Manitoba government introduces plastic bottle ban

In a move designed to steer Canadians away from single use plastic bottles, the Manitoba provincial government will no longer buy bottled water in containers smaller than one litre, unless there’s no safe potable water around.  

Conservation Minister Bill Blaikie made the announcement on June 7. “We believe by taking this step we are leading by example and encouraging Manitobans to move away from using single-use bottled water,” Blaikie said. “This also acknowledges the importance of Manitoba Sustainable Development Procurement Guidelines that clearly states purchases must be based on careful consideration of the good’s impact on the environment.”

The new policy bans the use of provincial funds to buy single-use bottled water in plastic containers with less than one litre of water when tap water that is safe for drinking is “reasonably accessible”. The policy allows for exceptions when safe drinking water isn’t available – as, for example, when forest firefighting crews in remote areas need water to drink.