We the people, of the State College and Penn State Community strongly urge the Mayor and Borough Council to implement a new policy that bans the use of plastic bags within the State College Borough.

Up to 1 million seabirds and 100,000 marine mammals and turtles die each year as a result of plastic bags. Banning plastic bags will not only save our environment, but it will enable State College to become more competitive economically. Retailers currently embed 2 to 5 cents per plastic bag and 5 to 23 cents per paper bag in the price of good adding $30 or more per person annually in hidden costs.  We consume approximately 14 million trees and 12 million barrels of oil to produce the billions of plastic and paper bags we throw away in the United States every year.  In contrast, when consumers use reusable bags, retailers save money and can lower prices.  Let's save our planet and eliminate the punitive cost of plastic bags on our economy.