Town of Vail approves plastic bag ban

The Vail Town Council has given final approval to an ordinance that will incrementally ban the use of plastic bags within the town. A final vote was taken at the Town Council regular evening meeting on Tuesday, March 3.

The vote was 4-3 with Dave Chapin, Andy Daly, Ludwig Kurz and Margaret Rogers voting in favor of the ordinance. Those opposed were Dale Bugby, Jenn Bruno and Greg Moffet.

As approved, the “Kick the Bag Habit” program contains the following elements: 1) combination ban on plastic bags and a 10 cent fee on paper bags; 2) applicable to grocery stores of over 3,500 square feet in size in year one beginning Aug. 1, 2015 with a phase-in planned for all retail stores in year two; 3) plastic bag ban would be for carryout bags only; 4) fee collected would be designated to environmental education and waste reduction, a portion of which would be retained by grocery stores for administration for a limited time; and 5) implemented in combination with a robust education and messaging program.

The decision to include both a ban on plastic and a fee on paper is part of the town’s efforts to reduce the town’s total resource consumption. The ordinance is in alignment with the town’s stated value of environmental stewardship.