Businesses in the Saint John region are being asked for their input on a proposed plastic checkout bag ban.
The Fundy Regional Service Commission has teamed up with the Saint John Region Chamber of Commerce to launch an online survey.
“We really want to look at the impact the local community feels that this bylaw would have on them and whether or not the pandemic has made any changes to their usage,” said Brenda MacCallum, public relations and program development officer for the commission.
The proposed bylaw, which would be implemented across the Saint John region simultaneously, would ban plastic checkout bags at all retailers, with exemptions for certain items.
It would be similar to the plastic bag bylaw which was implemented in Moncton, Riverview and Dieppe this week.
Stores could opt to provide paper bags as an alternative, but they would have to charge a fee and would keep the money to help offset the costs. The bylaw would also allow for reusable bags which are durable for at least 100 uses.
MacCallum said the commission had hoped to implement the ban this past July, but COVID-19 changed those plans.
“Now, the commission has made a motion that we continue working with municipalities but we also want to make sure that we gauge things properly and get a good implementation time with local businesses’ input,” she said.
After years of struggling and failing to secure an end-recycling market, the commission stopped accepting plastic bags in recycling earlier this year. That means all plastic bags in our region go directly to the trash.
Marc MacLeod, executive director of the commission, said removing plastic checkout bags from the system is imperative.
“This action can help to eliminate plastic entering our environment and the landfill and save business the cost of supplying bags. By working together with all municipalities and local retailers in the Fundy Region we can make a significant difference for our community,” said MacLeod.
Canadians use 300 to 700 plastic bags each year, according to figures from Plastic Oceans International. That adds up to about 35 million plastic bags in the Fundy Region every year.
Several retailers have already stopped handing out single-use plastic bags at the checkout, including Sobeys and NB Liquor.
MacCallum said many businesses have said a plastic bag ban needs to be done at a government level so it creates a level playing field.
“I think everybody sees that this is coming and just the overall impact of plastic bags and what they do have on our environment and that most people recognize that we need to reduce our consumption of the bags,” she said.
If the proposed bylaw goes ahead, the commission would allow about one year to implement to educate the public and give businesses enough time to use up any current stock.
“It is critical that we gauge the attitude for this within the business community. This is an important step forward in our recycling and waste reduction strategies and it is important that we get it right,” said David Duplisea, CEO of the Saint John Region Chamber.
The survey is available until October 9.
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