As plastic bag fees move closer to a reality, some actually believe it to be a step closer to the end of the plastic bag.
Some stores in Toronto recently started charging five cents per disposable plastic bag as a pilot project. The idea is the move is something that will likely roll across the land as time goes by. The rhetoric is that it is a bold move to keep billions of bags out of landfills and it is the next step in an increasingly widespread battle against the bag. Other communities, such as Leaf Rapids, Manitoba and San Francisco, have already banned plastic bags.
But will charging fees actually make a difference?
For the person in the checkout line, there will be a bit of grumbling as he or she shells out more money to take the groceries home. The whole idea comes across as simply another tax on consumers once they get to the checkout counter. The price of plastic bags is already included as part of the grocery chain’s business plan, so any additional fee goes directly to the company. What happens to that money after that is anyone’s guess.
Much has been said on the issue that some of the funds raised will be donated to the World Wildlife Fund and that any additional money (if any) would be reinvested to lower prices. But the simple fact is, it is an extra cost to consumers, because the grocery store has already included the cost of bags in its business budget.
Now it just comes across as a large corporation that has its own costs covered, making a few extra dollars by forcing consumers to “go green.”
As it stands, customers are already paying for the company’s plastic bags at the checkout counter – whether they use them or not. Reducing plastic bag use is a laudable goal, but charging twice for them is not.
