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Simple solutions for a more sustainable Saanich: Ban the bag

Letter to the editor: Ban plastic bags
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The letter writer wants Saanich to follow the City of Victoria and work towards banning single-use plastic bags. Owen Parish/Flickr Creative Commons

Plastic bags have serious environmental consequences on our coasts, oceans and local wildlife. That’s why Madrona Farm stopping using plastic bags back in 2004.

Recently, Synergy Enterprises, Surfrider Vancouver Island and other community business leaders including MEC and Whole Foods put this issue on the regional agenda with their screening of Bag It - a documentary designed to help educate the public about the consequences of single bag use on our environment, wildlife and oceans.

Let’s rally support for a CRD bylaw banning plastic bags.

We are lucky to live on the coast of B.C. and the Salish Sea, globally renowned for its marine diversity. However, this is also the location of the Federally listed and critically endangered habitat of the southern resident killer whale and many other important species. We have a moral obligation to protect these species.

Following suit with this responsibility and in keeping with Saanich’s impressive record of award winning environmental protection and sustainability, I am calling on the Saanich Council to adopt the CRD model by-law as soon as possible to show regional leadership and help pioneer the elimination of single-use plastic bags as part of a broader zero-waste and sustainability agenda.

There are many options out there. Lets turn our commitment to sustainability into real action in the council chamber.

Nathalie Chambers

Saanich