TORONTO – The day started with a debate on getting rid of Toronto’s plastic bag fee but it ended with an all-out ban.
Toronto city council voted 24-20 on Wednesday to prohibit “single-use” plastic shopping bags by Jan. 1, 2013.
Council earlier passed a motion to scrap the five-cent retail bag tax on July 1, removing a pet peeve of Mayor Rob Ford.
The fee was imposed in June 2009 by former Toronto Mayor David Miller in an effort to reduce environmental degradation caused by plastic bags.
Get daily National news
Since the implementation of the bylaw, plastic bag usage has dropped by more than 50 per cent.
Currently, the millions of dollars in proceeds from the tax go into the pockets of retailers.
What do you think about the plastic bag ban? Join the discussion on our Facebook page.
Toronto will join other major centres such as San Francisco, Seattle and Los Angeles, who have already implemented a ban on single-use plastic bags.
The tiny community of Leaf Rapids, Man., was the first community in Canada to ban the bags in April 2007.
Comments
Want to discuss? Please read our Commenting Policy first.