Washington DC taxes you for using a plastic (or paper) bag at the grocery store.  That’s right, ladies and gentlemen.  It’s 5 cents per bag.  The tax, which was instituted in January, has already raised $150,000 of revenue.  This money is being used to clean up the Anacostia River.  Plastic bag use in the District has dropped from 22.5 million bags per month (the 2009 monthly average) to just 3 million bags in January!  That is a truly staggering change in behavior.

According to the Washington Post:

The tax, one of the first of its kind in the nation, is designed to change consumer behavior and limit pollution in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Under regulations created by the D.C. Department of the Environment, bakeries, delicatessens, grocery stores, drugstores, convenience stores, department stores and any other “business that sells food items” must charge the tax on paper or plastic bags.

We fully support this new tax and look for many more States to follow suit.  One of the first moves we made towards living a greener lifestyle was using a reusable bag whenever we went to the grocery store.  It’s a simple, mindless change of behavior.  Simply grab a few ChicoBags, toss one in your purse, one in your gym bag, and one in the trunk of your car.  They come in all sorts of patterns and colors.  You’ll never be without a reusable bag.  Such a small gesture can have an incredibly large impact, as shown by the good citizens of Washington DC.

Shop bGreen’s selection of reusable bags here.