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We negate the resolution, Resolved: “On balance, the benefits of the US Federal Government not banning single-use plastics outweigh the harms.”

Contention 1 is Medical Purposes

NewGen23 states, “Single-use plastic reduces the risk of cross-contamination. A hospital uses 25 pounds of it per day and makes 5 million tons of it per year, including bandages, gloves, chemical waste, and radioactive waste.” For example, Safety23 states, “New single-use plastic fever strips are sterile. Being sterile prevents the instrument from contamination and reduces infection risk.

Moreover, Eakin23 states, “Single-use devices and surgical instruments reduce the risk of patient-to-patient cross-contamination as well as saving the time and cost involved in reprocessing.”

Plastivision23 states, “Single-use plastics brought down the prices associated with healthcare as equipment and devices became cheaper, ensuring that even the poorest can get help.”

Unfortunately, banning single-use plastics would cause us to switch to alternatives, which are not effective. Plastivision23 continues, “Single-use plastics are comfortable and flexible and prior to it they used metal. Metal was not as flexible and caused discomfort especially in prosthetics.”

Plastivision23 Finalizes that, “Plastic is molded to suit medical applications. In Stents, pacemakers, and joint replacements you will see plastic’s ability to match the tiniest and complicated molds.”

The impact is Reducing Health Risks Rancho24 states “Medical practices during the 19th century had high death rates. After 1960 when single-use plastic was invented, practices began to shift toward something more recognizable as actual care.”

North24 states, “85% of hospital medical equipment is made of single-use plastics.”

And most people rely on hospitals so that 85% of medical equipment that is Single-Use Plastics really matter and Lindstrom23 explains that , “In a 2022 survey 92.1% of people, or 304 million people rely on hospitals.” Which is a major part of our population.

Contention 2 is Cost

Garcia21 states “single-use plastic bags require little material and energy to make. Except it takes $1 million dollars in annual fees to eliminate the single use plastic garbage” This shows just to get rid of a small amount of the problem it costs a lot.

Plastic24 states, “Single-use plastics are used as building materials for properties and vehicles. Single-use plastic can filter UV rays and it can keep heat in and cold out. This results in less money and less energy spent each year to make places comfortable. This reduces our environmental footprint”. In contrast, the alternatives will be much more expensive.

Subpoint A is Environmental Cost Mohan23 states, “The environmental cost of using SUPs in goods and packaging is four times less than if plastics were replaced with alternative materials.” Gray23 states, “The American Chemistry Council and Trucost estimate that the environmental costs would be 5 times higher if the soft drinks industry used alternative packaging.

Rosengren23 states, “The environmental costs of using plastic are on average four times less than other materials.”

Subpoint B is Cost Talbot20 explains that, “Alternatives like paper, sugarcane, plant starch forks and paper straws are more than twice the cost of single-use plastic.

OC Recycling23 states, “Single-Use Plastic is cheaper to produce than glass and aluminum, making it the most popular packaging material on the market.

Volt23 states, “Single-Use Plastic is more affordable to produce in bulk compared to metals, which leads to savings of 25-50% when substituting metal parts with plastic ones.”

The impact is loss in GDP resulting in poverty

Caliendo23 states, “During a one-year period, before and after the ban in Los Angeles County, the stores surveyed by the NCPA with a ban reported an overall sales decline of nearly 6%. While stores without a ban had a sales growth of 9%.” This will soon lead to poverty.

Energy22 states, “Banning it will cost American jobs, worsen the supply chain crisis, and hurt economic development across the country.”

Danquah24 states, “It would lead to more unemployment and loss in tax revenue which would hurt the US’s exports and foreign exchange. This leads to alternatives which increase cost of living due to the expense.”

Economy24 states, “Single-use plastic generates $451 billion per year in shipments. It employs 993,000 people directly and more than 1.5 million indirectly.”

Envs23 states, “Alternatives cost more which hurts small businesses by costing them a lot which is not affordable. Shoppers could shop elsewhere which will hurt small businesses that depend on them.” This will then lead to a dip in our GDP.

Mello23 states, “A fall in GDP per capita in the wake of a financial crisis is associated with a deterioration in income distribution and an increase in poverty.”