BALTIMORE (AP) — A Baltimore City Council committee has modified a proposed ban of plastic bags to focus on particularly thin plastic.
The Baltimore Sun reports the Judiciary Committee voted 4-2 Monday to amend the proposed ban to only apply to bags thinner than about two thousandths of an inch. The newspaper says the move upset bill sponsor Councilman Bill Henry and environmentalists, who say the bags are barely distinguishable from thinner grocery bags.
Retailers argue the thin bags are reusable. Henry says retailers could just continue to use plastic bags under the amended language, and the added thickness of permitted bags wouldn’t be enough to encourage their reuse.
Councilwomen Mary Pat Clarke and Shannon Sneed unsuccessfully requested the vote be delayed. Clarke said she hadn’t heard of the proposed change until Monday.
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Information from: The Baltimore Sun, http://www.baltimoresun.com
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