Montreal urged to ban plastic shopping bags by 2018

Montreal should ban the use of plastic bags by Earth Day in 2018 in favour of reusable or recyclable bags, the city's environmental committee has recommended.

A meeting to adopt the recommendations on Tuesdaycamea few months after public consultations were held on the matter.

• Plastic bag ban public consultations begin in Montreal
• Montreal merchants say no to banning plastic bags

The 12 recommendations by the commission include:

• That city council ban plastic bags startingon April 22, 2018, in favour of reusable or recyclable bags.
• That exceptions be made for hygienic bags used to handle food,carry medication and dry cleaning.
• That the City of Montrealwork with the Quebec government to establish industrial norms to ensure new bags are recyclable.
• A communication plan to prepare residentsand businesses for the transition.
• Encourage the reduction of plastic water bottles, single-use plates and utensils.

Business group raises concern

The recommendations were criticized bythe Canadian Federation of Independent Business, which represents small and mid-sized companies.

The group said a ban couldcause consumers tobuy lessor nothing at all if they don't happento have a bag on them.

The federation also said that a normalplastic bags can be reused, and the onus ison the consumerto reuse rather than dispose of them.

The idea to ban single-use plastic bags was first put forward by Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre a year ago.

"Personally, I think we should ban them...but we have to consult properly so that all players in society can contribute fully," Coderre said back in November 2014.

Coderre said he would like to follow California's lead, where hundreds of cities in the state have plastic bag bylaws forbidding their use, including Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Large U.S. cities like Chicago, Seattle and Austin also have bans.

Quebecers using fewer plastic bags

The use of plastic bags has fallen dramatically in Quebecdue to public awareness campaigns as well as a five-cent charge brought in by retailers.

Quebecers now use roughly a billion bags a year, less than half compared to a decade ago.

Plastic bags are already banned in some smaller Quebec municipalities, namely Huntingdon and Deux-Montagnes.

• Quebecers cut plastic bag use in half
• To ban or not to ban: 6 facts about plastic bags

In Canada, Leaf Rapids, Man., became the first municipality to prohibit single-use plastic shopping bags.

Toronto tried to ban plastic bags on Jan. 1, 2013, but backed down after a public outcry and a legal challenge.