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The Plastic Bag Fee In Seattle
To think that an outsider like the American Chemistry Council has the money, power and influence to change city government policy in this way is alarming to say the least. The American Chemistry Council has no interest in the health of the Seattle area, only their financial gain. Seattle has become a battle ground for this issue on a national and even global scale as other cities are preparing similar fee or ban initiatives. This ballot measure on August 19th will set the stage around the nation for debates and policy making that could put an end to the waste and pollution that plastic bags create. Seattle has an opportunity to be a leader in policy making that will protect our environment and start to reverse the damage that has already been done. Other cities like San Francisco and countries like Ireland have successfully reduced plastic bag use by up to 90%. Plastic Bags are made from High Density Polyethylene, which is made from propane and butane or liquid petroleum gas. The process to make liquid petroleum gas is resource intensive and the process of creating the bags is toxic causing environmental damage and endangering human health. Some of the key ingredients used to make plastic bags are DEHP and Vinyl Chloride. These chemicals decrease sperms levels, act as a neurotoxin and are proven carcinogens causing liver, kidney and brain damage. Chemical plants that produce plastics rank the highest in carcinogen emissions creating a huge threat to our environment and health. Once these toxic bags are produced they have to be shipped to their destination via boat, plane and truck all requiring foreign oil to reach the destination. Plastic bags are rarely if ever recycled, choking waterways and landfills. They are a huge threat to marine life and the food chain that supports much of the life on earth. Plastic bags account for 90% of the floating litter in the ocean as well as 80% of the litter on roads, beaches and parks. It is estimated that over 100,000 birds, seals, whales and other marine life die every year by ingesting plastics in the ocean that are mistaken for real food. The plastic bags are also killing coral reefs which support entire ecosystems in oceans around the world. We have been tricked into believing that we need plastic bags purely out of convenience. The plastic shopping bag showed up in the mid 70’s in super markets and retail stores. The plastic bag was not created out of a need…but for a profit. They are cheap to produce and the profit margin is high. Because they are rarely reused or recycled the demand is constant. These plastic bags along with other non recycled plastics are an immediate threat to our health and the future of our planet. Scientists around the world are encouraging a global ban of plastic bags. There are a variety of reusable bag options available. These bags have a small upfront cost and create a way for every individual to make a difference and live a more sustainable life. Many are concerned that a bag fee will unfairly alienate the economically challenged. To address this concern the City of Seattle will use a portion of the collected bag fee to promote the switch from plastic bags and subsidize the distribution of free reusable bags. If you are a resident of Seattle please vote to APPROVE Referendum 1 on August 18th which will approve the bag. This is an opportunity we can not afford to put off. If we can not approve a toxic plastic bag fee…how will we address larger issues affecting the health of our planet and our future. If you live in another city or another country please encourage your local government to implement a bag fee or ban. More information can be found at The Seattle Green Bag Campaign. There is an event to support the bag fee on June 18th 6-8pm at the Fremont Brewery. Come show your support and make a donation to help fight Big Oil’s already pledged $2 million to fight the bag fee in Seattle. 11 comments to The Plastic Bag Fee In Seattle |
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The citizens of Seattle will soon have an opportunity to support or reject a 20-cent plastic and paper bag fee. This bag fee was 
Personally I think it is about time that they charge money for these POS. When I was in Dublin the charged for plastic or paper, driving people to bring their own bags to the grocery. I don’t think I saw a single bag on the streets while I was there. Your article touches on the plastic bag in the 70’s it truly became popular in the 80’s during the whole save a tree movement (roughly 1984.) Groceries pushed the utilization of the plastic bag as a way to save a tree, definitely increasing their profit margins at the time. In the end if people want to view this as a tax fine, it is a sin tax. Consider it the same as tobacco, alcohol, petroleum for toys, if there is a potential to harm those around you pay the tax.
they outta make all beer bottle have deposit fees too. reuse em, create money from reuse recycle fees. like whistler and mexico…never see bottles on the grnd.
ps, f hippies.
I am not a Seattle resident but if I were I would vote for this. I must admit that I a sometimes guilty of forgetting my reusable bags. I think that if there were a charge for the plastic bags it might make me more responsible about remembering to bring my own. It is true that this is a very simple way to eliminate a horrible overuse of plastics. I… Read More like the idea of using some of the funds collected to help people make the switch. How is the rest of the money going to be used? Thank you for the post!
My habits have changed totally since the fee originally past. I can’t understand why it isn’t as obvious to everyone else?
Hey, nice post, very well written. You should post more about this.
http://seattlebagtax.org/
The above is an informative site that provides Seattle bag tax information to the public in one place. It was designed to serve as a resource hub that enables individuals to develop a well-informed judgment on a plastic bag tax or ban.
Please visit and send the link to others interested in this issue. We’d also like to hear your thoughts which can be emailed to info@seattlebagtax.org and hope you take a few minutes to complete the survey located at the bottom of the navigation menu.
***If you are concerned about plastic bags, here are some things you can do to limit your personal consumption in place of a tax ***
REDUCE: Plastic bags have sturdy handles and can be made strong enough to hold up to 25 to 44 lbs. of goods. Plastic bags are also waterproof (helpful in Washington weather). The plastics industry has successfully reduced the amount of waste generated from packaging consumer products and plastic milk jugs weigh 30% less than what they did 20 years ago.
REUSE: More than 80% of consumers reported that they save and reuse plastic bags. Common uses for resuing plastic bags include pet pickup, storage, trash bin liners, transport, lunch bags, protecting valuables from water, diaper disposal, moving, yard waste, holding recyclables, and donation to charities, schools, hospitals, food banks.
RECYCLE: Plastic recycling is beneficial because it decreases the amount of used plastics that end up in landfills and allows for fewer natural resourced being used to produce new plastic. Currently, the recovery of plastic recycling has been small (due to their light weight) but growing; 1.4 million tons or 3.9% of the plastics produced in 2003. In 2005, 1.65 million tons, or 5.7% of the 28.9 million tons of plastic generated was recovered. Recycling plastic bags has been available at most supermarkets since 1992 and there is a growing market for recycled plastic that did not exist a decade ago as recyclers make 15-20 cents per pound of collected bags.
I think i’ve seen this somewhere before…but it’s not bad at all
Cool post, just subscribed.
You probably read something similar on GreatCity.org. They posted their bag fee position statement which I wrote for them.
The American Chemistry Council, an industrial group that has mounted a half million dollar PR campaign opposing the Seattle Green Bag referendum, hired a firm to do a life cycle assessment comparing the environmental impact of plastic bags to alternatives. The group’s own study indicates that reusable cloth bags are preferable to plastic. See Seattle Green Bag Campaign.
[...] we wont see outside influence and lobbying throw a wrench in this resolution like we saw with the bag fee in Seattle [...]