Nov 16 - LA County Passed Plastic Bag Ban
Today, the LA County Board of Supervisors adopted an ordinance to ban plastic bags and promote reusable bags in Los Angeles County. Roughly 6 billion bags are distributed in LA county every year, many which end up polluting its streets and waterways. Los Angeles County joins Malibu, San Francisco, Palo Alto and Fairfax in passing ordinances banning single-use plastic bags.
Specifically, effective July 1, 2011, this ordinance bans plastic carryout bags at supermarkets and other large retailers. It would expand to convenience stores, pharmacies, and drug stores in January of the following year. Stores are also required to charge 10 cents for each paper bag. The ordinance would apply to unincorporated parts of the county where an estimated 1.1 million people live - it does not include the 88 cities within the county.
Santa Monica, Marin, San Jose and Santa Clara are also considering bans this year. Tomorrow, the San Jose Planning Commission will consider the Final Environmental Impact Report for proposed single-use carryout bag ordinance.