Green tax for plastic bags?

Jul 19 2005 By Helen Logan Evening Gazette

Something that caught my eye during a recent trip to Dublin was most shoppers walking around with their purchases in paper carrier bags.

At first it did not click with me why this was - but then at one shop I was asked if I wanted a bag.

Without thinking I said 'yes'.

It turned out to be a plastic one and I was charged 10p for the privilege of having it.

Then it all came back to me that in 2002 Ireland had decided to make people pay for their littering by requiring shoppers to cough up 10p for every plastic bag they used.

Apparently at that time around 1.2bn plastic bags were used each year in Ireland - or 325 per person.

A lot ended up littering the streets and green campaigners argued that such bags could take up to 100 years to break down at rubbish tips.

Within five months of the levy's introduction, it was reported that the country's use of non-recyclable bags was cut by more than a billion, earning £2.25m for the Dublin exchequer, which was to be spent on environmental protection projects.

Many of us pick up and fill loads of plastic carriers when doing the weekly supermarket shop, without a second thought.

Imposing such a tax seems an easy way of cutting down on this type of consumption.

People can either bring their own bags or at least be encouraged to re-use the plastic ones if they have had to pay for them.

But I did wonder whether such a levy meant additional paperwork and yet another bureaucratic burden for businesses in the retail trade.

Another thing to consider is how sturdy the paper bags are.

It was sunny while I was in Dublin but what if there was a heavy downpour - would the bags disintegrate and the clothes, food or other goods spill all over the pavement?