Saint John On Track To Implement Plastic Bag Ban
City Council has passed the first two readings of a bylaw that would prevent retailers from handing out single-use plastic bags at checkouts.
City Council has passed the first two readings of a bylaw that would prevent retailers from handing out single-use plastic bags at checkouts.
The proposed draft bylaw closely follows a motion recommended by the Fundy Regional Service Commission for regional municipalities to ban the bags by June 30, 2021.
The survey respondents were mostly small business owners, many of which were small retail, grocery-type stores that currently use plastic bags.
It was supposed to come into effect on July 1, but in June, municipal councils decided to amend the by-law’s implementation date to October 1, due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Results from a recent survey show that nine out of 10 support a ban on things like check out bags, straws, cups, cutlery and takeaway food containers.
The by-law would still allow businesses to provide plastic bags for certain products and offer single-use paper bags for a fee if a customer asks for them at the checkout counter.