Local governments could not ban single-use plastics or polystyrene, also known as Styrofoam, on their properties under companion bills filed in the Florida Legislature. This measure would be retroactive, so rules already in place in would be affected, including in Tampa, Largo and St. Petersburg.
Existing state law already restricts local governments from extending some of these ordinances beyond their properties. Florida became the first state to preempt local ordinances on plastic bags in 2008 under then-Republican Gov. Charlie Crist. The law also prevented local bans on polystyrene.
Mia McCormick, advocate with Environment Florida, said further removing the ability of local governments to regulate pollutants through and is bad for the environment.
"Nothing that we use for just a few minutes really should be allowed to pollute our waterways, woodlands, or parks for hundreds of years. Florida really needs to move forward in this direction away from single-use plastic away from plastic bags," McCormick said.
"These ordinances are put in place to protect the health of our communities, our local waterways, our parks, our beaches 鈥� And local governments are really the ones that are most well-equipped to decide what the threats are in their communities.鈥�
Plastic Free Florida says on its website that an estimated 33 billion pounds of plastic enter the ocean every year 鈥� that鈥檚 roughly the equivalent of dumping two garbage trucks full of plastic into the oceans every minute.
Cities can ban plastic straws
Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed a bill in 2019 that would have put a moratorium on local regulation of single-use plastic straws until 2024.
鈥淎 number of Florida municipalities, including Sanibel, Ft. Myers Beach and Miami Beach, have enacted ordinances prohibiting single-use plastic straws. These measures have not, as far as I can tell, frustrated any state policy or harmed the state鈥檚 interests. In fact, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection has encouraged Florida residents, schools and businesses to reduce plastic straw use,鈥� Gov. DeSantis said in his veto letter of HB 771.
鈥淎nd for the state of Florida, that's about 6.5 billion bags a year that we could pull out of our environment, out of our neighborhoods, out of our landfills. It would be really amazing thing to see a ban like that.鈥�Mia McCormick, Environment Florida
In a , the DEP asked if residents and local governments think it's necessary to regulate single-use plastic. More than 90% of those who participated said yes.
鈥淓veryone seems to understand the litter and health benefits of removing this harmful material,鈥� said McCormick. 鈥淏ut the largest lobbying group against it is of course the Florida Retailers Association.鈥�
She said the Florida Retailers Association is the biggest supporter of these preemptive measures, and that it has threatened to sue local governments in the past when they鈥檝e tried to enact plastic bag bans.
Proposed action against environmental reports
McCormick said a portion of the current proposed legislation seeks to 鈥渟top the DEP from producing more reports about the impact of plastic bags on the environment.鈥�
The bill language says to remove 鈥渙bsolete provisions requiring the Department 6 of Environmental Protection to review and update a specified report.鈥�
The Environment America Research and Policy Center that studied plastic bag bans across the nation.
It found that just five cities collectively prevented 6 billion bags from entering the waste cycle.
The report includes a calculator to plug in your state, or city to view how many bags would be saved per year if bans were enacted.
鈥淎nd for the state of Florida, that's about 6.5 billion bags a year that we could pull out of our environment, out of our neighborhoods, out of our landfills. It would be really amazing thing to see a ban like that,鈥� said McCormick.
The companion measures are making their way through committee hearings in Tallahassee.
The Senate version was advanced by the Commerce and Tourism Committee on Jan. 16. Sponsor Sen. Jonathan Martin, R-Fort Myers, said he was willing to work with organizations in opposition to strengthen penalties against littering.
鈥淚 just want to remind everybody this isn鈥檛 legalized littering,鈥� Martin said.
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 important to make sure we鈥檙e consistent across the state - that鈥檚 what this bill does - but also making sure we鈥檙e going after the bad actors and not law-abiding citizens who dispose of their trash properly.鈥�
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