PLASTIC PACKAGING
District of Columbia launches “Skip the bag, save the river” campaign / Customers of shops selling food or alcohol now charged 5 cents for each bag
 The district of Columbia hopes its “Skip the bag, save the river” campaign will fill the public coffers and finance the river clean-up (Photo: DDOE) |
In a famous scene in the 1999 Oscar-crowned box office hit “American Beauty”, Ricky first bonds with Jane when he shows her a video of the most beautiful imagery he has ever shot: A plastic bag blowing in the wind.
Clearly, this sense of beauty is not shared by all Americans. As of January 2010, the district of Columbia has joined the growing list of US cities and states with legislation to ban or restrict the use of plastic bags. What makes this latest campaign so unique is the direct link it establishes to cleaning up the environment and the fee it imposes on the handing out of such bags.
From 1 January 2010 onward, all businesses in the district of Columbia that sell food or alcohol must charge their customers five cents for every disposable paper or plastic bag handed out at the counter. What’s more, the bags need to be recyclable and have to carry a message that encourages recycling.
Most of the campaign’s revenues will go into the “Anacostia River Clean Up and Protection Fund”, with the businesses themselves keeping 1 cent of the proceeds. If the business offers its customers credit for bringing their own bag, it can keep a total of 2 cents. The remaining 3-4 cents will go to the fund to pay for reusable bags for district residents, launch education campaigns about litter and clean the river.
In its fiscal impact statement, the district’s chief financial officer estimates that in 2010, the bag fees will generate some USD 5.062.500, and that the amount of disposable bags will decrease by 50% this year as a result of the legislation.
Other US cities that have passed legislation on plastic bags include San Francisco (California) and Westport (Connecticut). Trend setter San Francisco passed legislation in 2007 banning non-biodegradable plastic carryout bags and laying down rules on what alternatives need to be provided to customers. In March 2009, Westport followed suit with similar legislation. A ban on non-recyclable plastic bags was imposed in Oakland (California) in 2007 but in April 2008 a court issued an injunction against it, effectively rendering the ban irrelevant.
e-Service:
Fiscal Impact Statement on the “Anacostia River Clean Up and Protection Act of 2009” as a PDF document (261 KB)
Clearly, this sense of beauty is not shared by all Americans. As of January 2010, the district of Columbia has joined the growing list of US cities and states with legislation to ban or restrict the use of plastic bags. What makes this latest campaign so unique is the direct link it establishes to cleaning up the environment and the fee it imposes on the handing out of such bags.
From 1 January 2010 onward, all businesses in the district of Columbia that sell food or alcohol must charge their customers five cents for every disposable paper or plastic bag handed out at the counter. What’s more, the bags need to be recyclable and have to carry a message that encourages recycling.
Most of the campaign’s revenues will go into the “Anacostia River Clean Up and Protection Fund”, with the businesses themselves keeping 1 cent of the proceeds. If the business offers its customers credit for bringing their own bag, it can keep a total of 2 cents. The remaining 3-4 cents will go to the fund to pay for reusable bags for district residents, launch education campaigns about litter and clean the river.
In its fiscal impact statement, the district’s chief financial officer estimates that in 2010, the bag fees will generate some USD 5.062.500, and that the amount of disposable bags will decrease by 50% this year as a result of the legislation.
Other US cities that have passed legislation on plastic bags include San Francisco (California) and Westport (Connecticut). Trend setter San Francisco passed legislation in 2007 banning non-biodegradable plastic carryout bags and laying down rules on what alternatives need to be provided to customers. In March 2009, Westport followed suit with similar legislation. A ban on non-recyclable plastic bags was imposed in Oakland (California) in 2007 but in April 2008 a court issued an injunction against it, effectively rendering the ban irrelevant.
e-Service:
Fiscal Impact Statement on the “Anacostia River Clean Up and Protection Act of 2009” as a PDF document (261 KB)
01.02.2010 Plasteurope.com [215369]
Published on 01.02.2010