Many jurisdictions (cities, states and countries) have enacted fees or bans on various forms of plastic. Bans on single use plastic bags and plastic water bottles are common. StopPlastics has prepared a list of jurisdictions with bans or fees and updates it on a regular basis.

EUROPE, ENGLAND, Girton, Ban
Plastic bags are banned in Girton. Environmental concern was a major motivation behind the ban and shoppers are encouraged to use reusable shopping bags instead.

 

EUROPE, ENGLAND, Henfield, Ban
In 2008 the Sussex Village of Henfield started a voluntary ban of plastic bags. Local retailers agreed to stop using disposable plastic bags in favor of environmentally friendly reusable bags instead.

 

EUROPE, ENGLAND, Kew Gardens, Ban
The venue in west London will stop handing out plastic bags to shoppers and give them paper carriers instead. The measures will start from 1 July and will also affect Wakehurst Place in West Sussex. The move follows a campaign by traders around Kew Gardens Station to make the area a plastic bag free zone amid concerns for the environment.

 

EUROPE, ENGLAND, Lymm, Pending Ban
Low Carbon Lymm (LCL), a grassroots organization, is working to ban plastic bags in their community. To reach this goal the LCL has partnered with other organizations, such as the Lymm Youth Club to create and hand out reusable bags. The game plan is to distribute enough reusable bags and to get residents in the habit of using their reusable bags that plastic bags will no longer be needed.

 

EUROPE, ENGLAND, Modbury, Ban
This town made it a faux pas to carry plastic bags

 

EUROPE, ENGLAND, Overton, Ban
In 2007 retailers in Overton agreed to start handing out biodegradable bags in place of disposable shopping bags in an effort to help the environment and limit waste. The bag ban is voluntary on the part of the businesses and shoppers are encouraged to bring their own reusable bags.

 

EUROPE, ENGLAND, Tisbury, Ban
Anyone who has strayed onto the High Street bagless can purchase one of the reusable cloth bags supplied by Wiltshire Wildlife Trust for £1.25 from any of the 16 outlets in town, which support the scheme.

 

EUROPE, FRANCE, Country-wide, Ban
From July 1st, 2016 onward, single use plastic bags will be banned at our stores cash desks. This will concern light plastic bags of a thickness under 50 micrometers, free or paid, in all stores: “specialty food stores (bakeries, butcher shops, etc.), small grocery stores, large grocery stores (hypermarkets, supermarkets), specialized non-food stores (petrol stations, drugstores), frozen food chains, indoor and outdoor markets, etc.”

 

EUROPE, GERMANY, Country-wide, Fee
All stores in Germany that provide plastic bags must pay a recycling tax

 

EUROPE, GREECE, Country-wide, Fee
A plastic bag charge will be introduced on 1 January 2018. Bags will cost 3 cents each, which will then increase to 7 cents on 1 January 2019.

 

EUROPE, IRELAND, Country-wide, Fee
One of the most well-known bag measures is Ireland’s national bag tax, adopted in 2002. It was the first to charge consumers directly, starting at a rate of 15 euro cents (20ȼ) per bag. Within five months of the measure's introduction, bag usage fell by over 90 percent. Litter was greatly reduced as well. Over the years, bag use started to creep up, however, so in 2007 the charge was increased to 22 euro cents, and in 2011 the law was amended with the aim of keeping annual bag use at or below 21 bags per person. Frank Convery of University College Dublin calls Ireland’s plastic bag levy “the most popular tax in Europe” and believes that it would be politically damaging to remove it.

 

EUROPE, ITALY, Country-wide, Ban
Stefania Prestigiacomo, the environment minister, has said there is no going back on the government's decision: 'Sustainability is made of little changes to our lifestyle that don't cost us anything and can save the planet.'

 

EUROPE, MACEDONIA, Country-wide, Fee
Starting in 2009, stores were barred from giving out free plastic bags. Customers reportedly pay 1 denar (2ȼ) for a bag.

 

EUROPE, MOLDOVA, Country-wide, Ban
The Moldovan parliament has passed legislation banning plastic bags. It came into force for larger retailers in 2017, and is scheduled to come into force for medium sized retailers on 1 January 2018 and for small retailers in 2020

 

EUROPE, NETHERLANDS, Country-wide, Fee
The Netherlands implemented a comprehensive ban on free plastic shopping bags on January 1, 2016. The ban has a small number of exemptions for unpacked food products which are exposed to possible contamination, such as fresh fruit. The target price for a plastic bag is €0.25.

 

EUROPE, SCOTLAND, Country-wide, Fee
A five pence minimum charge for single-use carrier bags came into force in SCOTLAND on 20 October 2014. The proceeds of the charge can be used by the retailers as they see fit. VAT will be collected by the government on every bag sold. The charge applies to bags of all materials, including those which are biodegradable. Bags for drugs, aquatic animals or containing goods bought on board a ship, train, aircraft, coach or bus will be exempt from the charge.

 

EUROPE, SCOTLAND, Selkirk, Ban
In 2008 many of the retailers in Selkirk, 96 percent of the retailers to be exact, decided to stop using and handing out disposable plastic bags. This campaign to end the use of plastic bags also included handing out one reusable bag to every resident in the town to help people adjust to life without plastic bags. Stores that did not initially agree to ban plastic bags eventually agreed to stop using disposable plastic bags once their inventory ran out.

 

EUROPE, SPAIN, Country-Wide, Fee
Through a voluntary agreement among Catalonia’s Waste Agency, regional and national business groups, plastic bag manufacturers, food distributors, and supermarkets, single-use plastic bag consumption in the region dropped by more than 40 percent between 2007 and 2011. Annual supermarket plastic bag use dropped by 1 billion units in that time, an impressive 87 percent decline. Stores began charging customers in the Andalucía region 5 euro cents (7ȼ) for each plastic bag in 2011. Spain had planned to phase out plastic bags completely by 2018, but this effort is on hold as Spain resolves issues raised by the European Commission

 

EUROPE, SWITZERLAND, Country-Wide, Pending Ban
Switzerland’s Parliament approved a motion banning single-use plastic shopping bags and now the only step left is for the government to implement the ban. The Swiss had an excellent waste management system in place, but completely banning plastic bags will further help eliminate the waste stream. Green '

 

EUROPE, WALES, Country-Wide, Fee
WALES introduced a legal minimum charge of 5 pence for almost all single use bags in October 2011. Paper and biodegradable bags are included in the charge as well as plastic bags, with only a few specific exemptions - such as for unpackaged food or medicine supplied on an NHS prescription. VAT raised from the charge is collected by the government. Retailers are asked to pass the rest of the proceeds on to charities.[37] July 2012 statistics released by the Welsh Government suggested that carrier bag use in WALES had reduced since the introduction of the charge.

 

EUROPE, WALES, Llandysilio, Ban
In 2007 the Welsh town of Llandysilio banned single use plastic bags from being given out at all shops, including the post office.

 

NORTH AMERICA, CANADA, Brossard, Quebec, Ban
The vote passed unanimously, with city councillors saying it was an ecological move. The Canadian Plastic Bags Association had voiced its opposition, claiming Brossard hadn't properly consulted its citizens or merchants.

 

NORTH AMERICA, CANADA, Deux-Montagnes, Québec, Ban

 

NORTH AMERICA, CANADA, Fort McMurray, Alberta, Ban
After being handed a 2,300-name petition, the regional council voted unanimously in 2010 to ban the single-use plastic bag. Read more: http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Fort+McMurray+life+goes+after+plastic+bags/6747642/story.html#ixzz3fFIVhzyI

 

NORTH AMERICA, CANADA, Huntington, Quebec, Ban
Plastic bag ban including bags used for newspapers and flyers

 

NORTH AMERICA, CANADA, Iqaluit, Nunavut, Ban
Single use plastic bags have been banned from Iqaluit stores. Environmental concerns along with waste management were primary factors behind this ban which has garnered a lot of public support.

 

NORTH AMERICA, CANADA, Leaf Rapids, Manitoba, Ban
The town initially implemented a three-cent levy on plastic bags but was then approached by Bring Your Own Bag with the suggestion that the community go plastic bag-free.

 

NORTH AMERICA, CANADA, Montreal, Pending ban
instead with an outright ban to begin January 1, 2013. But in November 2012, the Council abandoned the bag ban following lawsuits from retailers and the plastics industry. Ban is scheduled for Jun 1 2018.

 

NORTH AMERICA, CANADA, Nain, Newfoundland & Labrador, Ban
In July 2009 the local Inuit community government voted to ban plastic bags. This community of roughly 1,200 was using more than 100,000 plastic shopping bags each year. Many shoppers had already made the switch to reusable bags, so the local government felt the ban was a logical choice. To help get everyone started a local grocery store donated two reusable bags to every household in the community.

 

NORTH AMERICA, CANADA, Snow Lake, Manitoba, Ban
. The development plan aims to ensure their community’s long-term sustainability, by making it a great place to live, regardless of future booms or busts.

 

NORTH AMERICA, CANADA, Thompson, Manitoba, Ban
They are proud to say that Thompson is taking the lead on this,' Evenson said. In 2007, the town of Leaf Rapids was the first in Manitoba to pass a similar law. The community of Snow Lake followed suit on Jan. 1.

 

NORTH AMERICA, CANADA, Wood Buffalo Regional Municipality, Alberta, Ban
On September 1, 2010, the single-use shopping bag bylaw came into effect. This bylaw eliminates the use of single-use shopping bags in the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo.

 

NORTH AMERICA, USA, Alameda County, California, Ban
Plastic bag ban; 10 cent charge for paper bags To assess changes in bag purchasing activities, the ACWMA staff conducted visual observations at 69 affected retail stores before and after the ordinance went into effect. Their data shows that these stores purchased 85 percent (40 million) fewer bags in 2013, which the agency estimates translates to a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions similar to what would be generated by 113 passenger cars in one year.

 

NORTH AMERICA, USA, Albany, California, Ban
Plastic bag ban; 10 cent charge for paper bags.

 

NORTH AMERICA, USA, American Samoa, Ban
As of February 23, 2011 all wholesale and retail stores in American Samoa are forbidden from handing out disposable plastic bags. Shoppers are encouraged to use biodegradable/compostable bags or reusable grocery bags.

 

NORTH AMERICA, USA, Arroyo Grande, California, Ban
The San Luis Obispo County Integrated Waste Management Authority adopted a disposable plastic bag ban on January of 2012. The law also places a 10-cent fee on paper bags. The ban became effective on October 1, 2012.

 

NORTH AMERICA, USA, Aspen, Colorado, Ban
The Aspen City Council has voted to ban plastic bags from the Colorado mountain resort town's two grocery stores and place a 20-cent fee on paper bags.

 

NORTH AMERICA, USA, Atascadero, California, Ban
Starting October 1, 2012 single-use plastic bags are prohibited in Atascadero as part of a ban that covers the entire county.

 

NORTH AMERICA, USA, Austin, Texas, Ban
On March 1, 2013 disposable bags will be banned in Austin, Texas. Environmental concerns are the primary reason for the ban and City officials felt charging a fee and encouraging recycling were not effective enough solutions. The ban targets limited use bags in an effort to encourage reusable shopping bag use. The City of Austin hopes to go zero waste by 2040.

 

NORTH AMERICA, USA, Barrington, Rhode Island, Ban
In October 2012 Barrington’s Town Council voted 4-1 to ban disposable plastic bags from both stores and restaurants and imposed a 5-cent fee to be charged on each recyclable paper bag handed out. The ban goes into action on January 1, 2013 and is the first plastic bag ban for the state of Rhode Island.

 

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