NEWS
Legislators target bill at plastic bags
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by Julia Bair
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Two Wisconsin legislators took a step in support of green living Wednesday with the introduction of a bill to ban supplying non-biodegradable plastic bags to consumers.
Sen. Bob Jauch, D-Poplar, and Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Madison, are sponsoring the bill aimed to reduce pollution caused by plastic bags and to increase the demand for Wisconsin farm goods.
The proposed bill would ban the use of plastic bags made from petroleum and would encourage the use of paper bags and biodegradable plastic bags made from agricultural products.
“Citizens and retailers are already eagerly looking for alternatives to plastic bags,” Jauch said in a statement. “This bill goes the next step by encouraging retailers and consumers alike to use viable alternatives.”
According to Pocan, biodegradable plastic bags can be made from corn and other vegetable-based products for the same price as paper bags. Retailers would have 36 months to phase out the use of non-biodegradable plastic bags.
“People like using plastic bags for groceries, so we’d like to provide an environmentally friendly option,” Pocan said. “Most people didn’t even realize there was a biodegradable option.”
Sen. Dale Schultz, R-Richland Center, a member of the Natural Resources Committee, said the bill was a bipartisan effort to help the environment and to reduce reliance on foreign petroleum used in making non-biodegradable plastic bags.
“There is plenty of evidence that these things cause various problems, [including] ingestion by different creatures,” Schultz added.
Although it has not yet been proposed, the Madison Commission on the Environment has toyed with the idea of banning plastic bags and bottles since January. According to Pocan, the idea has not yet caught fire because of its inclusion of plastic bottles in addition to bags.
However, John Murray, spokesperson for Assembly Speaker Mike Huebsch, R-West Salem, said members of the private sector would prefer to make the switch to non-biodegradable bags without a mandate.
But according to Jennifer Giegerich, Capitol liaison for the League of Conservation Voters, “History has proven that this has not been the case.”
“If that was the case, we’d already have made the switch,” she added.
Pocan said he hoped to create a demand for biodegradable plastic bags through the mandate that would result in lower prices for the product. Meanwhile, he said plastic bags made from petroleum would rise in price as the oil prices rise.
Madison City Council President Mike Verveer said he thinks the state ban on non-biodegradable plastic bags and the city ban on plastic bags and bottles will be taken up in due time, although the prospect of these bills passing before the session ends in March is slim.
According to Pocan, Huebsch has canceled many session days, resulting in a “do-nothing Legislature.”
Pocan added that he would like to see the bill pass before the end of the session so that it becomes a part of the public awareness for discussion and debate.
Anonymous (February 21, 2008 @ 5:28am):
Bob Jauch, out of Superior, Wisconsin... Interesting sponsor. Great to see!
I hadn't heard of the biodegradable option, only cloth/reusable. Good article, Julia.
Anonymous (February 21, 2008 @ 8:17am):
The Madison Commission on the Environment is not looking at banning plastic bottles in conjunction with plastic bags. These are two entirely separate issues that happened to be discussed at the same meeting. They are moving forward with investigating an educational campaign to get people to bring reusable bags to the store. There's currently NO discussion about banning plastic bottles.
Anonymous (March 4, 2008 @ 9:39am):
Here's the company who is leading the pack when it comes to Biodegradable plastic-like bags... www.diamantfilm.com
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