Title
Resolution Urging the Michigan Legislature to Support Michigan Senate Bill No. 228 to Repeal the Law Preventing Local Ordinances Regulating Plastic Bags and Other Single-Use Containers
Staff
Reviewed by: Missy Stults, Sustainability & Innovations Director
Valerie Jackson, Assistant City Attorney
Milton Dohoney Jr., City Administrator
Body
Whereas, In 2016, the Michigan Legislature enacted 2016 PA 389, which bars local governments from creating any ordinance that regulates, prohibits, or imposes a fee on “auxiliary containers.” Under the statute, “auxiliary containers” include a variety of containers and materials, however the primary focus of the legislation is plastic shopping bags and single-use plastic containers;
Whereas, The State’s Michigan Water Stewardship program estimates that roughly 80% of litter on the Great Lakes Shore Line is plastic and that nearly 22 million pounds of plastic debris enters the Great Lakes every year;
Whereas, The United States Geological Survey found that there are 112,000 particles of microplastics per square mile of Great Lakes water, which are largely from single-use plastic bags and containers. While the effects of ingesting microplastics are still being studied, research suggests that ingestion of microplastics may cause cancer, affect development, and harm immunity in both humans and wildlife;
Whereas, Michigan bears the responsibility of ensuring the health and sustainability of the Great Lakes and contributing waterways, which are a global treasure and the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth;
Whereas, Most plastic bags and single-use containers currently used cannot be recycled and are not biodegradable, so after a single use they remain around for years in landfills, neighborhoods, parks, waterways, and clogging wastewater treatment;
Whereas, Plastic bags and other single-use containers are a pervasive form of pollution and litter in our communities which, in addition to being harmful to the environment, affect the aesthetic value and our perception of the places where we live;
Whereas, Scientists across the globe have been giving increasingly alarming warnings about what will happen unless there is a global effort to address climate change. According to the United Nations Development Program, the plastics industry is the fastest growing source of industrial greenhouse gases in the world, and could account for 19% of the global carbon budget by 2040;
Whereas, Nearly all of the plastics that we use currently originate from fossil fuels and emit greenhouse gases at every stage of production;
Whereas, Proponents of PA 389 of 2016 argue that allowing local governments to restrict the use of plastic bags and single-use containers would be a burden on business owners and consumers, and would create confusion if local governments had different restrictions;
Whereas, Plastic pollution is disastrous to the health of all living things, and it requires policymakers at the local, state, national, and global level to take action to prevent further environmental catastrophe;
Whereas, PA 389 of 2016 is overly broad, overly restrictive, and inhibits local governments from being able to address their specific local environmental concerns and from exploring innovative solutions to address climate change; and
Whereas, Senate Bill 228 would remove unnecessary involvement from the state and restore local control, allowing local governments who are better positioned to respond to local needs to implement programs that directly benefit their communities,
RESOLVED, Ann Arbor City Council fully supports Senate Bill 228 and the elimination and repeal of the prohibition against local government regulation of single-use and reusable plastic containers;
RESOLVED, Ann Arbor City Council strongly urges the Michigan Legislature and Governor Whitmer to enact Senate Bill 228, which would repeal Public Act 389 of 2016; and
RESOLVED, Ann Arbor City Council directs the City Administrator to send a copy of this resolution to the Ann Arbor delegation of both the Michigan Senate and House of Representatives; the Michigan State Senate Committee on Energy and Environment; and to Governor Gretchen Whitmer.
Sponsored by: Councilmembers Akmon, Disch and Watson