By Jolene Ogle
Noosa Council will throw its weight behind the State Government’s push to ban all single-use plastic bags by July 2018.
Councillors discussed the proposed ban of plastic bags at Monday’s (16 January) general committee meeting where Councillor Joe Jurisevic, well-known for his love of the environment, said the legislation was “long overdue”.
“It’s a shame this will take until 2018 to implement. I know a number of people have pushed council to introduce a ban, but one of the things this will do is bring major shopping centres on board and major retailers that otherwise council could have bashed their head against a brick wall trying to implement (a ban),” he said.
In November 2016, the State Government released a discussion paper about the proposed ban and outlined the reasons for the ban and how the new legislation would impact retailers and consumers.
Bans are already in place in other Australian states, but Queensland would also include biodegradable bags in the legislation because “these bags still pose a risk to aquatic fauna such as turtles”. Thicker department store bags will be exempt, along with reusable bags and kitchen tidy bags.
The report said surveys in other regions showed households and retailers quickly adjusted to the ban of plastic bags and showed a high degree of support for the environmental objective of reducing plastic litter.
Speaking at Monday’s general committee meeting, Mayor Tony Wellington said he was pleased with the legislation as council wouldn’t have been able to implement such a ban.
“For council to have carried out (a ban) would have been at significant cost to the community. This is something that is not understood. It’s not as though we can just tick a box and no longer are plastic bags being used,” he said.
“In actual fact it would have chewed up massive staff resources in terms of not just negotiating with retailers but also implementing and then policing any such local ban.
“Much better that it comes from the state. It saves our ratepayers money and we end up with the same result.”
Council is expected to ratify the decision to support the proposed ban on plastic bags and submit a letter stating their support to Department of Environment and Heritage Protection during the public consultation period at Thursday’s ordinary council meeting.
Public consultation on the proposed ban is now open until 5pm Monday 27 February. Anyone interested in taking part can complete the online survey at www.getinvolved.qld.gov.au, email a written submission to waste.paper@ehp.qld.gov.au or mail a submission to the Department of Environment and Heritage Protection, ATTN: Waste Policy and Legislation, GPO Box 2454, Brisbane QLD 4001.
The consultation questions are;
What implementation issues should the government take into consideration when introducing the ban?
Do you think that 1 July 2018 allows enough time for consumers and retailers to transition to plastic bag alternatives? Why/why not?
Do you agree that biodegradable bags should be included in a ban? Why/why not?
Do you support the Queensland Government working with other states and territories to encourage industry to reduce the number of heavier-weight plastic department store bags? Why/why not?
What else can be done by the Queensland Government to address plastic pollution?
