<i>&gt; it&#x27;s totally impossible to come up with realistic estimates for something like plastic bag waste.</i><p>If it is, then it&#x27;s also totally impossible to show that plastic bags are harming the environment enough to make draconian regulation a net gain.<p>In other words, the real purpose of the regulation is an arbitrary exercise of power: some people just can&#x27;t help telling other people what to do, and when those people get to write laws and regulations, this is what you get. &quot;Saving the environment&quot; is just the latest ad hoc justification.