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Seattle ’s ban of shaping bags begin in July 2012 .
On Monday , Dec. 19 , the Seattle City Council voted to ban formative purse from grocery store , retail and convenience stores , joining Edmonds , Bellingham and Mukilteo , Wash. , in the push for more progressive environmental laws . The unanimously approved ban will take effect in July 2012 .
Along with the plastic - bag forbiddance , there will be a $ .05 charge for paper grocery store bags to compensate for the higher toll of paper . With the accusation , Seattle City Council is hoping citizenry will be reminded to bring their own bags . Low - income citizenry on nutrient - assist computer programme will not be charge for report pocketbook .
In 2009 , voters rejected the measure to mandate a $ .20 fee for paper and credit card dish , which would be put back into the city for Education Department and recycling programme . The Seattle Times state the plastics industry then compensate signature gatherers to place a referendum on the ballot .
Plastic bags often terminate up in Puget Sound , Washington ’s admired estuarine . Environment Washington , a citizen - based environmental advocacy organization , states , “ The amount of plastic in the ocean has tripled since the 1980s … In Seattle , 292 million plastic bag are shell out each year , and too many of them witness their direction to the Sound . ” The formation ’s site mark that , in April 2010 , a beached hoar whale in West Seattle was discover with 20 charge card bags in its abdomen .
Seattle Public Utilities ’ waste composition discipline show that Seattle residents use about 292 million plastic bag per twelvemonth , and only 13 percentage of plastic bags in the metropolis are recycled .
Seattle ’s plastic industry opposed the ban , express the bags are “ convenient , reusable and exemplify a fraction of the trash that ends up in Puget Sound . ”
The Earth Resource Foundation states that pliant bag are one of the top items of bedding on beach , route , sidewalk and vegetation , next to cigaret and Styrofoam . There are very few recycling centers for credit card bags , which means they ’ll be stick in landfills , oceans and street for an unknown amount of sentence . Californians Against Waste ’s website says , “ At least 267 specie have been scientific document to be adversely affect by moldable marine debris . pliant bags are considered especially dangerous to sea turtleneck , who may mistake them for jellyfish , a main food rootage . ”
Other areas in the United States that have already banned plastic bags admit : Long Beach , Calif. , San Jose , Calif. ( January 1 , 2012 ) , San Francisco , Calif. , cities in Hawaii , North Carolina and Suffolk County , New York .
Achim Steiner , mind of the UN Environmental Program , say , “ There is merely zero justification for manufacturing [ plastic bags ] anymore , anywhere . ”
