Plastic Industry to Fight Proposed BC Plastax

The recent publicity on the proposed Plastax has made it a controversial issue in the minds of many consumers. This debate is expected to intensify this October when municipal politicians in British Columbia vote on a proposed 25-cent tax on every plastic shopping bag in B.C.

The Canadian Plastics Industry Association (CPIA) is preparing to fight the proposal by launching a consumer information 'myth busting' campaign.

The tax is being initiated by several municipal Councillors, including Janice Harris of North Vancouver, Craig Speirs of Maple Ridge and Kamloops's Arjun Singh. These Councillors want the Union of B.C. Municipalities, at its meeting in October, to pass a motion calling on the province to levy a 25-cent bag tax to emulate Ireland, where a similar tax on plastic shopping bags was introduced in 2002.

B.C. has the most extensive retail bag take-back programs in Canada, with about 30 percent of all plastic shopping bags being recovered and recycled. In addition, about 50 percent are re-used to contain garbage.

(Source: Recycling Council of British Columbia in Sept. 2006 WasteWatch)

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