After being told they couldn’t charge for single use plastic bags, Chestertown is trying a new tactic – banning them.
At the Monday night Mayor and Council meeting, Mayor Margo Bailey proposed banning single use plastic bags. Stores would have the option of providing 100 percent degradable bags or paper bags made from 100 percent post consumer recyclable materials. The ban would not include the small vegetable bags used at grocery stores.
“The state said we can ban anything we want to, but we can’t put a fee on anything,” she said.
Councilwoman Mabel Mumfort-Pautz said that while she liked the idea she was concerned about the impact it would have on local businesses.
“I’m going to tell you something whether you like it or not. We’re losing customers big time because it’s so easy for them to travel over the line to Delaware … we need to ask the stores what kind of time line they need” to adjust to the change.
Councilman Gibson Anthony suggested that area businesses could form a co-op to try to buy bags at a discount rate.
Bailey said she would talk to the Downtown Chestertown Association about the possible ban and would also research similar ordinances in other states.
bill harrow says
This proposal will never work. Is chestertown going to ban plastic sandwich bags and such also? I mean what will the crack dealers use to bag up their crack with then there is no more plastic bags around?? But I guess we should make sure that a few more plastic bags arent thrown away and dumped before we focus on drug dealers. good call..good call
Doneitall says
What are single use plastic bags? Any I get from Acme or SuperFresh end up doing double/triple duty as trash bags, lunch bags, recycle storage… What is this supposed to accomplish?
Gren Whitman says
A public municipality prohibiting private enterprises from using plastic bags?
Sounds like creeping socialism to me!
Rah! Rah! Rah!
Let’s hear it for creeping socialism!
Jimbo says
If you want to see a real and present danger to the local environment, then just amble on down to Chestertown Marina after a good gullywasher and observe what spews into the Chester from the big old drainpipe lurking below our fair town – makes plastic bags look like magnolia blooms..
Billie Beck says
Banning plastic bags is one of the dumbest ideas yet. I, too, find many good uses for those bags around the house. I honestly think the Mayor could find something more productive to do with her time then worry with plastic bags. Maybe she doesn’t have to count her pennies carefully or something as it seems she isn’t going to be happy till she’s added another cost to shopping that the average joe just doesn’t need. All we hear is Shop Chestertown, well, keep it up Mayor and you won’t have to worry about crowded stores here in town when you go shopping. You really need to ride “all” the way around town and count all the empy store fronts as well as taking a gander at the awful looking place that was built where the Black-eyed Susan was. Maybe your time would be better used trying to do something about that.