Port Townsend City Council has just invested in 10,000 reusable shopping bags.

The days of the single-use plastic bag seem to be numbered, with not only individuals but councils choosing paper and reusable shopping bags as a more environmentally-friendly option.

This week Port Townsend City Council has recently waded into the debate by approving the purchase of 10,000 reusable shopping bags.

Half of these bags will be distributed throughout the community for free, with plans for the other half still under consideration, Peninsula Daily News reports.

Handing out these free bags is all part of the city's new stance on bagging, with a ban on single-use plastic shopping bags in supermarkets and other stores coming into effect on November 1st.

This comes after the council unanimously approved the proposition in July.

Port Townsend will become the sixth Washington city to pass a similar ordinance, following in the footsteps of Bainbridge Island, Bellingham, Edmonds, Issaquah, Mukilteo and Seattle.

This week six council members voted in favour of buying the reusable bags, after they received widespread public support.

Speaking of the development, Main Street executive director Mari Mullen said: "We haven't developed a plan, but we are looking to get them into local stores and have them be a point of contact for people to get the bags."

Under the new laws, bags for produce, newspapers and dry cleaning will still be allowed to be bought, and any merchants can continue to use the plastic bags they already have until their supply runs out, even if this is after the law's effective date.

Instead of using plastic bags stores will instead provide standard-sized paper shopping bags, some with and some without handles, each of will incur a five-cent 'pass through' charge.

Free paper bags of the same size will not be permitted, however different sizes are not affected by the new rules, the council claims.