Baltimore County lawmakers work toward banning plastic bags
BALTIMORE -- If you live in Baltimore County, then you may need to start bringing your own bags when you go grocery shopping.
Baltimore County's lawmakers are proposing a law that would enforce a plastic bag ban.
County Councilman Izzy Patoka introduced a new bill to ban the use of single-use plastic bags in retail stores during Tuesday night's council meeting.
The Bring Your Own Bag Act would prohibit stores in Baltimore County from giving plastic bags to customers at the checkout counter
County Executive Johnny Olszewski already vocalized his support for the bill in a social media post. He noted that it would help prevent littering in county waterways and trees..
Environmental littering is something people like Towson resident Andrea Nugent are tired of seeing.
"Plastic bags everywhere and blowing in the wind outside and everything," Nuget said.
That is why she started bringing her own reusable bags to the stores a few years ago.
"There's no reason not to have a bag and bring it to the store," she said."It's not that big of a deal, and I think it would make a huge difference."
Baltimore City already has a similar ban in place. Towson resident Clark Riley says it was a matter of time before the county followed suit.
"That is inevitable," he said. "There are plenty of alternatives. My wife enforces a no plastic bags policy whenever she can."
The Bring Your Own Bag Act would also make retail stores charge at least 10 cents for paper and reusable carryout bags.
Towson resident Laurie Taylor Mitchell said that is a small price to pay.
"Overall, I think it's well worth the money to reduce the use of these bags," Mitchell said.
If it passes, the act will go into effect on November 1.
Until then, Nugent has a tip to help people get used to bringing their own bags.
"Put your wallet in there or something you wouldn't go into the store without and keep it in your car," Nugent said.