3212 Community Events Single-use plastic retail bags no longer distributed in Devon as of Jan. 1, 2020 Effective Jan. 1, 2020, single-use plastic retail bags will no longer be distributed at Devon retailers. Residents are encouraged to bring their reusable bags with them to shop prior to Jan. 1 to get a head start on this change in shopping experience. In early 2019, the Town started work on a single-use waste reduction strategy to identify ways that the Town can reduce single-use waste in the community. After meeting with local businesses earlier this year and consulting with the Town’s newly appointed Waste Reduction Task Force, Devon Council has now passed a Singe-Use Plastic Retail Bag Bylaw that will remove single-use plastic retail bags from distribution in Devon as of Jan. 1, 2020. “Plastics play an important role in our day-to-day lives, but the high level of redundant plastic-use combined with the changes to global recycling have created large challenges for everyone.” said Ray Ralph, Mayor for the Town of Devon. “Our first step towards addressing this is to explore ways to reduce single-use waste in our community.” What is a single-use plastic retail bag? A single-use plastic retail bag is a plastic bag less than 0.05 millimetres thick that is distributed by retail establishments. These bags are more commonly referred to as “checkout bags”. How to prepare for Jan. 1, 2020 The Town of Devon will be providing two reusable bags to each household that features designs from local artists as selected by the Art Association of Devon through a contest earlier this year. Next Steps The next steps towards reducing Devon’s single-use waste will be for the Town to continue its work with the Single-Use Waste Reduction Task Force to explore feasible ways of reducing other single-use waste in the Devon community. Learn more about Devon’s efforts to reduce single-use waste at devon.ca/singleuse. -30- For more information contact: Justin Janke Communications Coordinator Town of Devon P: 780-987-8302 E: JJanke@devon.ca Andy Tchir Environment and Sustainability Coordinator Town of Devon P: 780-987-8333 E: ATchir@devon.ca Share Print