To: Council Members, Charlottesville City Council

Reduce Single-Use Bag Consumption in Charlottesville, VA!

Join us as we encourage the Charlottesville City Council to instate a 5-cent fee on single-use shopping bags at grocery checkouts. Let’s help Charlottesville join the over 158 United States municipalities that have already adopted plastic bag legislation (Surfrider Foundation), and lead the way in Virginia.

Why is this important?

According to the National Resources Defense Council, an average of 100 billion plastic shopping bags are consumed—and eventually trashed—annually in the US. These bags require over 12 million barrels of oil to produce (Wall Street Journal), and are only used once or twice, while they pollute our rivers and oceans, clog our storm drains and persist in our landfills forever.

In 2009, Washington, D.C. implemented a $0.05 fee on disposable plastic bags, and, five years later, continues to reap great rewards from that bill—including money awarded to community-based organizations and private firms seeking to clean and protect DC’s waterways, as well as continued outreach and environmental education. According to the District Department of the Environment, these efforts have resulted in over 75% of DC residents using fewer single-use bags than before the disposable bag fee.

The team at Reuseit.com believes a plastic bag fee would likewise help raise awareness of the costs of producing and cleaning up after these plastic bags in Charlottesville (and across Virginia), as well as encourage shoppers to examine their own throwaway habits, make the switch to reusable shopping bags and engage in a culture of reuse overall.

Starting with our backyard in Charlottesville, Virginia, we’re encouraging our neighbors and local city council to change the way we think, act and make purchases.

Sign this petition to express your support for the City Council's vision of making Charlottesville a leader in innovation and environmental sustainability by instating a 5-cent single-use bag fee. Let's reduce disposable plastic waste and protect our environment.