Charging plastic bags: Perceptions from Japan

Abstract

Mandatory charges for plastic bags at all stores was implemented in Japan in July 2020 to encourage interest in environmental issues and raise awareness of environmental risks. We conducted a survey on mandatory plastic bag charging, dealing with environmental risk perception, pro-environmental habits, attempts to reduce plastic bags, and sense of community. In this study, we assumed that factors distinguished by the behavior change after charging, that is, reduced use of plastic shopping bags or no change from before, and the relationship with other typical environmental behaviors and perceptions would suggest its long-term success. Data were collected from two groups: Group 1 consisted of those who had reduced their use of plastic bags after the implementation of the mandate, and Group 2 were those who had not changed their behavior because of the mandate. First, we extracted factors to distinguish Group 1 from Group 2 using binary regression analysis. Second, we illustrated the relationship between the attempt to reduce plastic bags and other typical environmental behaviors and perceptions by conducting structural equation modeling (SEM). The results showed that age, place of residence, observing others’ behavior, attempts to use eco-friendly bags, and energy-saving behavior were significant influential factors in reducing plastic bags. Moreover, SEM showed that it was not significantly related to pro-environmental habits but would significantly influence environmental risk perception and recycling behavior. Therefore, it is suggested that mandatory charging can raise interest in environmental issues to foster further environmental behavior, while a detailed outreach strategy considering influential factors such as age, place of residence, individual pro-environmental habits, and so on would be necessary to successfully implement this strategy.