Mayor Greg Nickels and City Council President Richard Conlin have proposed a 20-cent “green fee” on all disposable shopping bags at the city’s grocery, drug and convenience stores. A recent city-sponsored report determined that both paper and plastic are harmful to the environment. The proposal also calls for a ban on foam containers in the food service industry.

If adopted by the City Council, the waste prevention measures would take effect Jan. 1, 2009.

To help businesses adapt to these proposed ordinances, Resource Venture has compiled a list of helpful resources:

• For an outline of the proposed green fee and foam ban, read the City of Seattle’s Overview and Transition Plan (PDF, 28 kb) .

• To find more information on the green fee and foam ban, please read the City of Seattle News Advisory, and the more detailed Executive Summary (PDF, 334 kb).

• The city has also published a list of frequently asked questions (PDF, 84 kb) which will be updated as new concerns arise.

• In addition to the green fee and foam ban which would begin on Jan. 1, 2009 if approved by the City Council, the proposal requires all food service businesses to switch from one-time-use, disposable plastic and plastic-coated paper food beverage containers and utensils to fully compostable and recyclable substitutes by Jul 1, 2010. 
• Not all compostable foodservice ware is accepted at the regional composting facility.  Cedar Grove Composting , the region’s largest composting company, puts all compostable foodservice ware through a rigorous testing process to ensure that it composts within a specified time period. To find out which products are approved by Cedar Grove Composting, please contact them at info@cgcompost.com.
• To read local news articles about the ban, visit the Seattle Post Intelligencer page, or the Seattle Times.

Additional Resources 

Seattle Public Utilities Web site

Mayor Nickels Web Site

City Council Web Site

Please check back for updated information as it becomes available.