What about recycling; isn’t that a better solution?

Reduction of plastic is best, and reuse is second best. The average American family takes home almost 1,500 plastic shopping bags a year. In Steamboat Springs, more than 3.8million single-use plastic bags are used each year by shoppers at the five stores included in the ban. According to Waste Management, in the U.S., only 1%  of plastic bags are returned for recycling, the rest end up in landfills or as litter.

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1. When do the single-use plastic bag ban and paper bag fee go into effect?
2. What stores are covered under the ordinance?
3. Why is there a 20-cent charge for paper bags?
4. Is the 20-cent charge on paper a tax?
5. Does the ordinance ban plastic produce or meat/seafood bags?
6. How will I carry my groceries home? I need those "free" bags.
7. What if I forget my reusable bags?
8. Aren’t reusable bags worse for the environment?
9. Why charge for paper bags? Aren't they better than plastic?
10. How will I pick up my pet’s waste, throw away dirty diapers, or line my small trash cans now?
11. What about recycling; isn’t that a better solution?
12. Will reusable bags make me sick?
13. What does the city plan to do with the revenue from the paper bag fee?
14. What about visitors who might not bring their own bags?