Canada's highest court won't hear Victoria's appeal over plastic bag ban

The country's top court has decided not to hearthe City of Victoria's appeal in its fight to ban single-use plastic bags, in the latest blow to the municipalityin a years-long battle over which governments havethe power to regulate sustainability issues.

The Supreme Court of Canada declined to hear Victoria's case in a decisionThursday morning. As is customary, the court did not givereasons for the ruling.

"While we are disappointed that the Supreme Court of Canada will not hear the case, there are other avenues for us to achieve our goals of eliminating plastic checkout bags and reducing waste in our community," Mayor Lisa Helps wrote in a statement released after the court's decision was posted.

The city's ban comes in the form of abylaw forbidding grocery stores from offering or selling plastic bags to shoppers. Stores couldstill offer paper bags or reusable bags for a cost, ifcustomers asked.Councillors first approved the bylaw in December 2017.

The Canadian Plastic Bag Associationfiled a challenge in B.C. Supreme Court within a year, claimingthe city went beyond its authority to enact the rule. The association said the city was required to have the bylaw approved at a provincial level before rolling it out.

The court rejected the association's argument, but the B.C. Appeal Court overturned thedecision onJuly 11, 2019. In handing the association its first victory, the appealcourt found the city's banwas based on environmental concerns which fallunder the jurisdiction of the province and the Ministry ofEnvironment.

Bylaw set aside

The bylaw hasn't been in effect since the summerruling, but the city said "most" local businesses in the provincial capital have been operating as though the ban is still activeanyway"atestament to the wide community support of the bylaw," Helps said Thursday.

Thestatement said the community's efforts have taken more than 17 million plastic bags out of landfills.

The mayor said the city hoped to appeal the "very restrictive" appeal court rulingwith the Supreme Court of Canada in order to "clarify a municipal government's power to regulate unsustainable business practices that negatively impact the community."

Appeals to the top courtare not automatic.The court only agrees to hear cases involving significant legal issues of national importance.

The city arguedthe precedent set by B.C.'s appeals courtcould potentially affect other municipal bylaws well beyond Victoria, across B.C. and in other provinces with similar municipal legislation.

The Canadian Plastic Bag Association is now known as the Canadian Plastics Industry Association. It has saidthe arguments for banning plastic bagsdon't take into account that plasticbags are often reused and use less energy and water to make thanan alternative like a cotton bag.

Craig Foster, a sustainability consultant speaking for the association, said Thursday'sruling was welcome news after months spent in court.

"I'm glad it's over," Foster said. "It really is a decision that says the province is the one who should be making these kinds of decisions."

The statement from the city did not specify its next steps. The mayor is expected to speak to reporters later Thursday.

At least 20 other B.C. municipalities movingto implement bans on plastic bagswill have been following the capital's example closely, using it as a case studywhile they draft their own legislation.

Many municipal governmentsare alsolooking to the province for leadership on the issue.

The provincial government is currently reviewing single-use plastics to come up with a potential provincewide ban. Ottawa hascommitted to banning such items across the country as early as 2021.