Washington's single-use plastic bag ban to go into effect Oct. 1. Here's what you need to know
Don't forget your reusable grocery bags in the car: Washington will enact its long-awaited plastic bag ban starting this Friday, Oct. 1.
The statewide ban on single-use plastic bags was passed in the 2020 legislative session and signed into law by Gov. Jay Inslee later in the year. Many cities in the state had already banned the use of such bags, including Seattle, Edmonds and Tacoma. Despite the local bans, Washington residents still use 2 billion single-use plastic bags each year.
While the ban was originally scheduled to go into effect at the beginning of 2021, the implementation was later delayed by Inslee amid the COVID-19 state of emergency. Inslee cited paper bag supply issues due to increased demand for takeout and delivery and the fact that many retailers asked customers not to bring reusable bags from home as cause for the delay.
However, the Washington Department of Ecology announced earlier in the summer that the ban would go into effect starting in October. Under the new single-use plastic bag ban, shoppers will now be charged a fee of 8 cents for acceptable bags which include thicker, reusable plastic bags with higher post-consumer recycled content and paper carryout bags.
https://www.seattlepi.com/local/seattlenews/article/washington-state-plastic-bag-ban-starts-oct-1-2021-16497001.php
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