Plastic Bags - COAG Standing Council on Environment and Water

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major supermarkets and smaller retailers has shifted, as major retailers have reduced the number
of plastic bags distributed – supermarkets are estimated to have used 1.5 billion fewer bags in 2005
than in 2002. It is currently estimated that supermarkets distribute around 55 percent of all plastic
bags, down from the 2002 baseline of 65 percent. 76
With the expiry of the ARA code on 31 December 2005, there is now no obligation for retailers to
continue to implement further bag reduction strategies. However, in May 2006, ANRA proposed a
new voluntary code, with the aim of it being taken up by all the existing Group One retailers and
any prospective members of ANRA. The likely impacts of this proposal are discussed in greater
depth in section 7.4 of this consultation RIS.
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Assessment of effectiveness
Signatories to the code reported every six months. The final report indicated that large
supermarkets (Group One retailers) had achieved a 44.75 percent reduction against the 2002
baseline by December 2005. An independent review by Hyder Consulting, on plastic bag usage
over the period 2002 to 2005, confirms that reductions have been occurring, and notes an absolute
reduction of 41.4 percent by the supermarket sector. 77 In this respect, the ARA code has been
effective in reducing supermarkets’ use of plastic bags.
While the ARA code successfully engaged Group One retailers, engagement with Group Two
retailers was more difficult, emphasising the likely difficulty in pursuing further voluntary
measures. Group Two retailers are typically small to medium-sized enterprises with less than 200
staff, possibly family-run or franchise-owned, with a high proportion of casual as well as culturally
and linguistically diverse staff. Identifying target retailers and activities to gain their attention, and
subsequent commitment to act, proved challenging although some progress was made by the
Australian Government in convening a retailer Roundtable meeting in September 2004 with
attendance from a range of non-supermarket retailers or their associations. Nevertheless, this
initiative reached only a small proportion of all retailers.
While anecdotal evidence indicates that some of smaller retailers, both within and outside the
ARA, have been very active in reducing their use – and positive case studies abound – there is little
collated data available on their activities. Hyder Consulting estimates that plastic bag use by nonsupermarket
retailers was 22.9 percent lower in 2005 than in 2002.
A fax-back survey of Group Two retailers conducted by the ARA early in 2005 demonstrated the
difficulty in reaching these small businesses. Of the 2334 surveys sent, only 1695 were sent
successfully and, of those, only 6.5 percent of businesses responded. This perhaps highlights the
difficulty in engaging small business owners on issues that they believe are of marginal
importance to their businesses.
In a follow up survey, the ARA reported in early 2006 that out of a possible 2558 retailers who
were faxed a survey by the ARA, only 151 small retailers confirmed that they had signed the ARA
code. As the ARA code is a voluntary agreement, the association cannot force non-members to sign
it. It is possible that some small retailers are taking actions to reduce plastic bags while not
76 Hyder Consulting, Op. Cit, p.8
77 The difference between the number provided by ANRA for Group One retailers (44.75%) and the Hyder
Consulting estimation (41.4 percent) is attributable to the methodology used by Group One retailers, which
makes allowances for store growth since 2002.
Consultation Regulatory Impact Statement: Investigation of options to reduce the environmental impact of plastic bags January 2007 38