Manitoba MLA says she had no agenda with plastic bags tweet

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This article was published 03/01/2018 (3064 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Sustainable Development Minister Rochelle Squires says Manitoba can do a better job of reducing the number of plastic bags that wind up in landfills.

However, the provincial government is not yet prepared to proceed with any reforms — including a ban on single-use bags.

Squires said Wednesday she will consult Manitobans and await the recommendations of a task force on recycling before announcing any new initiatives. The Tory government is in the process of establishing the group.

“I’m wanting to have a conversation with all Manitobans about some options that we can look at to remove that product from the landfill,” she said of single-use plastic bags.

Squires first raised the issue Jan. 1, when she tweeted her approval for Montreal’s plastic bag ban that took effect that day. “Should Winnipeg add itself to the growing list of municipalities to ban these shopping bags?” she mused.

On Wednesday, Squires told reporters she had no specific agenda in mind when she took to Twitter. “We do know that in Manitoba we can do a better job of recycling. When it comes to the single-use shopping bags, absolutely we can do better.”

According to an industry recycling organization, about 160 million single-use plastic bags are distributed in Manitoba each year.

Squires, who was named to her portfolio in August, said she has written to Winnipeg Coun. Brian Mayes, who heads the civic committee responsible for environmental issues, about expanding the list of materials the city accepts through its recycling initiatives. She said she specifically mentioned the recycling of plastic shopping bags and aluminum foil.

Mayes said Wednesday he and city staff discussed recycling in broad terms with the minister a few months ago. If the province were willing to channel some of its future carbon tax revenue towards an expanded recycling effort, “We’re certainly open to talk to them,” the St. Vital city councillor said.

Winnipeg Mayor Brian Bowman spoke to Squires on Tuesday, seeking clarification about her tweet, after it caught the media’s attention.

Bowman’s spokesman said if the province were considering a provincewide ban on single-use plastic bags, the mayor would be open to discussing it in co-ordination with the Association of Manitoba Municipalities.

On Wednesday, Mayes said the city’s legal staff had previously expressed the view any ban on plastic bags would be the responsibility of the province.

“I want to be clear: we’re not taking the lead on this,” Mayes said. “This hasn’t been our push. It’s something the minister has been talking about.”

larry.kusch@freepress.mb.ca