Editor,
On behalf of the members of ReThink Plastic, I would like to thank the Watertown Town Council for their approval of the Bring Your Own Bag ordinance at the meeting on June 7.
With this vote, Watertown joins a growing number of communities in Massachusetts who have decided that the time has come to reduce the number of disposable, single-use plastic bags that waste our resources, pollute our communities and cause harm to humans, birds, animals and fish.
We would like to thank the members of the Rules and Ordinance Subcommittee (Councilors Woodland, Dushku and Falkoff) for the time and attention they gave this ordinance. Working closely with our membership, they raised issues and concerns and worked to craft a better ordinance.
The full Council took up the ordinance on June 7 and listened to and considered concerns raised by Watertown residents. They ultimately decided to join nearby communities such as Brookline, Newton and Cambridge to take action to improve our environment. It was gratifying to watch the Council deliberate, ask questions, offer amendments and then come to a final decision.
No Watertown resident agrees with every action of the Council but I believe that we have a Council that takes its job seriously and is willing to give up so much time to the betterment of the community. Thank you for a job well done.
Joan Blaustein
Janet Buck
Janet Jameson
Deborah Peterson
Charlo Maurer
Eileen Ryan
This decision is a step in the right direction for Watertow. I applaud the council for taking this matter seriously and hope this is one of many decisions to come that will support a more sustainable and healthily environment.