June 1, 2009 - Paying for plastic
- By ILS corp
- Published 06/1/2009
Things are changing in Toronto today. Here's a news story from the Canadian Press (used with permission, of course) about what that city is doing to curb the use of plastic bags.
Grocery chains Metro, Loblaws and Sobeys are charging their shoppers cash for single-use bags. (Sobeys only charges in Ontario.)
The Liquor Control Board of Ontario has banned plastic bags and only offers paper bags to its shoppers.
The idea seems logical: train consumers to bring their own reusable bags or boxes when they leave their house. Will it work? Will we see a downturn in the amounts of plastic bags being used and eventually discarded across the country? Are people even reusing plastic bags or do they get sent out with the garbage every week? A whole lot of questions and, so far, no concrete trends are emerging.
Let us know what you do. Maybe you have a stash of cloth bags in the trunk of your car, or rely on reusable boxes when shopping. Do you think charging cash for bags is the way to go?
Toronto's mandatory five cent plastic bag fee kicks in MondayIt's not a new plan. In October 2007, furniture retailer IKEA started charging five cents per plastic bag, with the proceeds going to Tree Canada to help plant trees across the country.
Toronto residents will want to remember to bring their own bags to the grocery store starting Monday.
On June 1, the City of Toronto starts requiring stores to charge a nickel for single-use plastic bags.
The five-cent fee is aimed at curbing the use of the throwaway bags. Many environmental groups, like the Recycling Council of Ontario, have applauded the fee, saying it puts a price tag on pollution.
Toronto's plastic bag fee bylaw was the result of a compromise reached in November after a controversial pitch from city hall that would have required retailers to offer a 10-cent-a-bag discount to customers. Critics described the plan as unworkable and prompted major grocery chains to lobby the city for alternative measures.
Canadians currently take home about 55 million bags from stores every week.
Grocery chains Metro, Loblaws and Sobeys are charging their shoppers cash for single-use bags. (Sobeys only charges in Ontario.)
The Liquor Control Board of Ontario has banned plastic bags and only offers paper bags to its shoppers.
The idea seems logical: train consumers to bring their own reusable bags or boxes when they leave their house. Will it work? Will we see a downturn in the amounts of plastic bags being used and eventually discarded across the country? Are people even reusing plastic bags or do they get sent out with the garbage every week? A whole lot of questions and, so far, no concrete trends are emerging.
Let us know what you do. Maybe you have a stash of cloth bags in the trunk of your car, or rely on reusable boxes when shopping. Do you think charging cash for bags is the way to go?
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1 Response to "June 1, 2009 - Paying for plastic " 
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said this on 04 Jun 2009 3:00:22 PM PDT
Today I saw a twist on this....a local grocery store is knocking a nickel off for each reuseable bag you bring in. Instead of "user pay", it is "non-user gets paid." I don't know how successful this will be, but it is possible a nickel will motivate some people.
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