City of Regina sticking with single-use plastic bag ban, Masters says

In spite of a federal court ruling, the City of Regina will be keeping in place its single-use plastic bag ban.

The city’s ban was introduced in February of 2022.

The decision has implications for the government’s ban of six single-use plastic items, including straws, grocery bags and takeout containers.

On Thursday, a federal court said a cabinet order that listed plastic items as toxic under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act was too broad.

The court deemed the policy unreasonable and unconstitutional, and its decision ultimately quashes the order that listed plastic-manufactured items like plastic straws, takeout containers, and plastic bags as toxic. But while Ottawa was required to designate the items as toxic in order to ban them, the city was not.

Regina’s ban on single-use plastic bags took effect in February of 2022. (980 CJME file photo)

Regina Mayor Sandra Masters said the city remains unswayed by the ruling, and has seen many benefits surrounding the discontinuation of single-use plastic bags.

“I don’t think we’ll be backing off of it, and one of the reasons is that we have noticed a significant reduction in litter relative to plastic bags, and that’s important for our green space,” Masters said.

“It’s really important for our waterways, because that’s often times where it ends up, and so right now I don’t think there’s any inclination to change, but if there’s any legal implication for the municipality with that federal court overturn, that will be looked into right now.”

Federal Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault responded to the federal court’s ruling on X, formerly known as Twitter, saying the federal government remains steadfast in its effort to ban single-use plastics.

My statement on the Federal Court’s recent ruling: pic.twitter.com/BeKeYxhmY2

— Steven Guilbeault (@s_guilbeault) November 16, 2023

Guilbeault said Ottawa is “strongly considering” an appeal.