Massachusetts Municipalities Continue to Make Progress on Single-Use Plastics Reduction

BROOKLINE, MA. – Massachusetts municipalities continue to lead the nation in innovative actions to reduce single-use plastics.  Several towns, during their annual spring town meetings, adopted a range of measures to further address the plastic crisis. Most recently, the town of Brookline closed out the spring 2025 town legislative season Wednesday by expanding two of its already extensive plastic by-laws to include the black plastic ban and “Skip the Stuff” implementation, among some other changes. 

“Skip the Stuff” laws require restaurants to only provide complimentary single-use plastic utensils and accessories at the customer’s request. The “Skip the Stuff” bylaw was passed in Wellesley in April and followed by three other towns (Brookline, Hudson, and Needham). In May, Hudson added a ban on toxic polystyrene and black plastic items. Black plastic bans were added in a total of four towns (Brookline, Hudson, Needham, and Pembroke). 

To pass these local measures, proponents in these communities crafted them with input from stakeholders such as local businesses and town government. These laws have received broad support from local organizations including health boards, solid waste committees, and climate and environmental groups, enabling them to pass virtually unanimously. 

Local laws support the campaign for state legislative action. Sixty-five of the state’s 351 municipalities have banned polystyrene takeout containers, often including other regulations to make packaging more sustainable through the use of recyclable and compostable options. Currently, over two-thirds of the state’s population is covered by local plastic laws which ban single-use plastic bags with most of them also requiring recycled content in paper bags. Nearly all states in the Northeast have banned plastic bags or polystyrene or both, but Massachusetts has not done either.

"Green Needham is thrilled that our Town continues to prioritize reducing single-use plastics.  It is clear that residents and Town Meeting members are concerned about the impacts of plastic production and pollution on our environment and human health,” said Kathy Raiz, Green Needham.

"We were pleased that the Skip the Stuff article passed in Wellesley with sponsorship from the Climate Action Committee, Board of Health, and Select Board, with full support of the Department of Public Works, the Natural Resources Committee, and Sustainable Wellesley.  Our goal in supporting this article was to educate the public, modify behavior, and encourage change at restaurants. It’s to get people to stop and think, ‘Do I actually need that? I’m going home where I already have everything I need," said Lisa Gieger of Sustainable Wellesley.

“We are pleased to announce that the Town of Hudson voted overwhelmingly to adopt our plastic reduction by-law. This new law taking effect on Jan 1, 2026, will ban Styrofoam, black plastic, plastic straws and most plastic utensils from our stores and restaurants. We thank the Board of Health for sponsoring our bylaw and working with the town businesses to make it happen. We encourage other communities and our state legislature to act as well,” said Elisa Pearmain, Chair of Green Hudson’s Plastic Reduction Team.

“Since passage of our first plastic laws in 2012, there's now general recognition that reuse and natural materials like paper are most sustainable. Use of black plastic grew during COVID as has awareness of its toxicity and inability to be recycled. Skip-the-stuff reduces waste and saves restaurants money. Many restaurants are already taking these and other steps towards sustainability and these regulations level the playing field," said Brenda Hochberg, Brookline Town Meeting Member and lead petitioner.

“Growing research on the health and environmental impacts of plastic use and permanent plastic pollution demonstrates the need for these types of laws. The Massachusetts Sierra Club has been leading efforts to address the plastic crisis for over a decade. We continue to support local governments and grassroots groups to make our Commonwealth free from toxics and litter,” said Vick Mohanka, Sierra Club Massachusetts Chapter Director.