Toronto Mayor David Miller took another stab at waste reduction Wednesday when he officially proposed that a nickel charge be placed on every plastic bag taken from grocery stores.

The mayor told reporters at a news conference Wednesday morning that he had the support of executives with the supermarket industry, particularly Galen Weston Jr., the head of Loblaws.

No Frills, Loblaw's low-end chain of grocery stores, has long had the nickel-charge policy in place. Many locations offer their customers carton boxes to pack their groceries instead.

"This is a major step forward in our efforts to reduce waste," Miller said. "The city approved a set of recommendations designed for the city to meet its goal. The recommendations are bold but our targets are ambitious and require bold actions."

Toronto, as part of its waste-diversion goal, has vowed to divert 70 per cent of the city's waste from landfills. In 2007, Toronto diverted 42 per cent of its waste.

This new plastic bag proposal comes weeks after city councillors sparked a heated debate over a plan to have retailers offer a 10-cent discount to customers who bring their own bag to carry groceries. Other ideas included banning coffee cups or offering a 20-cent discount to customers who brought in their own coffee mug.

Critics panned the idea, saying it was unworkable because it would cost retailers millions.

"Since the last meeting we worked with retailers and we reached an agreement with the country's largest grocery retailers," said Miller. "To level the playing field, we are using a charge rather than a rebate to discourage the use of plastic bags. Grocers, in turn, have committed to reducing bags in distribution."

The charge, if passed by council next month, could be put in place by June.

Miller said a 2005 study shows an average household in Toronto generates about eight to nine plastic bags each week. That totals about 460 million plastic bags each year, with most of them landing in landfills.

The mayor said even though the city is going to start accepting plastic as a recyclable item starting Dec. 8, people still need to emphasize their eco efforts on reducing rather than recycling waste.

"It's environmentally sound and cost effective to reduce waste rather than recycle," he said.

"What's bad for the environment is waste and what's bad for business is waste."

They mayor said he's hoping retailers in other industries will implement the charge as well.

City council is scheduled to meet next week to discuss a host of ideas meant to reduce waste and tackle unnecessary packaging.