New York City Bans Unnecessary Single-Use Plastic Beverage Bottles

Order prohibits city from purchasing beverages in single-use plastic bottles and restricts sales on city-owned and leased properties

New York City’s Mayor Bill de Blasio signed an executive order on Wednesday, February 6, banning the sale of single-use plastic beverage bottles on city-owned and -leased properties. The move also bars city agencies from purchasing or selling beverages packaged in single-use plastic containers.

“It’s a big change for a big city,” said Tod Hardin, Head of Global Operations for Plastic Oceans International. “It’s one more piece of the solutions puzzle and one we should applaud, especially because it goes beyond just water bottles. Although we’ve seen other single-use plastic beverage bottles banned in such communities as Martha’s Vineyard, this might be the first big city to do it at some scale.”

This ban is expected to eliminate at least 1 million single-use plastic beverage bottles that the city buys each year, per the executive order. However, the effects could be much greater, since the city owns over 17,000 properties throughout the city that are operated by others, including The Trump Organization.

Read Executive Order 54 below.