◎管淑平

Washington slaps fee on plastic shopping bags

華府對塑膠購物袋強制課稅

Residents of the US capital may have to dig a little deeper into their pockets when they go grocery shopping. The city slaps a five-cent levy on each plastic shopping bag.

美國首都居民去雜貨店買東西時可能要多花一點錢了。這座城市對每個塑膠購物袋，強制徵收5美分稅。

The measure, which takes effect on January 1, 2010 and is the first such initiative in the United States, seeks to make consumers bear the brunt of clean up costs for the bags which currently are dispensed for free with a customer’s purchases.

這項在2010年1月1日生效的措施是美國首例，尋求讓消費者負擔這些目前在消費者購物時免費給予的塑膠袋清理成本。

Plastic bags, while popular with shoppers, often end up clinging to tree branches, tangled in power lines, polluting rivers and clogging up storm drains.

購物民眾廣泛愛用的塑膠袋，用完丟棄後通常不是卡在樹枝上、電線上，就是污染河川、阻塞雨水下水道。

"I signed this law in July to cut down on the disposable bags that foul our waterways," said Mayor Adrian Fenty in a statement last month, saying that one particularly urban waterway, the city’s Anacostia River, has been particularly befouled by the plastic shopping bags.

「我在7月簽署這項法律，以減少這種阻塞我們水道的拋棄式袋子數量。」市長芬提上個月在聲明中表示，尤其是該市的安納克斯提亞河，這條都市水路，被塑膠購物袋阻塞情況特別嚴重。

Under the new law, city businesses that sell food or alcohol must charge customers five cents for every disposable paper or plastic carryout bag. The law also requires that these bags be recyclable and carry a message encouraging recycling.

根據這項新法，在該市出售食品或酒類的商店，都得向顧客為每個拋棄式紙袋或塑膠袋收5分錢，此法也要求這類袋子必須可回收，並標示鼓勵回收的訊息。

◎新聞辭典：

slap：動詞，強制實施或作某事。例句：The tour operator slapped on extra fees for solo travelers.（旅行社對獨行旅人強制加收額外費用。）

dig （deep） into one’s pocket：動詞片語，花（大）錢。例句：You must have dug deep into your pocket for this fancy dress.（你肯定為這一身盛裝花了大錢。）

bear the brunt of：動詞片語，首當其衝，承擔主要的負擔。例句：He bore the brunt of the failing project.（他為這失敗的計畫成了箭靶。）