YARMOUTH – Members of Cape Environmental Action (CEA) recently met with Yarmouth Selectmen in the hopes of convincing them to consider placing a plastic bag ban by-law on next spring’s Town Meeting warrant.
The proposed by-law would ban thin, disposable bags while exempting bags used for dry cleaning, produce, newspapers and other uses.
“There’s so much pollution impacting our waters and our land, whether it’s from our waste management processes and, or just pollution, with bags floating down the highway, that are impacting marine life, human life and then even the tourists coming here and not expecting to see that much trash” said Susan Starkey of CEA.
Paper bags or reusable cloth or thick plastic ones would be recommended to be used by the local businesses.
The by-law would mimic the current Barnstable by-law and would be in effect 12 months after the date of passage.
“Let’s get rid of these disposable bags that float around in the air and find other ways, and frankly we’re going to go back to the way our mothers and grandmothers carried groceries around, which was in bags that they would bring to the stores,” said John Reef of CEA.
If passed, Yarmouth would join Barnstable, Chatham, Falmouth, Harwich, Provincetown, Truro, Wellfleet, Dennis and Mashpee as towns on the Cape that have approved similar initiatives.
By JUSTIN SAUNDERS, CapeCod.com Newscenter
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