Westport, Connecticut Town Hall, Myrtle Avenue. Courtesy of Wikipedia
On September 2, 2008, the Town of Westport, Connecticut approved an ordinance to ban the use of plastic bags. Known as the “Retail Checkout Bags Ordinance”, the ordinance was approved at a Representative Town Meeting and became operative on March 19, 2009. The six month interim allowed retail establishments to use their inventory of plastic checkout bags.
The Town of Westport, with a population just over 26,000, is 47 miles north of New York City. Westport is a coastal town located on Long Island Sound in Fairfield County, Connecticut. (1) It is a very affluent community with a median household income of $147,391. (2) The town government consists of the three-member Board of Selectmen, a Representative Town Meeting (RTM), a Board of Finance, a Board of Education, a Planning and Zoning Commission, and many other commissions, boards, and committees.
The Retail Checkout Bags Ordinance has a multipurpose intent: improve the environment, promote reusable bags and ban plastic retail checkout bags. Within the ordinance, the term “checkout bag” is defined as “a carryout bag that is provided to a customer at the point of sale.”
Full text of the ordinance: Retail Checkout Bag Ordinance, Westport, Connecticut
Sources: (1) Wikipedia
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