Due to some environmental concerns the debate over plastic bags has risen on the Outer Banks.  Sen. Marc Basnight, a Manteo Democrat and Senate leader, is proposing a radical idea to help keep the Outer Banks environment clean and free of pesky plastic bags; charge for them!  The proposal is to charge 10 cents per plastic bag in an effort to promote the use of cloth, reusable bags. 

It is estimated that consumers on the Outer Banks use about 2.5 million of these bags every year. While not every consumer using these bags is littering, it is evident that a tremendous amount of the bags end up polluting OBX beaches and national parks.

A North Carolina Senate bill introduced in March would ban plastic bags at major retail outlets, except for those used for meats, produce and fish. Minimizing the use of these bags is most certainly not a new concept. This bill is still being passed around the state senate and is awaiting approval.  The state of Virginia enacted a similar bill about a month ago that placed a 5 cent fee on single use bags.