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November 03, 2005
Paper, Plastic, or Politician?
If taxing umpires whose calls state legislators don't like wasn't enough for you, get a load of this:
San Francisco officials have struck an ambitious deal with large supermarket chains to reduce by 10 million the number of grocery bags used by shoppers by the end of next year.
Mayor Gavin Newsom is expected to announce the agreement at 3 p.m. at City Hall.
The deal, to be honored by Alberston's, Andronico's, Bell Markets, CalMart, Cala Foods, Foods Co., Mollie Stone's and Safeway, will permit the city's Department of the Environment to count grocery bag usage -- normally a closely held business secret for supermarkets. City officials are banking on better in-store recycling efforts and promotion of reusable bags to help reach the lofty reduction goal. . . .
Mayoral staffers credit the Department of the Environment -- which pushed to create a 17-cent bag tax -- with getting supermarket chains to agree to the deal. The agreement will preclude the city from pursuing such a fee until the deal expires next year. The companies also will pay $100,000 toward a public awareness campaign in San Francisco highlighting the conservation and recycling program. . . .
Newsom staffer Wade Crowfoot, who helped draft the agreement with the grocery chains, said a bag tax remains an option if the companies show less than good faith in their efforts to cut bag usage in San Francisco.
Yes, in the "land of the free," government can now tell supermarkets how many bags they can use.
Posted by Mike Tennant at November 3, 2005 09:36 AM
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