Just like with the smoking ban, Moose Jaw's youth are pressing City Hall to make changes that could lead the way for the rest of the province. The youth advisory committee is requesting city council draft a plan to ban single-use plastic bags.

Rachel Butt sits on the Youth Advisory Committee

"We know that plastic is not readily biodegradable and can take up to 1000 years to break down," explained Rachel Butt from Cornerstone Christian School, who spoke on the group's behalf. "Anyone who has arrived in Moose Jaw from the east or has visited our landfill has witnessed the detrimental effect that plastic waste has had on our community."

"Environmental stewardship is everyone's reasonability and this is why we, the youth of Moose Jaw, need our community to pull together for the sake of ourselves and future generations. Let's be at the forefront, let's be the change."

The campaign against single-use plastic bags has gained momentum in recent years as more scientific organizations join the charge. Some show the negative impact on wildlife and our bodies of water, while others focus on the impact in communities through litter and growing landfills.

This is not the first time that a group of youth have attempted to have City Hall ban plastic bags. Mayor Fraser Tolmie received over 250 letters from Vanier Collegiate students last spring but nothing ever came from the request, with the mayor saying the school year was about to end and there was no time to follow up with the students. He says this time will be different.

"I believe that they're going to be meeting with us in executive committee and I think that's a great time for the next generation to engage with council and tell them what type of world they want to grow up in," said Tolmie.

Non-committal for now, Tolmie says anything could happen with the request and likened it to the smoking bylaw that was also generated through student engagement in the community. It led to a citywide vote that supported the banning of smoking indoors and eventually expanded to the rest of the province.