Business officials said a proposed ban on plastic checkout bags in Annapolis was going too far in combating pollution.
“Behavior is the culprit here, not the plastic bag,” Melvin Thompson, spokesman for the Maryland Restaurant Association, said at a City Council public hearing Monday that was packed with residents, environmentalists and business representatives late into the evening.
“This bill is like saying outlaw cars because they speed,” said Berry Scher, a spokesman for Giant Food Inc., who said people are the ones responsible for litter, not plastic bags.
He, along with the Maryland Retailers Association, American Chemistry Council and Progressive Bag Alliance, opposed the ban and advocated for providing more recycling bins, enforcing litter laws and educating residents on recycling.
The bill, proposed by Alderman Sam Shropshire, D-Ward 7, would require Annapolis retailers, and possibly restaurants, to use recycled paper bags or reusable bags. The bill proposes a $500 penalty for using plastic bags.
Benefits at a cost
The difference in cost between plastic bags and paper and reusable bags was another argument used against the proposed ban.
“One grocery store would have to increase its gross income by $600,000 to pay for the cost difference, which would fall to the consumer,” said Jeff Zellmer, Maryland Retailers Association spokesman.
Plastic bags cost about 2.5 cents, paper bags about 5 cents, and reusable bags, such as those made of cloth or mesh, sell for about $3.50, Scher said.
If forced to use recycled paper bags, grocery stores would have to raise prices, he said.
Consumers also prefer plastic bags, and 95 percent choose them over paper bags when asked, Safeway spokesman Greg Ten Eyck said.
“This bill is un-American and anti-consumer. It takes away the consumer?s freedom of choice,” Ten Eyck said.
?Annapolis can be a leader?
Environmentalists from Maryland, Washington and Virginia called on the council to be the first in the nation to ban plastic bags, which theysaid would save marine animals from consuming plastic and reduce trash in the Chesapeake Bay.
“Except for what has been incinerated, all plastic produced in the past 60 years still exists,” said Alexandra Cousteau, granddaughter of oceanographer Jacques Cousteau.
“When a turtle dies and decomposes, the plastic inside of it still exists and can harm more marine animals,” she said.
Environmentalists said educating residents and providing more recycling receptacles would not be enough to alter behavior.
“Annapolis can be a leader,” said Will Bay, president of the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, a nonprofit advocate for protecting the Bay.
“We?ll be better off for this.”
IF YOU GO
» WHAT: Annapolis City Council vote on proposed plastic bag ban
» WHEN: 7:30 p.m. Sept. 10
» WHERE: 160 Duke of Gloucester St., Annapolis
