More than three-in-four residents agree with banning the use of foam cups and take-out containers.
Vancouver, BC [November 27, 2019] – A majority of Vancouver residents continue to favour specific guidelines to reduce the use of plastics in the city, a new Research Co. poll has found.
In the online survey of a representative municipal sample, almost four-in-five Vancouverites (78%) are in favour of banning the distribution of single-use plastic utensils, unless they are directly requested by customers—down six points since a similar Research Co. survey conducted in 2018.
In June 2018, Vancouver City Council voted to enact prohibitions on the use of specific plastic items as part of its “Zero Waste 2040” strategy. The full details of by-laws related to plastic straws, plastic bags, disposable cups and disposable utensils are expected to be released by November 30.
A ban on all expanded polystyrene foam (or “thermal”) cups and take-out containers will come into effect on January 1, 2020. More than three-in-four Vancouverites (76%, -9) agree with this course of action.
“Public support for the ban on foam cups and take-out containers is highest (87%) among Vancouverites aged 55 and over,” says Mario Canseco, President of Research Co. “Sizeable majorities of residents aged 18-to-34 (72%) and 35-to-54 (73%) are also in favour of this prohibition.”
A ban on the distribution of single-use plastic straws, with appropriate exemptions for health care needs, is backed by 77% of Vancouverites (-8).
More than four-in-five Vancouverites (83%, -10) believe it would be a “good” idea to require restaurants and coffee shops to provide recycling options for the disposable cups they give out.
Almost two thirds of residents (65%, +11) think it would be a good idea to ban the distribution of disposable cups altogether, while three-in-five (60%, +5) say customers should pay an additional fee for the disposable cups they require when purchasing a beverage.
Methodology:
Results are based on an online study conducted from November 12 to November 15, 2019, among 400 adults in the City of Vancouver. The data has been statistically weighted according to Canadian census figures for age, gender and region in the City of Vancouver. The margin of error—which measures sample variability—is +/- 4.9 percentage points, nineteen times out of twenty.
Find our full data set here and download the press release here.
For more information on this poll, please contact:
Mario Canseco, President, Research Co.
778.929.0490
[e] mario.canseco@researchco.ca