Controversial cup, paper bag fees being re-examined in Vancouver
Vancouver city council has voted to re-examine its controversial disposable cup and paper bag fees, which came into effect less than a month ago.
Coun. Rebecca Bligh says the new fees disproportionally affect low-income residents and don't give drive-thru or delivery-app customers any other option but to pay the fee.
"The problem here is people feel they're charged a fee when they really don't have any other option but to pay the fee," Bligh told CTV News Vancouver. "That really is not effective and it's not actually achieving the outcome that we had intended to with the bylaw."
The bylaw was applied on Jan. 1 and requires businesses to charge 25 cents for disposal cups and 15 cents for paper bags. Plastic bags were banned altogether in the city.
For some businesses, the new bylaws didn't actually result in any changes. For example, JJ Bean Coffee Roasters says it has been encouraging waste reduction for years and says because of that it's already in compliance with the City of Vancouver's new cup fee rules.
"What they told us all to do is to make sure that to-go pricing is higher than for-here pricing but we've always had that," said John Neate, CEO of JJ Bean Coffee Roasters.
JJ Bean has one price for drinking from one of the store's mugs in-house, adding 25 cents more if you get a to-go cup and 25 cents off the regular price if you bring your own reusable mug.
Meanwhile, Starbucks is charging the extra fee for to-go cups but says it has been offering 10 cents off the regular price if you bring your own mug. While that option was paused during the pandemic, the coffee-shop chain says it's allowing customers to bring their own mugs again.
Customers who bring their own mugs are supposed to place them in a receptacle offered by Starbucks. That is to ensure employees don't have to touch the consumer's cup. Once the beverage is made, the consumer retrieves the cup from the receptacle.
Vancouver councillors voted this week to have city staff take another look at the bylaw to see how it can be improved.
The deadline for staff to report back is March 15. In the meantime, the fees remain in place.
With files from CTV News Vancouver's Nafeesa Karim and Ross McLaughlin
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
NEW Life got in the way of one woman's reunion with her father, but a DNA test gained her a family
Anne Marie Cavner was the closest she'd ever been to meeting her biological father, but then life dealt her a blow. From an unexpected loss to a host of new relationships, a DNA test changed her life, and she doesn't regret a thing.
NEW Keeping these exotic pets is 'cruel' and 'dangerous,' Canadian animal advocates say
Canadian pet owners are finding companionship beyond dogs and cats. Tigers, alligators, scorpions and tarantulas are among some of the exotic pets they are keeping in private homes, which pose risks to public safety and animal welfare, advocates say.
Psychologist becomes first person in Peru to die by euthanasia after fighting in court for years
A Peruvian psychologist who suffered from an incurable disease that weakened her muscles and had her confined to her bed for several years, died by euthanasia, her lawyer said Monday, becoming the first person in the country to obtain the right to die with medical assistance.
Quebec Health Department reports 28 cases of eye damage linked to solar eclipse
Quebec's Health Department says it has received 28 reports of eye damage related to the April 8 total solar eclipse that passed over southern parts of the province.
Diver pinned under water by an alligator figured he had choice. Lose his arm or lose his life
An alligator attacked a diver on April 15 as he surfaced from his dive, nearly out of air. His tank emptied with the gator's jaws crushing the arm he put up in defence.
How quietly promised law changes in the 2024 federal budget could impact your day-to-day life
The 2024 federal budget released last week includes numerous big spending promises that have garnered headlines. But, tucked into the 416-page document are also series of smaller items, such as promising to amend the law regarding infant formula and to force banks to label government rebates, that you may have missed.
Which foods have the most plastics? You may be surprised
'How much plastic will you have for dinner, sir? And you, ma'am?' While that may seem like a line from a satirical skit on Saturday Night Live, research is showing it's much too close to reality.
opinion I've been a criminal attorney for decades. Here's what I think about the case against Trump
Joey Jackson, a criminal defence attorney and a legal analyst for CNN, outlines what he thinks about the criminal case against Donald Trump in the 'hush money trial.'
$3.8M home in B.C.'s Okanagan has steel shell for extra wildfire protection
A home in B.C.'s Okanagan that features a weathering steel shell designed to provide some protection against wildfires has been listed for sale at $3.8 million.