Published on Tuesday, October 30, 2007 by Reuters
New York May Join Crackdown On Plastic Bags
by Edith Honan
NEW YORK - New York City may follow an international trend and crack down
on plastic shopping bags, seeking to cut their use with a plan officials hope
will be a model for other cities.1030 07
A proposal introduced on Monday requires stores larger than 5,000 square feet
to set up an in-store recycling program and sell reusable bags.
Some 700 food stores plus large retailers such as Target and Home Depot would
have to collect used bags and provide a system for turning them over to a manufacturer
or to third-party recycling firms.
Stores would be required to use bags printed with a reminder
to consumers: “Please
return this bag to a participating store for recycling.”
Environmentalists have targeted plastic bags as a scourge that take years
to biodegrade and contaminate soil and water.
“We think this strikes the right balance between conscience and convenience,” said
Councilman Peter Vallone, a co-sponsor of the bill, which needs approval
from the city council and environmentally minded Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
The bill was expected to come to a vote within several months.
In 2002, Ireland introduced a tax on plastic bags, reducing their use by 90
percent. Some communities in Australia have banned them in retail stores since
2003.
In March, San Francisco became the first U.S. city to ban plastic bags from
large supermarkets and the state of California enacted a law in July that requires
large stores to take back plastic bags and encourage their reuse.
Americans use an estimated 84 billion plastic bags annually, and the production
of plastic bags worldwide uses over 12 million barrels of oil per year, the
council said.
Recycled bags can be used to produce new bags plus a variety of plastic products,
including furniture.
Estimates vary widely for how long it takes plastic bags to decompose, and
some environmentalists say it is impossible to know because plastics have only
been used commercially in recent decades.
© Reuters 2007
San Francisco Passes Plastic-Bag Ban
By LISA LEFF Wed Mar 28, 9:53 AM ET
SAN FRANCISCO - City leaders approved a ban on plastic grocery bags after
weeks of lobbying on both sides from environmentalists and a supermarket trade
group. San Francisco would be the first U.S. city to adopt such a rule if Mayor
Gavin Newsom signs the ban as expected.
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The law, approved 10-1, requires large markets and drug stores to offer customers
bags made of paper that can be recycled, plastic that breaks down easily enough
to be made into compost, or reusable cloth.
San Francisco supervisors and supporters said that by banning the petroleum-based
sacks, blamed for littering streets and choking marine life, the measure would
go a long way toward helping the city earn its green stripes.
"Hopefully, other cities and states will follow suit," said
Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi, who crafted the ban after trying to get a 15-cent
per bag tax passed in 2005.
The 50 grocery stores that would be most affected by the law argued that the
ban was not reasonable because plastic bags made of corn byproducts are a relatively
new, expensive and untested product. Some said they might offer only paper
bags at checkout.
"I think what grocers will do now that this has passed is, they will
review all their options and decide what they think works best for them economically," said
David Heylen, a spokesman for the California Grocers Association.
Newsom supported the measure. The switch is scheduled to take effect in six
months for grocery stores and in one year for pharmacies.
Craig Noble, a spokesman for the Natural Resources Defense Council, said it
would be disappointing if grocers rejected the biodegradable plastic bag option,
since more trees would have to be cut down if paper bag use increases.
The new breed of bags "offers consumers a way out of a false choice,
a way out of the paper or plastic dilemma," Noble said.
Shoppers Snag Designer Grocery Totes
Associated Press
LOS ANGELES — A trip to the grocery store is becoming
a lot more fashionable as consumers look to designer totes to bag their
greens and express their style.
Hermes, Stella McCartney and Consuelo Castiglioni of Marni are among the top
designers now offering reusable shopping bags that are chic and pricey.
The bags give shoppers an alternative to paper or plastic without sacrificing
style.
The Silky Pop Hermes bag, which will go on sale in the U.S. this summer, has
a price tag of $960. Made of hand-wrought silk, it collapses into a wallet-size
pouch of calfskin. Castiglioni's foldable nylon bag retails for $843. The Stella
McCartney organic canvas shopper sells for $495.
Reusable shopping bags — which have mostly been confined to farmers'
markets and health food co-ops — have increased in popularity as cities
consider banning the use of certain plastic bags and encourage shoppers to
do more for the environment.
Earlier this year, San Francisco became the first major U.S. city to ban the
use of nonbiodegradable plastic grocery bags. Since then, cities from Boston
to Berkeley have taken up similar proposals. Los Angeles County is studying
options ranging from an outright ban to better education on recycling.
While the designer bags are eye-catching, cheaper totes are also grabbing
attention.
Trader Joe's sells a $1.99 bright blue-and-green print
polypropylene sack. And the "I'm Not a Plastic Bag" by British
handbag designer Anya Hindmarch goes for $15, though it has fetched 10
times that much on the eBay auction Web site.
This month's Vogue magazine urges fashionistas to become
more bag-wise: "No
loitering, girls," says contributing editor Sarah Mower. "Today,
let us go out and harness the power of fashion to change the way the nation
shops."
© 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
OR THEY CAN USE THEIR VERY OWN "I DON'T NEED A BAG" BAG!