Now that Kamloops Council has decided to go down the road of banning plastic bags what happens next?

Mayor Ken Christian says the city really needs to talk to the retail and grocery sector as well as the Chamber of Commerce to sort how this ban will work.

“We directed administration to bring forward a bylaw that we could talk about by July the 9th. What will happen between now and then will be extensive consultation with the community. In particular with the retail sector as to what a plastic bag ban would mean to them and how many alternatives are available and that kind of thing.”

And even then.

“The bylaw could say that by 2021 we are going to eliminate it. The staff are going to research that and decide. It is not like that day something would necessarily would happen. I think it signals to the community that plastics are becoming such a drain on our environment that we have to start dealing with them.”

Christian says it might be a money saver for the city to take its time in avoiding any legal challenge considering one is already being mounted in another jurisdiction.