The Seattle Traveler

Apparently Seattle is NOT as green as it would like to think it is.  And the City council has decided to do something about it. 

That something is a new tax – a 20 cent “fee” on plastic and paper bags used at grocery, drug, and convenience stores. The city estimates that the use of disposable bags will be reduced by over 50% with the institution of this bag fee.

Seattle is going to be green if we have to tax you into it!

You can avoid the fee by bring along your personal reusable bags for shopping.  As part of an awareness and education campaign, the City will give away free bags to residents (local food banks are also accepting donations of cloth bags), as well as providing reminders to bring the bags along.

Department stores are exempt from the bag fee, but most encourage shoppers to bring their own bag.  Many stores also sell logo and other cloth bags of their own.

Seattle is not alone in this green trend.  San Francisco completely banned plastic grocery bags last year, and Los Angeles recently approved a conditional ban/bag fee as well.

While they were at it, the City Council also banned foam food and drink containers.  Many alternative products are already being used (although they may still look like polystyrene foam), so this change is expected to meet with less resistance.  Grocery stores have been granted a grace period to devise a replacement to foam meat trays.

Both the bag fee and the foam container ban go into effect on January 1st, 2009.

Paper or plastic?  Now it’s neither!  Ahhh, change is gonna do us good!

Photo credit:  flickr

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