May 28 - Boulder CO Heads in Direction of Single-Use Bag Fees
In the City of Boulder, Colorado, most will agree that plastic bags are a big problem. But whether to deal with them through a charge or outright ban is still being debated.
Earlier this month the Boulder City Council voted to work on a mandatory charge for both paper and plastic bags, with a possible plastic bag ban if the fee is not effective.
Alongside environmentalists advocating for a full ban on plastic bags was Western Disposal, a waste hauler tired of dealing with the expensive repairs to its equipment caused by plastic bag jams.
The ordinance details are still being worked out, including the amount of the bag charge. Council will revisit the issue in the next few months after the potential fee impacts have been studied.
Councilmembers remain open to the idea of a plastic bag ban, due to a concern that a bag charge would not change behavior in an affluent community such as Boulder.
According to the Denver Post, 120 million plastic bags are discarded in Boulder County each year.
See the list of local bag ordinances throughout the country.