Citizens’ Group Issues Reusable-bag Policy Report Card

The Citizens Campaign for the Environment (CCE) has released the first “B.Y.O.B (Bring Your Own Bag) Reusable Bag Policies” report card for New York’s upstate Westchester County. The group evaluated and graded 10 local supermarket banners' reusable bag policies, assigning grades that ranged from A-plus to D.

The highest scorers were Stop & Shop and Whole Foods Markets, which each received an A-plus for their efforts. Other operators with successful bag policies, according to the CCE, were Shoprite, which earned a B-plus, and Deciccio’s, Mrs. Green’s, and Trader Joe’s, each of which received a B.

At the other end of the scale, Stew Leonard’s, Pathmark and A&P each got a C, while Walmart was at the bottom of the class, with a D.

The impetus behind the group's efforts is that “[d]isposable bags litter our parks, beaches, highways, ball fields and other landscapes,” noted Adrienne Esposito (above), executive director of the CCE, which has several offices in New York state and Connecticut. “They also clog storm drains, pollute our oceans, bays and estuaries, and kill wildlife.”