Archive for the ‘Westport’ Category

News Flash: It’s Not an Eco-Friendly Reusable Bag if You Don’t Use It

Hansan at Wikimedia Commons, public domain.)Can you shop at any large retailer today without seeing a display of reusable shopping bags for sale at the checkout aisle? Seems like a good thing, right? Buy a cloth tote and prevent a lot of one-use plastic bags from entering the landfills.

But the thought occurred to me recently that it might not be a good thing if lots and lots of people are buying reusable bags but not reusing them. Apparently, I’m not the only one who’s started worrying about that.

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Connecticut Town Bans Plastic Shopping Bags

Trosmisiek at Wikimedia Commons, public domain.)Westport, Connecticut, recently joined a small but growing number of communities to ban the use of free plastic shopping bags within its borders. The new ordinance, which goes into effect early next year, would impose a $150 fine on any store that offers such bags.

WestportNow.com reports that citizens attending the Representative Town Meeting (RTM) vote on the ban overwhelmingly supported the measure. The RTM eventually voted 26 to 5 (with one abstention) in favor of the ordinance, and also rejected a proposal that would have made the ban effective only through Sept. 19 of next year.

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