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May

31

Great City Supports a bag fee in Seattle

Filed Under Uncategorized 

and here is why:
On August 18th the citizens of Seattle will decide to support or reject a 20-cent plastic and paper bag fee. The Seattle City Council previously approved this proposed fee in July of 2008 with a vote of 6 to 1. Since that time an initiative has been filed to attempt to overturn the bag fee, largely influenced by the American Chemistry Council. Other cities around the globe have adopted bag fees or bans with great success reducing plastic bag use by as much as 90%.

Great City recognizes the impact that plastic bags have on our local, national and global environment, both in terms of oil consumption and pollution of our waterways. The approval or disapproval of the ballot measure on August 18th will likely set a precedent for the other 25 US cities considering similar fees or bans. As a national leader in progressive environmental policies, the successes and failures of Seattle’s policies set the tone for national debates surrounding similar issues.  While the bag fee may seem like a small gesture, its passage would be a clear indication of where we stand in the larger fight to reduce our waste and our dependence on oil. Seattle has an opportunity to become a policy setter while engaging citizens to live a more sustainable lifestyle.

Great City understands that a bag fee would reduce the 360 million bags used annually in the City of Seattle by 70% and generate $10 million annually for waste prevention, recycling programs, and environmental education. The City of Seattle’s goals to recycle 60% of the waste stream will also benefit from a reduction in plastic bags allowing more efficient sorting of recyclables, waste and compostable materials.

In an effort to ease the economic strain of the bag fee on the community $2 million of the collected bag fee will be used for promoting the switch to reusable plastic bag alternatives, and underwriting the distribution of free, reusable bags.

For the reasons above, Great City supports this effort. To learn more visit http://greenbagcampaign.org/

Comments

One Response to “Great City Supports a bag fee in Seattle”

  1. Jen on June 1st, 2009 9:00 am

    Happy to see you’re supporting the bag fee. It’s going to take a lot of local effort to counteract the money and influence of the American Chemistry Council, but I think we can do it.

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