Tofino and Ucluelet become 1st B.C. municipalities to ban plastic straws, single-use bags

On June 8, Tofino and Ucluelet became the first two municipalities in B.C. to ban both plastic straws and single-use plasticbags.

The bancame into effect just two days beforePrime Minister Justin Trudeau announced a nationwide ban on single-use plastics which could include bags, straws and cutleryby 2021 at the earliest.

The ban in the Vancouver Island municipalities will be enforced with fines beginning January 2020.

Mayco Nol, mayor of Ucluelet, says communities shouldn't procrastinate when it comes to stopping single-use plastics use.

"I think we all know that these are the rightthings we need to start doing ... we need to start making these initiatives a reality rather than talking about it. We're in a smaller community, so it's just easier to move along," saidNol.

Tofino and Ucluelet collaborated with Surfrider Foundation Canada in setting up the bylaw. Surfrider is anorganization that works withenvironmental experts to find sustainable solutionsto help protect Canadian coasts bycombating plastic pollution.

Surfrider's Pacific Rim chapter came up with a single-use plasticsban initiative in a bid to help stem the deadly effects plastic pollutionhason ocean wildlife. It then sought out business partners in the coastal communities of Tofino and Ucluelet.

"The way we approached [the initiative]was to get businesses to voluntarily come onboard. So we really made it a community-led effort," said chapter manager Lilly Woodbury.

Businesses would switch over from plastic straws or stop using single-use bags, and would post about it on social media, tagginganother business and encouraging them totake the no-plasticchallenge as well, Woodbury told Stephen Quinn, host of The Early Edition.

"We were startingto find out what was happening to the oceans at that point ... And it just became this big community celebration," she said.

Woodbury says that whileTofino and Uclueletare located on the oceanshoreand therefore easier to get onboard with a plastics ban, all Canadian communities are affected by plastic'simpact on bodies of water.

She says no matter where you livein Canada, your health and vitality depend on oceans whether that'sdue to oxygen, which is created by tiny ocean plantscalled phytoplankton; the economy, due to industries like fishing and tourism;or food security.

"If you live next to a river, you live next to a lakeor nearby ... you're also going to understand because this issue isn't isolated to marine ecosystems," she said.

"It's an easier sell for coastal towns, but it is an essential sell for all of Canada."

National plastics ban

Woodbury says the Surfrider is thrilled by the federal government's national ban announcement.

A list of items being considered for the national banisn't set in stone, but agovernment source told CBC News that it could include items like cotton swabs, drink stirrers, plates and balloon sticks. Fast-food containers and cups made of expanded polystyrene, which is similar to white Styrofoam, will also be banned, said the source.

Surfrider Pacific Rim collaborated with Gord Johns, the MP for Courtenay-Alberni, to develop motionM-151, anational strategy to combat plastic pollution, with the aim to put pressure on the federal government.

Nol says that while the federal ban is great news, municipalities still have work to do.

"As municipal politicians, we justneed to stop waiting for the province or the federal government to make the initiatives. We really need to start making local initiatives," he said.

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