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Somerset County Gazette, 1.26.07
A campaign being led by the Somerset County Council and Somerset Waste Partnership will encourage retailers and check-out staff not to automatically give out carrier bags but to ask shoppers whether they actually need a bag. Wellington shoppers are being urged to play their part by using reusable shopping bags and packing the maximum amount that they can into carrier bags they take. They are also being reminded to reuse old bags such as using them as waste bin liners or for separating materials within their recycling boxes.
Somerset County Gazette
Voice of America, 12.10.06
The city of Paris has decided to ban non-biodegradable plastic bags in large stores as of 2007, in an effort to cut down on pollution.
Experts say these disposable bags account for 8,000 tons of waste generated in Paris each year, at a cost of more than $2 million. Yves Contassot, the man responsible for environment and waste at the Paris city hall, says plastic bags are just one lesson about the dangers of overpackaging, and of using petroleum-based products to make these non-renewable bags. Parisians need to economize resources by managing them better, Contassot says. It's a question of environmental responsibility.
VOA News
Expatica, 3.11.05
BRUSSELS – Belgian shoppers are increasingly opting for environmentally friendly reusable shopping bags and using fewer disposal ones, a new study has found.
A survey by consumer research group Crioc found a 9 percent jump in the use of reusable sacks between 2002 and 2003, and a 5 percent increase the following year.
At the same time, the study found a 36 percent decrease in the use of disposal bags in 2004…
http://www.expatica.com/source/site_article.asp?subchannel_id=24&
Glasgow Evening Times, 1.15.05
Proceeds will go to Keep Scotland Beautiful, the campaign to reduce litter on streets and the countryside. B&Q says it gives out seven million plastic bags a year in Scotland alone and estimates the 5p charge will slash this figure by up to 90%.
http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/hi/news/5031967.html
The Epoch Times, 12.12.04
A customer holds up his plastic bag of groceries at an outdoor market in Venice, Italy. Plastic wraps, used worldwide, are adding to the landfill problem. We could do something as simple as bringing our own shopping bag when we go to the store so that we do not need to answer that ubiquitous question, "paper or plastic?"
http://english.epochtimes.com/news/4-12-12/24902.html
Felix - UK, 11.25.04
Of course, I hear you cry: “what about my free bin liner?” You are not alone. The British Retail Consortium, in their staunch opposition, believe that if such taxes were introduced the demand for other single use bags, like bin bags, would rise dramatically. Certainly this seems to be the Irish experience.
But, in truth, large proportions of plastic bags go straight into the rubbish and are not reused in households anyway, and very few are returned to shops for reprocessing. A modest sum for a bin liner does not seem like too much hardship to me: when we pay for things we value them.
http://www.felixonline.co.uk/2002-04/article.php?aid=1940
BBC News, 10.3.03
Scotland should introduce a levy on disposable plastic bags in an effort to protect the environment, according to an MSP.
Scottish Liberal Democrat Mike Pringle has called for the levy in an attempt to cut down on waste.
Mr Pringle said the Republic Ireland has introduced a tax which has proved a success and a scheme has also been proposed in the English city of Durham.
Plastic bag usage from shops and stores has been reduced by an estimated 90% in the Republic of Ireland and the tax has raised millions of euros in revenue.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/3220213.stm
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/media/video/39503000/rm/_39503241_cutbags_vi.ram
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/media/audio/39500000/rm/_39500519_bags.ram
BBC News, 7.15.03
The litter problem on Ireland's streets has prompted the government to bring in a series of new taxes aimed at funding a national clean-up. The government in the Irish Republic is to introduce a tax on chewing gum, polystyrene food wrappers and cash machine receipts, it announced on Tuesday.
The move follows on from the success of the country's plastic bag tax - vastly reducing the numbers of them littering Irish streets and the countryside.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/3067649.stm
Ananova, 4.28.03
Researchers have found the majority of British shoppers are in favour of paying for plastic bags. The idea is that less bags would be sold leading to fewer polluting the environment. Almost 63% support the idea of paying 10p for their carrier bags compared with just 27% who are opposed.
Sorry! Article no longer available.
Reuters, 8.21.02
A tax on plastic shopping bags raised $3.45 million in its first three months and has slashed use of the bags 90%, the Irish government said. The program, which aims to reduce waste and litter, is being closely watched by other countries, with authorities in Britain and the U.S. expressing interest in copying it. Before the tax, it was estimated that Ireland's 3.9 million people were using 1.2 billion bags a year. According to Ireland’s Environment Minister Martin Cullen. "The reduction in the use of disposable plastic shopping bags has been immediate, and the positive visual impact on the environment is plain to see."
Sorry! Article no longer available.
BBC News, 8.20.02
The new Irish tax on plastic bags, known as the PlasTax, is making international waves. Praised for effectively raising national awareness about the role each individual plays in pollution creation and reduction, the tax has lead to impressive, tangible changes in consumer behavior.
The tax is meant to encourage shopper to use tougher, reusable bags. The plan seems to be working like a charm. In the first three months after the tax was introduced, shops reported handing out just over 23 million plastic bags - about 277 million fewer than normal.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/2205419.stm
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