Pittsburgh businesses, shoppers prepare for plastic bag ban

Pittsburgh businesses and shoppers are preparing for the city’s new plastic bag ban, which is set to go into effect Saturday, Oct. 14.

The measure bans most plastic bags but allows exceptions for produce bags, meat packaging, pharmacy bags, bags used to wrap flowers and similar items, garbage bags and pet waste bags.

Under the new ordinance, shoppers will need to bring a reusable bag or pay a 10-cent fee for a paper bag.

Jim Coen, owner of Yinzers in the Burgh, said he’s already ordered paper bags to replace the plastic ones he currently uses at his three sportswear shops.

“It’s not going to be that big of a deal for us,” he said. “You’ve got to find the best prices (for paper bags), just like with plastic.”

He’s found that buying paper bags in bulk made the change more affordable.

Coen said he hadn’t heard anything about the plastic bag ban directly from the city, and no city officials have offered help in changing from plastic to paper. He said he would’ve liked better communication from the city about the ban, which he learned about from news outlets.

Coen said he was unaware of the requirement to charge 10 cents for paper bags — and he doesn’t plan to do so anyway.

“I think it’s ridiculous we’re going to charge somebody 10 cents for a paper bag,” he said. “We’ll just absorb the cost.”

Coen said he generally feels like the policy is a good thing but said there’s a lot more work to do when it comes to removing plastic from packaging.

“We definitely have a problem with plastic in the country and in the world,” he said. “But it’s like putting a Band-Aid on something where you need a thousand stitches. We’re going to be putting a lot of plastic in paper bags.”

Vickie Pan, owner of Kawaii Gifts in Shadyside, said she heard about the bag ban from a neighbor. Like Coen, Pan said she would’ve liked to see clearer communication straight from city officials.

Pan said she’s been preparing for the transition to paper bags since April.

The legislation banning single-use plastic bags was approved in April 2022 and initially was set to go into effect a year later. City officials pushed back the implementation date until October, saying they needed more time to prepare for it and launch outreach efforts to make people aware of the measure.

Pan said she’s been purchasing paper bags, as well as reusable bags that she sells in her store. She said she hasn’t seen much of an uptick in people buying reusable bags yet, but she anticipates more people may want to buy them as single-use plastic bags are barred across the city.

“We definitely have always been carrying some of these, but I definitely have increased the number of styles I’m carrying,” she said.

Pan said she posted signs in her store to inform people of the upcoming change.

She said she’s found that paper bags tend to be a bit pricier than their plastic counterparts on average. She said she was planning to charge a 10-cent fee only for larger paper bags but was unaware the ordinance would require a fee for any paper bag.

She pointed out that a lot of retailers already offer paper bags, without a charge.

Some customers already are bringing reusable bags, she said, and she’s been trying to encourage those people who are “ahead of the game” to keep using such options.

“I think it’s going to take everybody a little time to get used to it,” Pan said. “Some customers may not be aware of it. I think the first couple months, there might be some customers who might be kind of surprised by it.”

She said she thinks the measure is a “good change” compared to the current system of using a plastic bag for “for five minutes to take it to your car” and then throwing it away.

“I don’t think that should be the routine,” she said. “I think we do need a change.”

Councilwoman Erika Strassburger, D-Squirrel Hill, who sponsored the legislation, said the city will continue reaching out to business owners and residents to make sure everyone is aware of the new rule.

“I find that any engagement strategy in a city of 300,000, there will always be people who — long after you think you’ve reached every single person — don’t know about it,” she said, explaining the city will continue to use various methods, including social media and door-to-door business visits, to ensure people are educated on the topic.

There also will be a grace period when the ban is first implemented when business won’t be punished if they’re not abiding by its regulations.

“The goal is, at least for the first few months, educating the business owners as to what they need to do and hearing them out and helping them problem solve,” she said. “All of that will be learning experiences for the businesses.”

Strassburger said the city eventually will move to a system where businesses will receive a warning for their first violation, a $100 fine for their second violation and a $250 fine for their third violation.

Tobias Raether, environmental enforcement manager with the city’s Department of Public Works, said no fines will be issued before Jan. 1, 2024, “in response to feedback we’ve received from businesses requesting more time to use down their existing stock of plastic bags and prepare for the transition to paper and reusable.”

People who need additional information and support can reach out to the city at bagban@pittsburghpa.gov.

Beginning in October, Raether said, the city will promote the ban on social media and possibly on bus shelters. City officials also will visit Healthy Active Living Centers to give presentations about the ban and work to spread the message at community meetings.

“We recognize that it will take some time after the ban goes into effect for businesses and residents to adjust to the changes, and we plan to positively reinforce compliance and celebrate the businesses (and) residents that are already actively participating,” he said.

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“The hope is that neighborhoods and business districts take some pride in this, knowing this is going to contribute to a cleaner street, less litter in the street in the form of plastic bags, a less polluted river system and thousands and thousands of plastic bags saved from even being made,” Strassburger said.

Strassburger said she’s hopeful that people will find using reusable bags actually can be even more convenient once they get used to the change. She pointed out that people can use large reusable bags to cut down on the number of bags they’re carrying when they go grocery shopping, or they could opt for backpacks and zipper bags that are easier to carry than plastic ones.

Love, Pittsburgh — which has shops in Mount Washington, Downtown and the Strip District — has offered customers the option to take or decline paper bags since opening in 2017, owner Monica Grunick said.

“We value operating in a sustainable fashion, and the bag ban aligns with our practices,” she said.

Grunick said the shop’s reusable tote bags have been “top sellers,” and she’s hopeful people will continue buying reusable bags instead of opting for single-use options.

“Many of our customers are already declining bags, bringing their own or fitting their purchases inside another bag, so we hope that our customers will easily adapt to the new process,” she said.

Grunick said she’s training staff on the new policy that will require them to charge for paper bags.

“We likely would not have begun charging for bags if that was not mandated. However, this will help us to be able to continue to provide quality bags and gift packaging when someone is giving a gift — our specialty — or simply needs a bag,” she said.

Tara Jones, who was running a booth for the Diabetic Pastry Chef at a farmers market Thursday in Market Square, said she has paper bags ready for when the ban goes into effect.

“I’d say half the time, customers have their own bags,” she said.

People who shop in Pittsburgh also will have to adapt to the change.

Dee Weaver of Mount Washington said she has some reusable bags already, but she’s accustomed to using single-use plastic bags. She saves and reuses her plastic bags, she said, and has a lot of them still on hand.

“I get it, because plastic is not good for the environment, but it’s kind of a hassle,” she said. “It’s something I’m going to have to get used to.”

Weaver said she felt the city did a poor job of notifying people about the upcoming plastic bag ban, which she learned about from a Dollar General cashier.

“They should’ve let this be known to give people time to prepare for the new changes,” she said.

Joe Otte, who works in Downtown Pittsburgh, said he wasn’t even aware of the ban weeks before it’s slated to go into effect.

“I think it’s probably more of an inconvenience than it’s worth,” he said. “If people would do the right thing and recycle their plastic bags, it wouldn’t be an issue.”

Orlando Vasquez of Penn Hills said he’ll be impacted by the new ordinance when shopping near his Downtown Pittsburgh office — but he doesn’t mind.

Vasquez said he already keeps reusable bags in his car and his home, and he often doesn’t use a bag at all for smaller purchases.

“I understand what they’re trying to do, keeping Downtown not littered,” he said.