-- Packaging DigestPosted -by Jenni Spinner Senior Editor

Concord, Mass. is traditionally identified as a historic small town whose most prominent citizen was writer Ralph Waldo Emerson. But after Wednesday night, the town is now known as the first in the country to ban PET bottled water.

After about two hours of debate at Wednesday night's town meeting, Warrant Article 32, the Drinking Water in Single-Serving PET Bottles Bylaw, narrowly passed by fewer than 40 votes, according to reports. The bylaw bans the sale of single-serving PET bottles of 1 liter (34 ounces) or less in Concord, and stores could be fined up to $50 for violating the ban.

Pending approval from the state's attorney general, the ban will take effect Jan. 1, which will make Concord the first town in the nation to pass a bottled water ban.