Plastic Bags

CITY

CITY

OF

June

24

To

Rick

Fosse

From

Jen Jordan

Re

Plastic grocery

IP8

CITY

1CJWA

D RA

E

IOWA CITY

Date

City

OF

D

V1

2009 Director of Public Works

Recycling

up bag follow

Council directed staff to

ban was necessary

Coordinator

Based

report back on

in June

grocery bags to determine if a wide non recyclers and state profit

regarding plastic

conversations with grocers

s opinion that a ban is not surrounding this topic it is staff continued needed education partnerships and litter abatement will Instead of reduced enhance the trends plastic bag use increased recycling and more organized litter

organizations

as

well

as the trends

at this time

up events pick

Positive trends Over the

recycles

past

six

months staff has discussed plastic bag

they

have seen in the

recycling

Keep Iowa Beautiful and the past year are encouraging

and the executive directors of

The trends that

use

Iowa

and bans with grocers

Recycling

Association

Reduced plastic grocery baq use The sales and use of totes is increasing across the state While it is difficult for stores to track exact numbers on plastic grocery bag use Hy Vee estimates that they have seen an estimated five to ten percent decrease in plastic bag use over Mart speculate that the number of plastic bags they use has the past year Fareway and Wal decreased since they have seen an increase in the number of totes sold and used 1

Some local stores have taken the initiative to

charge for bags For instance Aldi Food Stores plastic bags for many years Customers bring their heavy duty own totes bags or boxes for groceries and the manager of the Iowa City Aldi Food Stores brand plastic bags repeatedly until they are stated that they see customers reusing the Aldi worn past reuse In addition the New Pioneer Co 05 per bag op began charging customers 0 have been

on

Earth

charging 0 10

Day

2009

All

for

proceeds

are

being donated

2 Increase in plastic baq recycling rates

almost all local grocery stores offer

to the Crisis Center

Informal surveys and observations indicate that all

or

plastic bag recycling

Vee saw a Smith Hy s Director of Real Estate and Sustainability Hy Vee plastic bag recycling across the state in FY08 City Carton Recycling offers plastic bag recycling at their drop off facility and works with local stores to take the plastic bags the retailers collect through their plastic bag recycling programs An increase in plastic bag recycling locally mirrors a national trend Waste News recently reported that plastic bag and film recycling reached an all time high in 2006 and continues to increase

According

to Mike

25 increase in

April 2009 the four major bag manufacturers in the US announced a goal of using 40 recycled content by 2015 This will significantly increase the demand for plastic bag recycling and reduce the consumption of natural gas in bag making In

June

24 2009

Page

2

Next

steps

While the trends discussed above are

education will be

important

as

will

encouraging ongoing

working

efforts will be necessary

with local grocers to

support

and inform the

Public

public

about their programs 1

Public education City and ECICOG staff includes education about reuse including totes in all outreach programs offered to local schools civic groups and public libraries in the corridor On average the education programs reach about 3 000 students and residents per year

KIB received a Department of Natural Resources Solid Waste Program grant to study the views of the public across the state regarding this informed about Based on this information the public does not feel that they are well topic have in KIB to with the Iowa Grocers what stores work programs place plans recycling or to on a to a common the Association campaign provide message public about recycling as common in store lots to remind such shoppers to take signage parking grocery bags their totes into the store and education for store employees to encourage shoppers to purchase totes and remind shoppers to use them Keep

Iowa

Beautiful

Alternative

Locally

staff will work with local retailers and

City

Carton

Recycling

to advertise locations of

message will be incorporated into outreach plastic bag recycling drop stronger offs and advertising such as newspaper ads and outreach at local events A

reuse

2 Litter abatement While Johnson

strong

volunteer litter collection

The

County system

Highway program a Adopt

Most sections in Johnson

least twice

annually Utility organizes

that in 2009 to Iowa River The Aerohawks

Flying

Keep

Iowa Beautiful

we

have

a

Highways 218 1 and 6 as well as Interstate 80 County have been adopted and are picked up at

covers

and 380

The Stormwater

is not an affiliate of

numerous

creek

ups annually clean

and has extended

ups clean

Club has four

ups clean

on

IWV Road

annually

in

a

partnership

with the landfill The landfill

plans

to initiate an annual fall

up of Highway 218 clean

in 2009

Summary Staff does not feel that a ban is needed at this time Expanded education programs and retailers will more residents to use totes and recycle their with local partnerships encourage up activities will help residents see the problems that bags plastic bags Additional litter clean pose in the environment and further encourage them to use totes and recycle their plastic bags The With these initiatives the use of plastic bags is likely to continue its downward trend

purchase and use of totes over the past year

as

well

as

plastic bag recycling

is

likely

to increase

as we

have

seen