LA: Plastic Bags BANNED In Parts Of Los Angeles County
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LOS ANGELES — Parts of Los Angeles County have joined other California communities in banning stores from using single-use plastic bags.
County supervisors approved the measure 3-1 on Tuesday in hopes of preventing billions of bags from polluting neighborhoods and waterways. It bans stores from giving customers single-use plastic bags and would require them to charge 10 cents for each paper bag.
The ordinance, which goes into effect next year, 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, such as the city of Los Angeles, which is apparently looking at the county's findings to craft its own proposed ban.
Supporters erupted in clapping and cheering when the ban was approved. The audience included an activist draped in hundreds of plastic bags.
The vote was especially meaningful for Assemblywoman Julia Brownley, D-Santa Monica, who tried and failed to pass a statewide ban in August. Brownley has been an outspoken critic of the use of plastic bags, saying only a very small percentage are recycled and that they take hundreds of years to decompose.
"This is just the beginning of a wave of bans against single-use plastic bags across California," Brownley said.
Opponents who spoke at the meeting urged supervisors to vote against the ban, saying it would cause residents to lose much-needed jobs and that the fees for reusable and paper bags would be an unfair burden on residents in poorer neighborhoods.
Velma W. Union, pastor at The Lord's Church in southwest Los Angeles, said the supervisors seemed more concerned about saving the environment than people.
"There's clearly an environmental push here," she said. "Where's the balance? I don't see that anywhere."
Proponents hope that this will spur other cities to adopt similar measures. Malibu, San Francisco, Palo Alto and Fairfax have also banned single-use plastic bags.
Other California communities such as Santa Monica, Marin, San Jose and Santa Clara also are considering bans this year.
Longtime clean water advocate Mark Gold, with the environmental group Heal the Bay, called the vote a "huge win."
"The cost of convenience can no longer be at the cost of the environment for centuries to come," said Gold.
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NOAKI SCHWARTZ 11/16/10 07:19 PM ET Associated Press