Bourne considering ban on nip bottles
BUZZARDS BAY – The Bourne Recycling Committee is considering a ban on those small liquor bottles known as nips because of the litter they represent along town roadways and highways.
Recycling Chair Heather Mastromatteo told the Select Board that members of her committee are willing to consider all options and alternatives to requesting an outright ban on sales of alcohol nips. She said, in Falmouth, listening sessions held with residents were instrumental in the creation of a nips ban in the town, and the committee learned there is a need for communication with those on all sides of the issue.
More:Mashpee nip ban starts Thursday despite liquor store owner objections
The Recycling Committee will meet with local liquor store owners at noonon Nov. 17 in the Bourne Public Library to consider the issue. Members may meet with the public that evening at the library if that session does not conflict with a state presentation about new highway bridges across the canal.
How will the ban affect liquor stores?
Select Board Chair Peter Meier said nips represent 25% of liquor store sales and that a ban on the small bottles could adversely affect local liquor stores. He suggests that a start to deal with the littering problem might include placing a bottle deposit on nip sales.
“It would be interesting to see how bans in other towns affected liquor store sales,” Select Board member Jared MacDonald said.
Select Board member Mary Jane Mastrangelo said it would be worthwhile to consider all alternatives to a nips ban.
“Not a good thing,” she said. “This is a good topic to have a good discussion about.”
More:Falmouth town meeting passes ban on nip bottles
A nip bottle ban took effect in Mashpee this past summer following a 3-2 vote by selectmen. A Falmouth ban took place in October 2021. Wareham adopted one in May 2022.
Beyond roadside litter, other communities that have considered what to do about nips have also discussed public health aspects of the issue.
Liquor store owners have argued that customers who can’t buy nips in one place will proceed to another. They say nips bring customers into stores who also buy quantities of cigarettes, sodas, convenience items, impulse items and lottery tickets.
There are five Massachusetts communities that have nip bans in place: Newton, Chelsea, Falmouth, Mashpee and Wareham.
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This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Bourne seeks public comment about nip bottle ban to prevent litter
