Ottawa announces plans to ban single-use plastics starting in 2021 at the earliest

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says his government will ban single-use plastics — which could include bags, straws and cutlery — in Canada in 2021 at the earliest.

"We need to cover all of Canada with this decision and that's why the federal government is moving forward on a science-based approach to establishing which harmful single-use plastics we will be eliminating as of 2021," said Trudeau during a stop Monday at the Gault Nature Reserve in Mont St-Hilaire, just outside Montreal.

A full list of banned items isn't set in stone, but a government source told CBC News that the list also could include items like cotton swabs, drink stirrers, plates and balloon sticks. Fast-food containers and cups made of expanded polystyrene, which is similar to white Styrofoam, will also be banned, said the source.