BARRINGTON
— Barely a week into Rhode Island's first plastic bag ban, there’s no shortage
of opinions on the law from local businesses and shoppers.
Some
interpret the ban on plastic checkout bags as a win for the environment; others
cry government overreach.
“Unwanted
invasion of government,” said a Shaw’s customer, who declined to give his name,
as he walked briskly through the parking lot of the town’s main shopping
center.
John
Bergmark of Bristol said the switch to paper is a step toward reducing
society’s excessive reliance on disposable plastic. “I think it’s a good
beginning,” he said.
Although
none of the town’s retailers charge a fee for paper bags, Barako favors adding
a 5- or 10-cent charge on bags to hasten the public shift toward
sustainable bag use. “I think it’s wasteful to use a bag once and throw it
out,” he said.
Vickie
Olsen, co-owner of Miz Fibz Deli & Café, spoke against the ban during Town
Council hearings on the proposed law last year. She and husband Scott Olsen are
committed recyclers, but prefer to see consumers and innovation decide the
future of plastic bags. “Let the private sector do it. It’s much better than
the government,” she said.
Olsen
noted that paper bags also impose a significant expense on small businesses. A
box of 1,000 plastic grocery bags cost less than $20, she said. Paper bags cost
some $200 per 1,000.
George
Tamer, owner of Center Ace Hardware, said he’s “eating” the added cost of paper
bags. “I cannot in my right conscience charge 10 cents or a nickel for bags. It
doesn’t seem right to me.”
Tamer
supports the ban on plastic bags. He’s handed out nearly 2,000 reusable bags
during the past few months to prepare his shoppers for the switch. So far, he
said, only two customers needed an explanation about the bag ban. Otherwise, he
said, “I’ve had no problem with customers.”
Some
shoppers mentioned hearing of residents switching to grocery stores with
plastic bags in nearby East Providence and Seekonk, Mass., as a protest or
“bag-lash” against the ban and, specifically, the Shaw’s grocery store.
Shaw’s,
the town’s only supermarket, surprised many by announcing a
voluntary phase out of plastic bags in the midst of Town Council hearings on
the ban. Shaw’s spokesman Steve Sylven said customers expressed a preference
for paper bags with handles, but otherwise the store’s transition to paper and
reusable bas has been smooth.
CVS,
a mainstay in the town shopping plaza for some 30 years, said it would comply
with the bag ban as it has for similar bans across the country. Spokesman
Michael DeAngelis declined to detail the cost of switching to paper. A possible
statewide ban wouldn't be overtly opposed by CVS, he wrote in an e-mail. “We do not take public positions on bans of this
type. Our policy is to comply with all local laws and regulations.”
Town
Council President June Speakman said she’s not aware of any stores violating
the ban, nor heard any complaints from residents. At its Jan. 7 meeting, the
Town Council voted to have the Conservation Commission track and deliver
periodic reports on the impact of the bag ban.
The
ordinance expires in two years unless the council reinstates it. And with
other communities considering their own bag bans and an expected bill in the
General Assembly seeking a statewide ban there is sure to be much attention
paid to what happens in Barrington.