Plastic Bag "tax" stalled
Word on the street (or the online news anyway) is that Seattle city council’s proposed plastic bag “tax” has been held off by the collection of signatures by grocers (et al) to let the public vote on the issue. [Ed: P-I] Your thoughts?
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On a personal note: I’m currently close to the end of a 6-week stint in Southeast Asia (specifically Vietnam for the next few days, then back to Thailand). People use plastic bags here for everything but in a slightly different manner. They don’t individually bag produce but place everything in one bag. They bag even minuscule purchases. Instead of plastic bags going to the dump (is there an official dump here?), they burn them with other bits of trash each night on the sidewalk. Those bags that aren’t burned end up in the rivers and oceans, washing up on the beaches full of other bits of trash or aquatic life. I walked along the shore yesterday in Nha Trang, Vietnam only to count over 3 dozen plastic bags in the span of a few short meters. Perhaps there is something to be said for the reduction of plastic bags or plain plastic in general.
… added a link to the P-I article, which highlights the massive influence of the American Chemical Council. The fee, already approved by the council, will now be put on a ballot before it takes effect. The City Council will need to decide about the timing of that ballot — special vs. regular election. I want this to take effect as soon as possible, but running a special election for it seems like a big, unnecessary expense foisted on us by special corporate interests from afar.