[Added 4-3-2018]
The City Council finds as follows:
(a)
The Council has a duty to protect the natural environment and the
health of its citizens and visitors; and
(b)
Single-use carryout bags have a harsh environmental impact on a local
and global scale, including greenhouse gas emissions, litter, harm
to wildlife and solid waste generation; and
(c)
Single-use bags, including but not limited to plastic- or cornstarch-based
bags, are a frequent source of litter and pollution, and it has been
estimated that on average, each American uses over 300 single-use
carryout bags per year; and
(d)
The use of single-use carryout bags has significant impacts on the
marine and land environment of all coastal communities including,
but not limited to, contributing to the potential death of fish, fowl,
and wildlife through ingestion and entanglement and altering marine
ecosystems by smothering plants; and
(e)
It is in the best interest of the citizens of the City of Belfast
to reduce the cost of City solid waste disposal at the taxpayer's
expense, and to protect the environment and natural resources by discouraging
the distribution and use of disposable, single-use carryout bags and
encouraging the use of reusable bags in stores, as defined in this
section; and
(f)
The City through its policies, programs and laws supports efforts
to reduce the amount of waste that must be disposed of by supporting
the state waste management hierarchy to reduce, reuse, recycle, compost
and landfill; and
(g)
Communities in Maine which have enacted similar ordinances have seen
a substantial increase in the use of reusable bags, which has become
the new normal in terms of the transportation of food and merchandise.
[Added 4-3-2018]
As used in this article the following terms have the following
meanings:
Any bag without handles used exclusively to carry produce,
meats, or other food items or merchandise within the store to the
point of sale inside a store or to prevent such items from coming
in direct contact with other purchased items.
A bag that meets all of the following criteria:
A bag provided at a store's or retail vendor's
check stand, cash register, point or sale or other point of departure
for purposes of transporting food or merchandise out of the location
or store. The term "single-use carryout bag" includes compostable
and biodegradable bags, but does not include paper bags, reusable
bags, produce bags or product bags as defined herein.
All retail vendors and establishments, including but not
limited to convenience stores, bars, restaurants, sellers of food,
drink, merchandise, and/or dry goods sold to the ultimate consumer
for direct use or consumption, and not for resale.
[Added 4-3-2018]
Except as provided in this section, no store shall provide a
single-use carryout bag to a customer at a checkout stand, cash register,
point-of-sale or other point of departure for the purpose of transporting
any goods or merchandise out of the establishment.
[Added 4-3-2018]
(a)
The City Manager or his/her designee(s) shall have the primary responsibility
for the enforcement of this article. If the City Manager or his/her
designee(s) determines that a violation of this article has occurred,
he/she shall issue a written warning notice to the store that the
violation has occurred and request compliance with this article. Subsequent
violations of this article shall be subject to the legal fees and
penalties set forth below. Each day of violation shall be deemed a
separate violation subject to the fines and attorney's fees as
described below.
(b)
Violations of this article shall be punishable by fines and reimbursement
of legal fees and costs as follows:
[Added 4-3-2018]
Nothing in this article shall be construed to prohibit customers
from using bags of any type that the customer brings into the store
for their own use or from carrying away from the store goods that
are not placed in a bag provided by the store.
[Added 4-3-2018]
If any part or provision of this article or the application
thereof to any person or circumstances is held invalid, the remainder
of the article, including the application of such part or provision
to other persons or circumstances, shall not be affected thereby and
shall continue in full force and effect. To this end, provisions in
this article are severable.
[Added 4-3-2018]
A store or retail vendor shall be exempt from the provisions
of this article, in an emergency situation, if so determined by the
City Manager to address an emergency for the immediate preservation
of the public health, safety or welfare.
[Added 4-3-2018]
The provisions of this article shall become effective on May
4, 2018.
