances and resolutions prior to state legislation.

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ReThink Disposable, a program of Clean Water Action and Clean Water Fund, aims to stop trash before it starts.

We work with local governments, businesses and institutions, and consumers of single-use food packaging to inspire a cultural shift away from the single-use “throwaway” lifestyle.

By providing knowledge, guidance, and support, ReThink Disposable inspires change that leads to conserved resources, saved energy, and reduced litter polluting our oceans, lakes, and rivers.

Learn more about our Zero Waste campaign here and our Rethink Disposable program here. For more information, contact Marta Young, Zero Waste Specialist, here.