Supporters lose hope on plastic, paper bag fee

SEATTLE - Seattle voters' rejection of a 20-cent fee on plastic and paper bags represents a sound defeat for other efforts in U.S. cities to limit the use of the throwaway bags, plastics industry officials said Wednesday.

A referendum on an ordinance to charge the bag fee at grocery, drug and convenience stores was easily defeated in Tuesday's primary in this liberal city - whose voters are known for taxing themselves to pay for parks, libraries, affordable housing and other causes.

"If they can't do it there, they can't do anywhere," said Stephen Joseph, a San Francisco attorney with SavethePlasticBag.com, who has challenged several plastic bag bans in California.

The ordinance approved by city leaders was to start in January, but the plastics industry bankrolled a referendum to put the question to voters.

The Progressive Bag Affiliates, an arm of the American Chemistry Council, spent $1.4 million to overturn the ordinance, the largest contribution to a local ballot measure in recent history. Supporters raised about $93,000.

Heather Trim, a spokeswoman for the Seattle Green Bag campaign, said other cities will surely look to Seattle's outcome for cues on how to proceed.

But communities and citizens will also become better aware of the industry's influence and arm themselves appropriately, she said.

Supporters here are now considering an outright ban, Brady Montz, Seattle chairman for the Sierra Club and a spokesman for the pro-fee group, said Wednesday. He noted that San Francisco considered a fee before becoming the first city in the nation to ban plastic bags in 2007.

"We'll see far more cities going for a ban," he said. "That's probably the way the battle is going to shift."