The City of Athens issued a plastic bag ban Jan. 1, prohibiting the use of single plastic bags in stores across the city.
Athens County Court of Common Pleas Judge George McCarthy ruled the city's plastic bag ban unconstitutional Aug. 28, leaving the ban on hold.
Athens City Council decided Sept. 3 to appeal this decision to the Ohio Court of Appeals.
Micah McCarey, councilmember at-large, spoke about the city's dedication to sustainability.
“Athens is strongly committed to sustainability and responsible environmental practices,” McCarey said. “Even those that can feel like an inconvenience.”
While the city is waiting on a response from the Ohio Court of Appeals, the use of plastic bags has been reintegrated into stores across the city.
Councilmember Alan Swank, D-4th ward, spoke about the environmental factors of the ban.
“It’s the right thing to do,” Swank said. “Those plastic bags cause all kinds of problems in terms of the recycling center over in Nelsonville, they get thrown in the recycling, they jam up the machines.”
According to the Center for Biological Diversity, it takes 1,000 years for a plastic bag to degrade in a landfill.
McCarthy discussed the provision of home rule, the ability of a local government to exercise some of the governing powers of a state within its own administrative area.
McCarthy said because the State of Ohio had already ruled that businesses could choose to provide plastic bags or not, Athens' plastic bag ban violated its home rule.
“I found that they were in conflict,” McCarthy said. “The previous state law conflicts with the new Athens law that had been passed, and as a result, the state law should supersede what the city was trying to prohibit.”
During the City Council meeting Sept. 3, the Council discussed how other cities and counties in Ohio have a plastic bag ban, as well. However, McCarthy spoke about the differences between those cities and Athens.
“I know they might have laws on the books, but they’re not enforcing them at the current time because it is in issue, and there is a question about whether they could legally do it or not,” McCarthy said.
McCarthy said he has no personal concerns about the ban. He understands the city’s desire to regulate the use of plastic but said it is not a decision based on personal preference.
“It’s a decision based on upholding the Constitution and applying the law as it exists at the current time,” McCarthy said.
If the city is successful in appealing the injunction, the ban will go back into place. However, if the Court of Appeals agrees with McCarthy’s ruling, a new precedent will be set, McCarthy said.
“That’s why it is so important,” McCarthy said. “It certainly would have precedential value, and other places could rely upon it in support of their arguments going forward.”
McCarey said the case has piqued the interest of members of the city.
“It seems like a lot of folks are interested in what the outcome will be,” McCarey said. “I know a lot of folks who have indicated that they’re not switching back to plastic bags regardless of them being permitted again.
