NationStates

Preamble:
Plastics have been known to cause many issues globally. We want to preserve the unique natural beauty, water, natural resources and its inhabitants of many countries by reducing the impact of single-use plastic items such as bags and straws, keep plastic producers responsible, and limit the amount of plastic we export. We also want to promote the use of reusable bags. The production and use of single-use plastics have significant impacts on the environment, including, but not limited to, contributing to pollution of the natural environment; creating a burden to solid waste collection and recycling facilities; clogging storm drainage systems; contributing to the potential death of aquatic and land animals through ingestion and entanglement; and requiring the use of millions of barrels of crude oil nationally for their manufacture.

Article I contents:
“Checkout bag” – a carryout bag provided by a retail store to a customer at the point of sale. Checkout bags shall not include bags, whether plastic or not, in which loose produce or products are placed by the consumer to deliver such items to the point of sale or checkout area of the store.
“Retail Store” – any business facility that sells goods directly to the consumer whether for- or not-for-profit, including, but not limited to, retail stores, full- and quick-service restaurants, pharmacies, convenience stores, grocery stores, liquor stores, seasonal and temporary businesses.
“Reusable checkout bag” – a bag with handles that is specifically designed and manufactured for multiple reuse and is either polyester, polypropylene, cotton or other durable material, or durable plastic that is at least 4.0 mils in thickness (0.004 inches)
“Thin-film single-use plastic bags” – bags, typically with handles, constructed of high-density polyethylene (HDPE), low density polyethylene (LDPE), linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), or polypropylene (other than woven and non-woven polypropylene fabric), if said film is less than 4.0 mils in thickness (0.004 inches).
“Recyclable paper bag” – a paper bag that is 100% recyclable and contains at least 40% post- consumer recycled content, and displays the words “recyclable” and “made from 40% post- consumer recycled content” in a visible manner on the outside of the bag.
“ Hardship” – special or specified circumstances that partially or fully exempt an organization, such as a retail store, from performance of a legal obligation so as to avoid an unreasonable or disproportionate financial burden.
“Thin-film single-use plastic straws” – a single-use, disposable tube made of mostly plastic made from either petroleum or a polymer, such as corn or other plant sources, that can be used to transfer a beverage from a container to the drinker itself.
“Single-use plastic bottles” –a single-use, disposable bottle made of mostly plastic made from either petroleum or a polymer, such as corn or other plant sources, that holds an amount of water and can be used for drinking by a human.
“Single-use plastic utensils” – single-use, disposable forks, spoons, and knives made of mostly plastic made from either petroleum or a polymer, such as corn or other plant sources, that can be used to transfer food to a person’s mouth.

Article II Contents:
There are 6 things we request:
Hereby, reduce the use of plastic products and replace them with reusables. We would like to see the World Assembly start phasing out plastic bags, straws, and bottles.
Hereby, keep plastic producers and polluters accountable.
Certain producers of products (e.g., paper, single-use products, or beverage containers) are hereby made responsible fiscally for collecting and managing and recycling or composting the products after a consumer uses their product.
Hereby increase the percentage of recycled content that must be contained in beverage containers
Hereby halt plastic producer’s permits until pollution is cut down
Hereby limit the amount of plastic waste that can be exported to other nations

(A) Thin-film single-use plastic bags under 3 mils (3.5 mils in 1 year to date this bill is enacted and 4 mils within 3 years of this bill is enacted) thick shall not be distributed, used, or sold for checkout or other purposes at any retail store.
(B) If a retail store decides to sell or give out checkout bags to customers, the bags must be: (1) recyclable paper bags or (2) reusable checkout bags. The retail store may charge for these bags.
(C) Thin-film plastic bags used to contain dry cleaning, newspapers, produce, meat, bulk foods, wet items, and other similar merchandise, typically without handles, are allowed under this bill.

(D) Thin-film single-use plastic straws, single-use plastic bottles and utensils must be charged at any restaurant or event.

Section 6. Effective Date
This will take effect immediately. During this time, stores may reach out to the World Assembly to gain exemption if it will cause hardship. A store will be able to go through its supply even after the date.

This is based off of a legislation I wrote in real life that got plastic bags banned in a town

OOC: Use 1(a)(i) formatting for your active clauses, not the preamble. Like:

1. Article 1 contents,
2. Article 2:
   
   1. Article 2 contents,
   2. Article 2 contents:
      
      1. Article 2 more contents,
      2. More article 2 contents,
3. Article 3 contents

Also, I would recommend putting your rationale into the preamble, not into any active clause, and to denote the beginning of your active clauses with "Hereby,".

As for the content itself, you can't use terms like "cents", that's a real-world reference. Same thing with "America", "EarthDay.org", "National Geographic", "The World Counts", "One Green Planet". This Assembly concerns the world of NationStates, not the real world. Make your resolution center around it as such.

OOC: Don't put operative clauses inside definitions (see definition of 'checkout bags'. Also, iirc, "we request..." is not an operative clause. The WA doesn't request, it either mandates or recommends/encourages.

OOC: Waiting to hear back on an email, have some time to kill...

Oxflue wrote:Preamble:
Plastics have been known to cause many issues globally. We want to preserve the unique natural beauty, water, natural resources and its inhabitants of many countries by reducing the impact of single-use plastic items such as bags and straws, keep plastic producers responsible, and limit the amount of plastic we export. We also want to promote the use of reusable bags. The production and use of single-use plastics have significant impacts on the environment, including, but not limited to, contributing to pollution of the natural environment; creating a burden to solid waste collection and recycling facilities; clogging storm drainage systems; contributing to the potential death of aquatic and land animals through ingestion and entanglement; and requiring the use of millions of barrels of crude oil nationally for their manufacture.

So, this is all over the place. In addition to what was already said by others about not using RL stuff to lean on, you talk about "unique natural beauty" and then the world in general. What unique natural beauty? There are very few single locations in the world that were truly unique (unless taken by the most anal way in which case every atom in the universe is unique). Also, natural beauty has little to do with plastic, unless you're talking of some rural backwater in a developing country where people have not learned to put trash in a trash can, in which case it's a very local issue, not international. Same for whatever are storm drains. Plastic causes issues specifically because it breaks down into microplastic, which then accumulates in the food chains. (Sure, some sea animals eat flimsy plastic bags hole, thinking they're jelly fish or something, but that's not the biggest issue that comes from plastic.) Which it doesn't do if it's burned, as is done in many environmentally conscious places. No, it doesn't help with CO₂ issues, but it does help with not having plastic wherever and breaking down into microplastic.

And not sure if you noticed but you're again talking about national stuff towards the end, with apparently numbers pulled out of your RL nation.

“Checkout bag” – a carryout bag provided by a retail store to a customer at the point of sale. Checkout bags shall not include bags, whether plastic or not, in which loose produce or products are placed by the consumer to deliver such items to the point of sale or checkout area of the store.

You realize that the "check-out bags" generally aren't a problem in the ways you're talking about (they're sturdy non-see-through plastic bags you bag your groceries in at the end of the line, which at least over here often are partially recycled plastic and you have to pay for) while the flimsy "fruit bags" (which in the water resemble jellyfishes) are exactly what you're moaning about?

“Retail Store” – any business facility that sells goods directly to the consumer whether for- or not-for-profit, including, but not limited to, retail stores, full- and quick-service restaurants, pharmacies, convenience stores, grocery stores, liquor stores, seasonal and temporary businesses.

The words "retail store" are used in dictionary definition manner and do not need to be defined.

“Reusable checkout bag” – a bag with handles that is specifically designed and manufactured for multiple reuse and is either polyester, polypropylene, cotton or other durable material, or durable plastic that is at least 4.0 mils in thickness (0.004 inches)

You realize you're posting this on the Internet? Internet. The place with handy online calculators and converters for units unfamiliar to you? 4 millimetres is really thick, like unwieldy thick, plastic. It's 0.157480315 inches.

0.004 inches, on the other hand, is 0.1016 millimetres. That's about 40 times thinner than 4 millimetres. (EDIT: Unless you meant 4 miles, then it's 253440.94488 inches.)

I also find it weird that you list a natural fabric (cotton) in with the plastics. And especially cotton. The production of which is very harmful to the environment. A plastic bag is way more environmentally friendly than a cotton bag. Look it up if you don't believe me. And before you rant on about reusability, I have plastic "checkout bags" (of the kind I specified further above) that I've been constantly reusing for years, and which will do a final service eventually as trash bags. The world is more complicated than your hometown.

“Thin-film single-use plastic bags” – bags, typically with handles, constructed of high-density polyethylene (HDPE), low density polyethylene (LDPE), linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), or polypropylene (other than woven and non-woven polypropylene fabric), if said film is less than 4.0 mils in thickness (0.004 inches).

See above about thickness. Also, you don't need to list every single type of plastic used. Just say "plastic", it covers all of those and more.

“Recyclable paper bag” – a paper bag that is 100% recyclable and contains at least 40% post- consumer recycled content, and displays the words “recyclable” and “made from 40% post- consumer recycled content” in a visible manner on the outside of the bag.

No paper bag that is able to hold together is made of 100% recyclable materials. Again, look it up if you don't believe me. Also, I don't know what kind of paper bags you have over there, but I don't think they even make paper bags over here that weren't partially recycled material. Why do they need to be specifically mentioned to be recyclable or partially recycled? Everyone knows they are. Again, the world is more complex than your home town.

“ Hardship” – special or specified circumstances that partially or fully exempt an organization, such as a retail store, from performance of a legal obligation so as to avoid an unreasonable or disproportionate financial burden.

Dictionary definitions not needed. Speaking of, copying any definitions off of anywhere online is going to be counted as plagiarism. Not saying you did that, just warning you about it in advance.

“Thin-film single-use plastic straws” – a single-use, disposable tube made of mostly plastic made from either petroleum or a polymer, such as corn or other plant sources, that can be used to transfer a beverage from a container to the drinker itself.

I have never encountered a single-use plastic straw. What happens to them? Do they dissolve when drying, after you've finished drinking the drink, so you can't reuse them? If you mean people throw them away after a single use, then that's different as it can happen to literally anything, no matter how reusable it was. People do that even to perfectly usable clothes they've worn once and didn't like so they haven't worn it again.

“Single-use plastic bottles” –a single-use, disposable bottle made of mostly plastic made from either petroleum or a polymer, such as corn or other plant sources, that holds an amount of water and can be used for drinking by a human.

Same as above on the "single-use". Do they dissolve if you try to refill them from the tap? Asking as someone who has been using the same water bottle (which I bought just for the handy shape and size) for 3-4 years in a row now. Could return it to the store for 20 cents (euro cents), but it's worth more than that to me as a water bottle.

“Single-use plastic utensils” – single-use, disposable forks, spoons, and knives made of mostly plastic made from either petroleum or a polymer, such as corn or other plant sources, that can be used to transfer food to a person’s mouth.

Again same on the "single-use" as above.

There are 6 things we request:

Who is "we"? Certainly not me. Also, I can request you jump off a bridge (into water - I'm not wishing your death), but you can ignore the request. I suggest using some other word.

Hereby, reduce the use of plastic products and replace them with reusables. We would like to see the World Assembly start phasing out plastic bags, straws, and bottles.

...you want to replace with reusables while also phasing them out? Why? And what would you make straws and bottles out of then? Asking seriously. Also, the World Assembly is a collection of nations. You need to speak as the WA, giving the member nations things to do.

Hereby, keep plastic producers and polluters accountable.

...as businesses, they already tend to be. With accounting done either by their own accountants or accounting businesses hired temporarily for the purpose, depending on the size of the company. If you meant something else, more metaphorically, you need to continue the sentence as "accountable for [reason]". Also, you don't need to keep repeating the "hereby".

Certain producers of products (e.g., paper, single-use products, or beverage containers) are hereby made responsible fiscally for collecting and managing and recycling or composting the products after a consumer uses their product.

Why? Doesn't your home town have trash collecting and recycling services already in existence? Pretty sure recycling is already mandated by WA law, too.

Hereby increase the percentage of recycled content that must be contained in beverage containers

...you do realize you're talking about the contents of the containers in this wording. That is, the beverages. Given many molecules of water on the RL Earth are older than the planet, I would say any beverage containing water is already pretty much 100% recycled. A dinosaur probably once drank some of the same molecules you drink if you pour yourself a cup of water.

Hereby halt plastic producer’s permits until pollution is cut down

What permits? And how can they halt production AND improve their efficiency at the same time?

Hereby limit the amount of plastic waste that can be exported to other nations

But not imported? Asking that because in IC the nation of Araraukar imports certain kind of plastic waste, breaks it down to material from which new plastic can be made, and then exports the raw material. Other nations pay them to take their plastic trash and then buy the raw material. It's a very lucrative business for the nation.

(A) Thin-film single-use plastic bags under 3 mils (3.5 mils in 1 year to date this bill is enacted and 4 mils within 3 years of this bill is enacted) thick shall not be distributed, used, or sold for checkout or other purposes at any retail store.

"Mils" meaning "miles" or "millions"? I think plastic bags 3 miles thick would be a bit difficult to handle. (Millimetre is shortened as "mm". And 3 mm is about 0.12 inches.)

(B) If a retail store decides to sell or give out checkout bags to customers, the bags must be: (1) recyclable paper bags or (2) reusable checkout bags. The retail store may charge for these bags.

...can a retail store refuse to sell or give out any checkout bags?

(C) Thin-film plastic bags used to contain dry cleaning, newspapers, produce, meat, bulk foods, wet items, and other similar merchandise, typically without handles, are allowed under this bill.

So exactly the plastic bags that end up in your storm drains and the oceans and choke up/starve marine life? Logic?

(D) Thin-film single-use plastic straws, single-use plastic bottles and utensils must be charged at any restaurant or event.

Again, I don't believe these exist. Also, just "charged" sounds like the same charging done to charge your mobile phone's battery.

Section 6. Effective Date
This will take effect immediately. During this time, stores may reach out to the World Assembly to gain exemption if it will cause hardship. A store will be able to go through its supply even after the date.

If it takes effect immediately, there's no duration. It just one moment is not in effect and the next moment it is.