On a recent day trip to the scenic tourist haunt that is Elora, Ontario, (and being the wine enthusiast that I am) I popped into the LCBO to catch a glimpse of what their small town liquor store had on offer. But it wasn't the surprisingly diverse selection that they had in their Vintages corner that grabbed my attention. It was a simple, desktop computer printed sign at the checkout that did.

As of July 1st 2008, the Elora LCBO will no longer be using their super sturdy, glossy, signature plastic bags. Instead, paper will be used, and reusable cloth bags will also be sold for $1.00.

When I asked the staff if this move away from plastic bags was exclusive to the Elora store I was told that the move was an LCBO province-wide initiative. Apparently the premier Dalton McGuinty's suggestion to phase out plastic bags at the LCBO was taken to heart.

While many people are sure to be disappointed that they'll lose the best cat litter/heavy item carrier/wet garbage disposal bags known to Ontario, this is a step in the right direction.

If we could see more large-scale retailers do the same, the overall impact could be more than just a tip of the iceberg (pun intended).

Are those green plastic mesh collars that they use to keep bottles from clanging into one another going to be the next to go? Are they even worth replacing with paper collars, or would it be better to just stop using anything for this frivolous purpose?