Mayor Greg Nickels and City Council President Richard Conlin have proposed a 20-cent “green fee” on all disposable shopping bags at the city’s grocery, drug and convenience stores. A recent city-sponsored report determined that both paper and plastic are harmful to the environment. The proposal also calls for a ban on foam containers in the food service industry.

UPDATE: Group opposing bag fees collects needed signatures: More than enough valid signatures have been collected by a group that opposes a new fee on paper and plastic bags in Seattle to keep the ordinance from going into effect in January as planned.

Instead, city voters will decide the fate of the disposable bag fee during an election next year.

Much of the signature-gathering effort was funded with $180,625 in contributions from the American Chemistry Council, a trade group representing plastics manufacturers, based in Arlington, Va.

The foam ban portion of the ordinace will still go into effect January 1, 2009.

To help businesses adapt to these proposed ordinances, Resource Venture has compiled a list of helpful resources:

• For an outline of the proposed green fee and foam ban, read the City of Seattle’s Overview and Transition Plan (PDF, 28 kb) .

• To find more information on the green fee and foam ban, please read the City of Seattle News Advisory, and the more detailed Executive Summary (PDF, 334 kb).

• The city has also published a list of frequently asked questions (PDF, 84 kb) which will be updated as new concerns arise.

• The foam ban, which will begin on Jan. 1, 2009, requires all food service businesses to switch from one-time-use, disposable plastic and plastic-coated paper food beverage containers and utensils to fully compostable and recyclable substitutes by Jul 1, 2010. 
• Not all compostable foodservice ware is accepted at the regional composting facility.  Cedar Grove Composting , the region’s largest composting company, puts all compostable foodservice ware through a rigorous testing process to ensure that it composts within a specified time period. To find out which products are approved by Cedar Grove Composting, visit their approved products site.
• For more information, dowload the Compostable Foodservice Ware Information (PDF, 21 kb)sheet.
• To read local news articles about the ban, visit the Seattle Post Intelligencer page, or the Seattle Times.
• June 24th: Grocery Industry: All Retailers Should Share New Bag Fee (PI)
• July 8th: Seattle May Impose Fee for Paper, Plastic Grocery Bags (Times)
• July 22nd: Grocery Bag Fee Headed to Full Council (PI)
• July 29th: City OKs 20-Cent Fee on Plastic and Paper Bags (PI)
• August 13th: Group Representing Bag Makers Leads Campaign Against 20-Cent Fee (PI)
• August 19th: Impending Bag Fee Brings Change to Grocery Check Stands (PI)
• August 25th: Effort to Overturn 20-cent Bag Tax Moves Forward  (PI) 
• September 15th: Group Opposing Bag Fee Collects Needed Signatures (PI) 

Invitation to the Public to Comment on the Proposed Foam Ban and Fee on Disposable Shopping Bags

The Seattle City Council Environment, Emergency Management and Utilities Committee will hear comments from the public on a proposal to ban certain uses of expanded polystyrene (EPS) and impose a 20 cent fee on disposable shopping bags at Seattle’s convenience, drug, and grocery stores. SPU proposes to use bag fee revenues to partially offset planned rate increases for the City’s recycling and waste disposal services in addition to education, outreach, and assistance to low-income families and small businesses.

Additional Resources 

Seattle Public Utilities Web site

Mayor Nickels Web Site

City Council Web Site

Please check back for updated information as it becomes available.