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Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
Elected as a Member of the British Columbia Legislative Assembly for the Constituency of Saanich South on May 12, 2009. New Democratic Opposition Critic for the Ministry of Agriculture and Lands. Raised on Quadra Island and has an undergraduate degree from the University of British Columbia. Extensive track record as a community leader, advocate and environmental activist.

Thursday, November 1, 2007

"If you can make it work here, You can make it work anywhere, it up to you, New York, New York"!

From: Edith Honan, Reuters
Published October 29, 2007 10:57 PM
New York may join crackdown on plastic bags
NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York City may follow an international trend and crack down on plastic shopping bags,
seeking to cut their use with a plan officials hope will be a model for other cities.
A proposal introduced on Monday requires stores larger than 5,000 square feet to set up an in-store recycling program
and sell reusable bags.
Some 700 food stores plus large retailers such as Target and Home Depot would have to collect used bags and provide
a system for turning them over to a manufacturer or to third-party recycling firms.
Stores would be required to use bags printed with a reminder to consumers: "Please return this bag to a participating
store for recycling."
Environmentalists have targeted plastic bags as a scourge that take years to biodegrade and contaminate soil and water.
"We think this strikes the right balance between conscience and convenience," said Councilman Peter Vallone, a co-
sponsor of the bill, which needs approval from the city council and environmentally minded Mayor Michael
Bloomberg.

The bill was expected to come to a vote within several months.
In 2002, Ireland introduced a tax on plastic bags, reducing their use by 90 percent. Some communities in Australia have
banned them in retail stores since 2003.
In March, San Francisco became the first U.S. city to ban plastic bags from large supermarkets and the state of
California enacted a law in July that requires large stores to take back plastic bags and encourage their reuse.
Americans use an estimated 84 billion plastic bags annually, and the production of plastic bags worldwide uses over 12
million barrels of oil per year, the council said.
Recycled bags can be used to produce new bags plus a variety of plastic products, including furniture.
Estimates vary widely for how long it takes plastic bags to decompose, and some environmentalists say it is impossible
to know because plastics have only been used commercially in recent decades.
© Reuters2007All rights reserved
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