Pittsburgh to delay plastic bag ban

A ban on single-use plastic bags in Pittsburgh will be delayed by several months, city officials said Thursday.

The bag ban, which was approved last April, was slated to go into effect on April 14. Mayor Ed Gainey’s office said the city will delay enforcing the measure until Oct. 14, “in order to help ensure a successful rollout of this landmark initiative.”

Businesses won’t need to post notices of the upcoming single-use plastic bag ban until 90 days before the new start date.

The legislation, which was introduced by Councilwoman Erika Strassburger, allows for exceptions for produce bags, meat packaging, pharmacy bags and bags used to wrap flowers or similar items. Garbage bags and pet waste bags also are exempt.

Shoppers instead will need to bring a reusable bag or a pay a 10-cent fee for a paper bag.

When council members passed the legislation nearly a year ago, they included a year delay on implementation to provide time to educate people about the measure, seek funding to provide reusable bags to retailers and residents and develop plans for enforcement.

Strassburger and other proponents of the measure said they hoped the reduction in plastic bags would improve the city’s recycling efforts, curb litter and help the environment.

In a press release from the mayor’s office, officials said the city is looking to add a requirement to the legislation that would order the city to launch and maintain a webpage dedicated to providing information on the new policy.

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Officials also are planning to direct the Department of Public Works to share lists of distributors for compliant paper bags and reusable bags, according to the mayor’s office.

City officials are creating a three-step sanctions framework that would allow inspectors to issue written warnings for initial violations of the new policy before moving to escalating fines.

Strassburger said she was supportive of the proposed enforcement mechanism, which came at the recommendation of the city’s law department, as well as the delay, which came at the request of the administration.

“I am supportive of this delay because it will mean the city will have the staff in place to adequately and properly implement and roll out this program and provide both residents and customers of businesses, and also the business owners themselves and others who are affected by this, the support and information they need to properly prepare for this implementation,” she said.

Strassburger said she anticipates this will be the only delay in the policy’s implementation.

“It is critical for the success of this major initiative that the city is prepared to best help businesses and consumers make the transition,” Gainey said in a statement. “This extra time will allow us to do the work to be able to enact this policy with proper guidance for everyone in order to make this as smooth as possible for all of us.”