According to the Central News Agency, on November 27, 2019, the Vancouver City Council voted to ban plastic straws starting in April 2020 and to ban plastic bags starting on New Year's Day 2021. Vancouver is the first city in Canada to implement such a wide-ranging plastic ban.
These measures adopted by Vancouver will help reduce the use of plastic bags and other single-use plastic products. Montreal, another major Canadian city, also banned certain types of plastic bags in 2018.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced in June 2019 that he plans to ban certain single-use plastic products—such as straws, plastic bags, and plastic utensils—by early 2021. (People can use paper straws, paper shopping bags, non-woven fabric bags, and biodegradable tableware as alternatives to these plastic products.)
The Vancouver city government stated that plastic bags and straws each account for 3% of the city’s annual shoreline garbage. According to a study commissioned by the government in early 2019, nearly 90% of plastic products in Canada end up in landfills or leak into the natural environment.
CBC noted that after the plastic bag ban takes effect, businesses may offer paper bags as an alternative. In the first year, each paper bag will cost 15 cents , and thereafter the price will rise to 25 cents per bag .
