Gabrielle Cassagnes Lemoine
The leader of the Green Party of Quebec, Alex Tyrrell, and Pierrette Kamning Nguendjong, candidate in Sainte-Rose, spoke about the party’s position on single-use containers. The Green Party of Quebec aims to ban single-use coffee cups and replace them with a deposit-refund program. Eliminating single-use paper and plastic should not be an inconvenience or impact people’s lives. It’s about having the right systems in place to allow users to change their consumption patterns with minimal impact on their habits.
Every year we consume billions of coffee cups, straws, plastic bags, disposable plates and single-use utensils. Reusable cups are widespread, but not many consumers use them, and systemic issues and inconveniences limit their use by all Quebecers. To counter the consumption of single-use items and to address the systemic disadvantages that this represents, the Green Party of Quebec proposes a complete ban on straws, plastic bags, utensils and single-use cups.
Single-use cups will be replaced by a universal reusable cup based on a deposit-exchange program. The universal cups will also be exchangeable on a deposit system regardless of the restaurant chain or small coffee shop the consumer patronizes. Restaurants will be responsible for cleaning the cups and distributing them to customers. In addition, a similar program will be implemented for certain grocery containers and take-out meals. The ban would remove thousands of tons of plastic and waste from our landfills, waterways and oceans.
