By Bill Trotter, BDN Staff Bangor Daily News news story Southwest Harbor is the latest town in Maine to adopt a ban on the distribution of single-use plastic bags by local retailers. The Mount Desert Island town held a special town meeting on Tuesday, a week after the statewide midterm elections, to consider whether to Read More
bag ordinances
Natural Resources Council of Maine Supports Bag and Polystyrene Bans
By Christine Adamowicz Camden Herald op-ed For decades, the Natural Resources Council of Maine has been working with communities and lawmakers to reduce plastic waste and pollution in our environment. Nov. 6, Camden voters will consider two town ordinances we wholeheartedly support: one would ban single-use plastic bags (placing a 10-cent fee on single-use paper Read More
Waterville Council to Consider Overriding Mayor’s Veto on Plastic Bag Referendum
by Amy Calder, Staff Writer Central Maine Newspapers news story WATERVILLE — At least three out of six city councilors say they will vote Tuesday to override Mayor Nick Isgro’s veto of a vote the council took earlier this month to place on the November ballot a request to enact a plastic bag ordinance that Read More
Plastic Bag Bans Signal Imminent Shift Away from Convenience Plastics
People everywhere are talking about plastic pollution more than ever. Researchers all over the world are studying the unnerving prevalence of plastic in the environment and documenting its devastating impacts on our ecosystems—and their findings are startling. You may have heard the terrifying estimate that plastic will outweigh fish in the ocean by 2050; or Read More
Manchester Votes to Ban Plastic Bags in Retail Stores
The vote appears to make Manchester the first capital-area municipality to ban single-use plastic bags in local stores. By Keith Edwards, Staff Writer Central Maine Newspapers news story MANCHESTER — Residents agreed Tuesday in secret-ballot voting to ban plastic bags in retail stores in town. The vote appears to make Manchester the first capital-area municipality Read More
July 14, 2018: “Bag It” Movie Screening, Bethel
Have you ever thought about how much plastic our society consumes? Plastic bags, straws, food wrappers, cups, utensils, and other “disposable” single-use plastics made from oil are filling our landfills and polluting our oceans. How can we all take steps in our own lives to reduce our plastic consumption? This epidemic is the focus of Read More
Steamrolling Forward: Multiple Maine Towns Take Steps to Reduce Plastic Pollution
You may not have noticed amid all the hubbub around national issues and politics, but some other pretty important votes took place in Maine on, or near, this past Election Day. Multiple towns took important steps to help create more sustainable communities through the elimination or reduction of plastic pollution. And that is good news! Read More
Why Support a Reusable Bag Ordinance?
Reusable bags make sense. Reusable bags are stronger than disposable ones, break less often, and can help you make fewer trips into the house with your groceries. Most grocery items are already packaged to prevent spills or leaks, but you can launder your reusable bags if needed. There are so many problems with single-use bags, Read More
Plastic Bag Bans and Fees Catching on in Maine
Portland’s ordinance went into effect on April 15, and other communities are poised to follow. By Mary Pols, Staff Writer Portland Press Herald news story In the six months since Portland passed an ordinance calling for most food retailers to charge a nickel for each single-use plastic or paper bag, reusable bags have gotten extremely Read More
