It’s a Fact Tracey and the community of Rossland, British Columbia have set a new precedent in Canada when it comes to reducing the usage of plastic bags. Tracey has 95% of local retailers committed to eliminating plastic bags.

Canadians use nine to 15 billion plastic shopping bags every year. The average plastic bag is used for five minutes to carry your purchases home, yet bags can take up to 1,000 years to decompose. This creates waste management problems, devastates the natural environment, kills birds, wildlife, and livestock, and perpetuates an acceptance of over-consumption as a right.

On March 12th, 2007, Tracey proposed that the City of Rossland should be the first plastic-bag-free town in Canada. City Council voted in favour of the initiative with a landslide vote of 6-1. Her proposal garnered local and national media attention, resulting in hundreds of emails of support from all over the country.

In conducting over ten educational seminars for local community groups, Tracey inspired over 100 volunteers to sign up and help promote the campaign. Together, they organized community events, educational materials (surveys, posters, brochures, stickers), initiated retailer and commercial retraining programs, sourced and secured sponsorship to give one free bag to each household in Rossland (1,600), and raised additional funds to support future community waste reduction campaigns.

One year later, the supermarket has reduced plastic bag use by 75%. Over 95% of local retailers have been working to eliminate plastic-bags, and several smaller retailers are already 100% plastic-bag free. This has all been achieved on a voluntary basis with education as the keystone to raising awareness of consumers and the business community, and by focusing on partnerships between government, retailers, schools and community groups.

Through these efforts, Tracey has established a template of action for any community wishing to take the first steps towards a more sustainable future. Tracey is now working with several other communities across Canada including Squamish, BC, Pemberton, BC, Whistler, BC, Gabriola Island, BC, Revelstoke, BC, Qualicum Beach, BC, and Canmore, AB.

Tracey believes that our society needs to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels and reduce the amount of resources we use every day. She strongly believes that our individual choices matter and that our everyday choices have a cumulative impact that will ultimately determine our future.

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