ConservingNow Community Change

After exploring many options to discourage citizens and retailers from using plastic bags, in 2002 the country of Ireland decided to charge all consumers a small amount of every plastic bag they used to bag their groceries.

Currently, the “Plastax” is 33 cents for a plastic bag. Considering the number of plastic bags a consumer uses to bag their purchases, 33 cents a bag can really add up.

Equally as important as cutting down on the actual number of plastic bags used each month, is the knock-on effect that the tax has had with retailers and other cities and countries. Within one year, the amount of plastic bags consumed in Ireland was reduced by 94%.

Additionally, something of a social stigma began to take hold regarding plastic bags. According to the New York Times, “Within a year, nearly everyone had bought reusable cloth bags, keeping them in offices and in the backs of cars. Plastic bags were not outlawed, but carrying them became socially unacceptable — on a par with wearing a fur coat or not cleaning up after one’s dog.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/02/world/europe/02bags.html?_r=1&em&ex=12...