Some Austin restaurants will have an exemption from the single-use carryout bag regulations after Austin City Council approved administrative rule amendments at a Nov. 8 meeting.
The part of the amended rules allows restaurants to use plastic carryout bags to "prevent moisture damage" from soups, sauces, salads with dressing and liquids, and was passed unanimously by the Zero Waste Advisory Commission on Oct. 10.
Mayor Lee Leffingwell said he feels the amendments address an unintended consequence stemming from the single-use bag ordinance.
"This is addressing in a meaningful way something that is a real problem," Leffingwell said. "I think it's pretty obvious once you think about it, and obviously we didn't think about it carrying out barbecue sauce in a paper bag isn't a good idea."
Other exemptions to the ordinance include laundry dry cleaning bags, newspaper bags and bags provided by local food pantries.
Council approved the ban in March 2012 to help curb the cost of pollution and litter management as well as help the environment, according to city officials.
Andrew Dobbs, program director with Texas Campaign for the Environment, said his group is "cautiously optimistic" about the rules and the amendments.
"We support the adoption of these rules with some reservations," Dobbs said. "There are worries that the restaurant rules there are a little too broad, that it will undermine the effectiveness of this ordinance."
Another concern was raised during public comment about whether the rules follow the original intent of the ordinance, but Bob Gedert, director of Resource Recovery Services with the City of Austin, said the amendments are congruent with the initial vision.
"The evolution is rooted back in the original intent of council's resolution to request an ordinance [regarding single-use carryout bags]," Gedert said. "[The ordinance] was targeted toward retail checkout bags, and restaurants were an auxiliary issue that popped up later. So we intended to accommodate the food industry in how we carry food into our vehicles with an accommodation with this extra rule."
The rules also allow for businesses to apply for a hardship variance from a requirement of the ordinance and a form of alternative compliance to provide emergency access to carryout bags under certain criteria.
The ordinance is set to go into effect in March.
"We got to keep our eye on the ball here, long-term" Dobbs said. "Even after these go into effect, we have to make sure that we can fix them later on, if need be."