Seattle plastic-bag ban starts Sunday

SEATTLE — Those ubiquitous, single-use plastic bags will no longer be available at checkout counters at grocery and retail stores across Seattle starting Sunday.

The ban intended to cut down on pollution requires grocers and other retailers to stop handing out plastic bags and charge customers a nickel fee for every paper bag as a way encourage people to bring their own bags.

Stores have posted signs telling customers of the upcoming changes. The city has mailed out thousands of notices to local retailers, as well as calling and visiting them in-person. One group at the University of Washington even held an exchange to encourage people to bring their extra reusable bags, or come get one.

“I think the stores will be ready, I don’t know if the customers are ready. It’s just a matter of getting used to something new,” said Joe Gilliam, president of the Northwest Grocery Association, which represents the largest grocery chains in Seattle.

Customers who are unaware will show up wondering why they can’t get a plastic bag, he said. “There will be an adjustment.”

Local retailers have been “training employees and trying to educate their customers in advance so there’s not a backlash at the counter on implementation day,” said Jan Gee, spokeswoman for the Washington Food Industry Association, which represents more than two dozen independent supermarkets in Seattle.

“Our industry has been preparing for it for a long time,” she said.

Plastic bags have been blamed for littering streets, fouling oceans and harming marine life. Each year Seattleites carry off about 292 million single-use plastic bags, and 68 million paper bags. About 82 percent of paper bags are recycled, while only 13 percent are recycled.

The city council unanimously approved the plastic bag ban last December, joining other cities across the country. Nearby communities such as Bainbridge Island, Mukilteo, Edmonds, Bellingham and Portland, Ore., also have banned plastic bags.

In 2008, the Seattle City Council voted to charge a 20-cent fee on paper and plastic bags, only to have the measure overturned by voters in a referendum bankrolled by the plastics industry the following year.

The plastic-bag industry has denounced the upcoming ban.

“Seattle’s plastic bag ban will have an immediate negative impact on the wallets of Seattle shoppers and, ironically, the environment,” Mark Daniels, head of the American Progressive Bag Alliance, a group representing plastic bag manufacturers, said in a statement last week.

Daniels said his group would seek “a comprehensive statewide recycling solution that address all forms of plastic bags, sacks and wraps.”

Thin plastic bags — less than 2.25 millimeter — are banned from grocery, department and other retail stories, although merchants will be allowed to use up their inventory. Bags used to package bulk items, produce or meat will still be allowed. Customers using vouchers or electronic benefit cards from food-assistance programs are exempt from 5-cent fee. Retailers would keep the nickel to help defray costs of paper bags. Plastic bags from restaurant orders are allowed.

“Hopefully things will smooth out after a week or so and customers will not be too mean to our cashiers,” she said, laughing. “The city did it and not us.”

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

Olivia Vanni / The Herald 
The Mukilteo Lighthouse. Built in 1906, it’s one of the most iconic landmarks in Snohomish County.
The Mukilteo Lighthouse. Built in 1906, it’s one of the most iconic landmarks in Snohomish County. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mukilteo mayor vetoes council-approved sales tax

The tax would have helped pay for transportation infrastructure, but was also set to give Mukilteo the highest sales tax rate in the state.

Marysville Mayor Jon Nehring gives the state of the city address at the Marysville Civic Center on Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2024, in Marysville, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Marysville council approves interim middle housing law

The council passed the regulations to prevent a state model code from taking effect by default. It expects to approve final rules by October.

x
State audit takes issue with Edmonds COVID grant monitoring

The audit report covered 2023 and is the third since 2020 that found similar issues with COVID-19 recovery grant documentation.

Bothell
Bothell man pleads guilty to sexual abuse of Marysville middle schoolers

The man allegedly sexually assaulted three students in exchange for vapes and edibles in 2022. His sentencing is set for Aug. 29.

Larsen talks proposed Medicaid cuts during Compass Health stop in Everett

Compass Health plans to open its new behavioral health center in August. Nearly all of the nonprofit’s patients rely on Medicaid.

Snohomish County Health Department Director Dennis Worsham on Tuesday, June 11, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Snohomish County Health Department director tapped as WA health secretary

Dennis Worsham became the first director of the county health department in January 2023. His last day will be July 3.

Police Cmdr. Scott King answers questions about the Flock Safety license plate camera system on Thursday, June 5, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mountlake Terrace approves Flock camera system after public pushback

The council approved the $54,000 license plate camera system agreement by a vote of 5-2.

Community members gather for the dedication of the Oso Landslide Memorial following the ten-year remembrance of the slide on Friday, March 22, 2024, at the Oso Landslide Memorial in Oso, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
The Daily Herald garners 6 awards from regional journalism competition

The awards recognize the best in journalism from media outlets across Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington.

Logo for news use featuring the municipality of Gold Bar in Snohomish County, Washington. 220118
Lynnwood man dies in fatal crash on US 2 near Gold Bar

The Washington State Patrol said the driver was street racing prior to the crash on Friday afternoon.

Thousands gather to watch fireworks over Lake Ballinger from Nile Shrine Golf Course and Lake Ballinger Park on Thursday, July 3, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Thousands ‘ooh’ and ‘aah’ at Mountlake Terrace fireworks show

The city hosts its Independence Day celebrations the day before the July 4 holiday.

Liam Shakya, 3, waves at a float passing by during the Fourth of July Parade on Friday, July 4, 2025 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Everett celebrates Fourth of July with traditional parade

Thousands celebrated Independence Day by going to the annual parade, which traveled through the the city’s downtown core.

Ian Saltzman
Everett Public Schools superintendent wins state award

A group of school administrators named Ian Saltzman as a top educational leader.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.