Councillors to debate how you carry your groceries

The following resolution proposing elimination or reduced use of plastic bags has been placed on the agenda of Monday's City Council meeting by Ward 5 Coun. Corey Gardi and Ward 3's Donna Hilsinger.

Last June, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau promised to ban harmful single-use plastics including plastic bags, straws, cutlery, plates, and stir sticks, as early as 2021, where supported by scientific evidence.

Where warranted, Trudeau has also proposed taking additional steps to reduce pollution from plastic products and packaging, and working with provinces and territories to encourage companies that manufacture plastic products or sell items with plastic packaging to take responsibility for their plastic waste.

"Bans eliminate choice and can have unforeseen negative environmental consequences," counters the Canadian Plastics Industry Association.

"In the case of plastic in consumer goods and packaging, alternatives can have nearly four times the environmental impact," the industry group says.

All Canadians should worry about job loss from plastic bag bans because 90 per cent of all plastic grocery bags are made in Canada, the association claims.

Monday's City Council meeting will be livestreamed on SooToday starting at 4:30 p.m.

*************************
Elimination of plastic bags

Mover: Councillor C. Gardi
Seconder: Councillor D. Hilsinger

Whereas plastic bags don’t biodegrade, they photodegrade – breaking down into smaller and smaller toxic bits; and

Whereas these toxic bits of plastic particles end up contaminating soil, and enter the food web when animals accidentally ingest them; and

Whereas plastics including plastic bags are causing catastrophic effects on the world’s oceans, including contributing to hundreds of thousands of marine animal deaths per year; and

Whereas according to the Rochester Institute of Technology more than 22 million pounds of plastic pollution ends up in the Great Lakes every year; and

Whereas 80 per cent of litter in the Great Lakes region is plastic, pollution that threatens the ecosystem of the lakes and the source of drinking water depended upon by 40 million people including the residents of Sault Ste. Marie; and

Whereas the Canadian government plans to ban harmful single-use plastics including plastic shopping bags as early as 2021 in an effort to reduce the three million tons of plastic waste tossed out by Canadians every year; and

Whereas the City of Sault Ste. Marie should do what it can to discourage or eliminate the use of plastic bags; and

Now, therefore, be it resolved that city staff is directed to consider and report back on a process by which council can, within its legal authority, discourage and or eliminate the use of plastic bags within the community including a plan for the municipality to reduce and eliminate its own use of plastic bags and single-use plastics;

Be it further resolved that city staff consult with community stakeholders specifically including the commercial operations throughout our community that are heavily dependent on the use of plastic bags to receive their comment, feedback and input.