Sherbrooke the latest Quebec city to ban plastic bags

A woman leaves a grocery store Friday, May 15, 2015 in Montreal. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ryan Remiorz)

SHERBROOKE, Qc. - The city of Sherbrooke in the Eastern Townships will ban the commercial use of single-use plastic shopping bags as of April. 22.

The ban adopted by Sherbrooke's city council targets a variety of single-use bags: petroluem-based, biodegradable, oxo-degradable and composting bags used by about 1,500 local businesses.

However, the bylaw exempts the use of other plastic bags, such as the ones used to wrap dry cleaning, bags used for bulk items, paper bags and reusable bags.

Plastic bags used to distribute flyers door-to-door are not affected by the ban, but may be subject to future bylaws, the city says.

Karine Godbout, councillor for the Nations borough and chairman of the city's environment committee, says the ban shows that the city of Sherbrooke is committed to improving the environment, and that banning use of plastic bags by businesses will make it easier for people to pick up good environmental habits in their day-to-day lives.

This Canadian Press report was first published Nov. 5.