Bag fee, plastic foam ban take effect Tuesday in South Portland

SOUTH PORTLAND — Two new ordinances take effect Tuesday, imposing a ban on plastic foam food containers and a 5-cent fee on all single-use paper or plastic shopping bags.

The City Council approved the ordinances unanimously last September, following in the footsteps of neighboring Portland and hundreds of communities nationwide that have taken similar steps.

Communities are banning plastic foam or polystyrene packaging, also known as Styrofoam, because it breaks into smaller non-biodegradable pieces that are harmful to wildlife and the environment and there’s no economically feasible way to recycle it locally.

Meanwhile, customers at local supermarkets and other retailers will have to buy or bring their own reusable shopping bags if they don’t want to pay a 5-cent fee for single-use bags. The fee will go to the businesses.

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