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Commerce committee asks staff to draft tightened plastic-bag ordinance language
Summary
Following student and Watershed Council concerns, the committee agreed to ask staff to revise the borough’s plastic-bag ordinance to close a 'reusable' loophole and to define acceptable reusable bags (example: handles, >4 mil plastic, cloth or machine-washable), while weighing business and litter-control concerns.
The Haines Borough Commerce Committee on March 26 directed staff to draft clarified language for the borough’s plastic-bag ordinance after public comment from the mayor, students and residents flagged inconsistent enforcement.
Mayor Tom said he received constituent concern and referenced testimony from the Watershed Council and students who find hundreds of plastic bags on area beaches each year. He suggested removing ambiguous wording such as "single-use" or the phrase "reusable" that some vendors are using to justify distributing thin shopping bags. "The simple solution would be just getting rid of the word reusable," he said, suggesting alternatively requiring that provided bags be compostable.
Committee members discussed a range of trade-offs. Hans warned that removing lightweight plastic bags could remove a commonly used secondary container for loose trash and food containers, increasing litter if substitutes are not convenient. Several members pointed out environmental trade-offs — including the higher embodied fossil-fuel content in some paper bags and that some "compostable" plastics require industrial composting conditions not available locally.
The committee coalesced around tightening the ordinance by prohibiting single-use, nonreusable plastic shopping bags and by adding a clear definition of "reusable bag" — for example, a bag with handles designed for multiple reuse and made of thicker plastic (>4 mil), cloth or machine-washable fabric. Barbara Nettleton proposed local collection or reuse programs for thin bags as an adjunct to regulation.
The committee requested staff prepare draft ordinance language that: removes the loophole that has allowed thin plastic bags to remain in circulation; specifies acceptable materials or thickness for reusable bags; reviews exceptions in chapter 8 for consistency; and circulates the proposed revision for Commerce Committee and later Assembly hearings. The draft language will be provided to members by email for review before being posted to the public record.
