Saanich Council wants to get tough on single use plastic shopping bags.
On Monday night council approved a plan to explore the Capital Region's model bylaw, which would force stores to charge for the bags. It's not a done deal yet, the council vote simply moved the issue on to further committee discussion before a final decision is made.
The motion passed unanimously with several councilors voicing their support, including Mayor Richard Atwell, "this is very good that we're moving in this direction and we're going to have to work with the stores and other stakeholders to figure out how we can move this forward incrementally."
Councillor Susan Brice brought the motion forward and spoke about why she wants to work with the Capital Regional District's template, "it actually came to the CRD because many communities around the region are talking about the potential for a single use plastic bag ban. It seemed, to the CRD, there was value in having a model bylaw so that, as much as possible, there would be some commonality around the region."
The CRD's model bylaw bans stores from offering the bags free of charge but does not specify a price and also lists exemptions.