Dec 19 - Seattle and Mukilteo Pass Plastic Bag Bans in WA
Just this afternoon, the Seattle City Council unanimously approved a single-use bag ordinance. It’s been a long time coming in a battle between bag ban advocates and the plastic bag industry.
In 2008, Seattle passed a bag ordinance that was overturned one year later when the industry spent $1.4 million dollars to push for a voter referendum. The 2008 ordinance required single-use paper and plastic bags to be available for purchase at 20 cents each.
Today’s ordinance bans single-use plastic bags and places a 5 cent charge on single-use paper bags. It goes into effect on July 1, 2012.
Seattle residents use 292 million plastic bags each year, most of which end up as litter or in landfills after only a few minutes’ use.
Read more in the Seattle Times or Huffington Post. Councilmember Mike O'Brien, author of the ordinance, also has information on his website.
Just one week ago, the City of Mukilteo passed a similar bag ordinance. Like Seattle's bag ban, the ordinance is modeled after the City of Bellingham’s ordinance adopted earlier this year. It goes into effect on January 1, 2013. Read more here.
There are now four single-use bag ordinances in the state of Washington. Check out other local bag ordinances in the state of California and across the nation.
Take action on proposed bag ordinances here. It takes only a few minutes and you can personalize your message.