Austin officials: Calls have dropped off since March implementation

Sunset Valley is preparing to implement its ban on single-use bags.

The bag ordinance, which takes effect Sept. 1 and is modeled after the city of Austin's code, will prevent most retailers and businesses from providing their customers with single-use carryout bags—the familiar thin plastic or paper bags not made of recycled materials that are often used at checkout, said Carolyn Meredith, Sunset Valley's environmental services manager.

"Sunset Valley has a long history of trying to be at the forefront of environmental issues," Meredith said. "When we looked at the single-use bags and how they are not recyclable, how they're made from a man-made polymer that microorganisms don't recognize as food so they don't deteriorate, then it was a logical choice for us to say, 'There's all these alternatives out there. We can make these steps now to help better our environment.'"

Austin's bag ordinance

Reducing pollution and eliminating waste were also among the reasons Austin City Council decided in March 2012 to implement a bag ordinance. There are exceptions to the restrictions, such as that grocery produce bags and some restaurant takeout bags can still be thin plastic bags, according to Austin Resource Recovery, the entity handling Austin's ordinance implementation.

Aiden Cohen, ARR environmental conservation program manager, said that initially some Austin business owners voiced concerns, but the dust is settling.

"We did a lot of work to make sure the business community knew it was coming," he said. "We're now getting essentially zero complaints."

Between March 1 and July 24, the city had 500 conversations with business owners about the ordinance, ARR Waste Diversion Planner Charlotte Huskey said.

A few citizens called as well to alert ARR of businesses not complying, but most of those businesses had applied for hardship variances and requested extra time to prepare, she said.

Cohen said ARR has not gathered any data on how the ban has affected shoplifting, a concern of some retailers.

ARR is encouraging best practices such as returning reusable bags to their vehicles after use, but customers occasionally forget, Cohen said.

Local reactions

In Southwest Austin, Brodie Park Market owner Rahim Momin said he has seen customers carry purchases out in their hands or load them into their purses.

"Since the first day of the bag ban in Austin, I have not seen anyone bring their own bag," he said. "Not too many people are happy about it."

He said he is not charging customers for his store's new paper bags.

"If I did that, I'd lose some business," he said, noting he thinks the ordinance is negative for small companies.

Some retailers did away with bags altogether and offer the cardboard boxes in which goods were shipped, Cohen said.

Tara Anders, director of marketing with Goodwill Industries of Central Texas, said despite the nonprofit exemption, Goodwill had started selling reusable bags before the ordinance. The nonprofit sells screen-printed T-shirts repurposed as bags as part of a partnership with the local Mexicarte Museum.

Local toy store Lions & Tigers & Toys made the shift from buying single-use bags at a cost of 27 cents each to printing reusable bags with the shop's logo at $1.50 each, Business Manager Gene Bell said. The store offers bags free with purchases.

"We were originally thinking, 'OK, if we have to go through the same number of bags we used to go through, we're in trouble,'" he said. "... But most people end up bringing their own or walking out with their stuff, so we haven't had to worry about an increased cost in [bags]."

H-E-B sells reusable bags starting at 25 cents each and offers single-use plastic bags for $1 each, H-E-B spokeswoman Leslie Sweet said, noting funds are used for free bag giveaways every month.

"Some folks want us to give [them] free bags. ... But at H-E-B we don't like absorbing a hidden cost and passing that on to our customer; we'd rather let our customers choose whether they need a bag," she said, noting that offering free reusable bags would cost H-E-B millions of dollars.

She said some customers say they are having a hard time with the ordinance.

"It's hugely diverse," she said, "from they find it a challenge to remember their bags to they don't agree and don't like the government telling them what to do."