The Los Angeles City Council’s proposed ban on paper bags not only overlooks key facts about paper bag production and use – it underestimates the ban’s impact on L.A.-area jobs. At International Paper’s Kraft Paper Bag Plant in Buena Park, hard-working unionized employees take great pride in manufacturing paper bags from 40 percent postconsumer recycled content. A complete ban on paper bags will affect demand and directly impact Los Angeles jobs at a time when California’s unemployment rate hovers near a staggering 12 percent.

Moreover, the Bureau of Sanitation and Chief Administration Office claim the decision is being made on purely environmental reasons, saying paper bags consume more trees, energy and water than plastic. Let’s take a closer look at that inaccurate statement.

Paper bag production actually results in 59 percent less greenhouse gas emission as compared with the production of plastic bags – and 33 percent less fossil fuel use, if lawmakers use the often misquoted Boustead Study.

And contrary to the April 5 statement of Andrea Alarcon, president of the Board of Public Works who said paper bag use causes deforestation, more than 500 million acres of forestland exist in the United States today because of demand for paper goods – that’s roughly 70 percent of all U.S. forestland. Private landowners, as contracted by the forest products industry, plant close to 4 million trees per day. The demand for paper – and the constant cycle of planting, harvesting and replanting – ensures that forestland is spared from other commercial uses including conversion to parking lots or shopping malls. Perhaps Alarcon should heed the words of Harvard University economics professor Edward Glaeser, who said, “When people use more paper, suppliers plant more trees. If we want bigger commercial forests, then we should use more paper, not less.”

Additionally, removing paper bags from the consumer cycle will lead to reduced recycling rates. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, more than 50 percent of paper bags are recycled nationwide. Up north in Alameda County, that number stands at a whopping 80 percent. With the ban on paper bags, the Los Angeles City Council will put a chokehold on the recycling stream and deter consumers from playing an important role in the circle of sustainability.

There’s no question – with the use of trees comes great responsibility. The forest products industry has taken strides to create smart, responsible supply chains and partner with third party certification organizations such as the Sustainable Forestry Initiative and the Forest Stewardship Council. These organizations promote responsible forest management and protect forests from the dangers of illegal logging. The majority of today’s paper bag plants are SFI or FSC certified, and that certification standard plays a key role in the manufacturing process every step of the way.

Too often, today’s mantra is “Think before you print” or another catchy phrase that maligns the use of paper. Very honestly, the forest products industry on the whole has not done a good enough job of educating consumers and relaying some important facts to the public, namely: Paper products are compostable, recyclable, reusable and produced using renewable resources.

Relying on Earth

Our success is directly tied to trees, water and sunshine. We rely on the Earth to provide our products and we give back in equal measure. This is reinforced by the fact there are more trees in the United States today than 100 years ago despite a population growth of more than 250 percent. Unfortunately, not every industry can stake a similar claim. 

In Seattle’s Puget Sound last year, a dead whale washed ashore with more than 20 plastic bags in its stomach. As the plastic bags moved from storefront to oceanfront, they likely drifted into the large garbage patches dotting the Pacific Ocean, unable to decompose naturally in the water. Removing plastic bags from the life cycle will deliver quick and visible results. Removing paper bags from the equation – which hold four times the volume of plastic bags, mind you – is simply unnecessary.

Los Angeles County recently enacted a complete ban on plastic bags and tacked a fee on paper bags. Without regard for jobs or the environment, the county found it necessary to pass this intrusive policy. And now, the City Council wants to raise the stakes even higher and completely ban both bag types. Californians should not be held hostage by this ongoing game of one-upmanship between the county and the city – nor should the environment or hard-working Los Angelenos. A vote to ban paper bags limits choices, it limits jobs and it absolutely limits the forest’s dire role in the sustainability cycle. Let’s not confuse the right solution with the easy solution. Paper bags are – and will remain – the responsible choice.

Teri Shanahan is vice president of sustainability and Craig Williams is general manager of the bag business for International Paper Co., based in Memphis, Tenn., where Shanahan and Williams are residents.