The City of Nanaimo is moving towards a single-use plastic bag ban in 2021 after submitting an approved bylaw to the province for approval. (The Canadian Press)

By Alex Rawnsley

BAG BAN

City of Nanaimo’s plastic bag ban awaits provincial approval

Oct 20, 2020 | 12:30 PM

NANAIMO — Pending a blessing from the province, single-use plastic bags containing retail purchases will be banned in the city of Nanaimo.

Council approved a new bylaw during their meeting on Monday, Oct. 19, prohibiting the sale or offering of single-use plastic bags at retail checkouts. The bylaw is slated to come into effect July 2021, following provincial approval and public education campaigns.

Nanaimo councillors moved through three readings and final approval unanimously, with the only objections related to semantics between compostable and biodegradable bags offered at some stores.

“These materials take a long period to be biodegraded. We are trying to encourage reuse…using of the reusable bags which they last 100 times more,” Taaj Daliran, manager of sanitation and recycling told council.

Coun. Sheryl Armstrong said some businesses had already taken steps to offer more environmentally friendly bags thinking they would be in compliance. She also said many people use compostable bags and bin lines in the city’s curbside organics collection.

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Kirsten Gellein, city zero waste coordinator, told council compostable bags need to be properly discarded in order to not cause environmental damage.

“They do break down in an industrial compost system but they wouldn’t break down in the environment.”

She added the city’s bylaw falls in line with others approved by the province already which included restrictions on compostable and biodegradable products.

Under the bylaw, businesses would be prohibited from selling or providing customers plastic bags or providing any type of bag free of charge. Daliran said paper bags could be offered for a cost no less than 25 cents.

Exemptions would be made including purchasing bulk items such as baked goods, produce, nuts, candy and small hardware. The bylaw would also not apply to wrapping of meat, flowers or dry-cleaned clothes.

The city was originally due to submit a bylaw for approval in early March after it passed through public hearing and consultation processes in 2018 and 2019.

The COVID-19 pandemic paused the project, with city staff only resuming their work after the province approved five similar bylaws in September which were submitted before the provincial state of emergency.

Provincial approval is expected to take between three and six months, with public education campaigns leading into a July 1, 2021 implementation.

alex.rawnsley@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @alexrawnsley