Democratic Governor of Massachusetts, Maura Healey, recently made an announcement about issuing an executive order prohibiting state agencies from purchasing single-use water bottles in the future. And while there are some that sang praise of this announcement, many others met the governor’s executive order with criticism.
Governor Healey declared during her speech at the Clinton Global Initiative 2023 Meeting that “We know that plastic waste, plastic production, are among the leading threats to our oceans, our climate, environmental justice.”
She also said “In government we have an obligation, we also have an opportunity to not only stop contributing to this damage, but to chart a better path forward.” It’s clear she believes banning single-use plastics is one way of achieving these goals.
In Massachusetts, the climate crisis doesn’t just threaten the health of our oceans. It puts our food, air, jobs, and homes all at risk.
That's why today at @ClintonGlobal's meeting, I announced we'll take two nation-leading actions to protect our sea later this week: pic.twitter.com/UnzqX6v81U
— Maura Healey (@MassGovernor) September 18, 2023
The post on @MassGovernor X account stated “the climate crisis doesn’t just threaten the health of our oceans. It puts our food, air, jobs, and homes all at risk.”
Democratic presidential candidate Robert F Kennedy has laid out his own 10 point plan about how he would seek to tackle plastic pollution if elected president.
His proposed policies include limiting construction and expansion of plastic production facilities as well as banning fracking which provides feedstock for most plastics produced in the US.
Here’s my 10-point plan to fix the plastics pollution crisis. #Kennedy24 https://t.co/OwFf8JqG8W
— Robert F. Kennedy Jr (@RobertKennedyJr) September 15, 2023
Despite its positive intentions many Republicans are opposed to Governor Healey’s plans due largely because they believe it will have a negative impact on businesses in Massachusetts while failing to address larger issues such as global warming or ocean acidification.
Furthermore some argue that bans such as these do not actually reduce waste or emissions but merely shift them elsewhere since much of what is made within Massachusetts is then shipped out elsewhere.
Another key argument against bans like these is that they take away consumer choice which many conservatives view as an important part of freedom.
While Governor Maura Healey’s suggestion to ban single-use plastics may seem like a noble effort, there remains several issues with her proposal from a conservative perspective.
