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SLO proposed bag ban speeding up

September 7, 2011

By JOSH FRIEDMAN

In a presentation before the San Luis Obispo City Council Tuesday night, Integrated Waste Management Association manager Bill Worell laid out a plan in which a county ban on single use plastic and paper bags would go into effect September 2012.

Previously slated to become law in January 2013, the proposed ordinance will be drafted by the Integrated Waste Management Association (IWMA) board on September 14.

The board is currently considering three different possibilities varying in tolerance for paper bags. Two of the three possibilities would require effected stores to sell bags for a nickel a piece to customers who do bring reusable ones.

If the ordinance becomes law, it will be rolled out in two stages. The first stage, beginning September 2012, will ban single-use plastic and paper bags in all grocery stores and in retail stores consisting of over 10,000 square feet and containing a pharmacy. Beginning in January 2013, the second phase will include all pharmacies, convenience stores and retail stores without pharmacies.

Following Worell’s presentation, a long public comment period ensued in which most speakers voiced their support for the proposed bag ban.

Two San Luis Obispo residents, however, took strong objection to the proposal.

“This is not a single use bag ban. That’s ridiculous,” said Kevin Rice. “What comes in every box of cereal? A plastic bag. What is in every trashcan in this building? A plastic bag. There’re plastic bags all over this world.”

“Are we going to have bag police?” asked Gary Fowler. “Are you going to go around in the stores and issue citations if they don’t comply with the size of bags and type of bags?”

Despite the proposed inconsistencies in enforcement, other San Luis Obispo residents were quick to shrug off any and all reasons to rethink the bag ban.

“There’s gonna be some grumbling,” said Brian Engleton. “But, it makes sense.”

Echoing the need to act on the issue, the city council voiced unanimous support for the IWMA enacting some sort of ban on single-use bags.

One member of the council, vice mayor John Ashbaugh, represents San Luis Obispo on the IWMA board.

“I think [the proposed ordinance] is important and symbolic,” Ashbaugh said. “It may make a difference in just the way people approach the way they go about their daily lives.”

Once crafted on September 14, the county ordinance will be scheduled for readings on November 9 and January 11, 2012.


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Well, if the incompetent city manager would have dealt with the used mower theft by one of her employees better, that money could have purchased a bag for each of us. The city council can’t help with the unemployment situation but they sure have time to push this through. What a crock of crap in this economy.


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I’m going to start saving small boxes and take them into the store. At Food For Less, Trader Joe’s, etc you can get boxes. Cleaner, easier to place groceries, and easier to care into the house. This Nano State and right right idiots are really getting one my nerves. Every week it is something: fitted sheets, male circumcism, bags for my groceries, next then they will be telling when and how often we can have sex. Get the F$@? out of my life!


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I’m getting tired of that &#@$. Tired of that &#@$. I’m tired of &#@$ing Earth Day, I’m tired of these self-righteous environmentalists, these white, bourgeois liberals who think the only thing wrong with this country is there aren’t enough bicycle paths. People trying to make the world save for their Volvos. Besides, environmentalists don’t give a &#@$ about the planet. They don’t care about the planet. Not in the abstract they don’t. Not in the abstract they don’t. You know what they’re interested in? A clean place to live. Their own habitat. They’re worried that some day in the future, they might be personally inconvenienced. Narrow, unenlightened self-interest doesn’t impress me.


– George Carlin


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Ya, those insufferable egoist that want a clean environment and are willing to suffer a small inconvenience , damn them all to hell! lol. Your tongue must be sore from sticking it in your cheek.


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Oops, replied to George Carlin, boy is my face red


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If you are willing to suffer inconvenience, small or otherwise, have at it. I am unwilling, and resent the fact that the anile ninnies that hold public office in this county are taking away my choice.


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Unwilling as most typical Americans-making small changes can help start to teach kids to work towards maintaining a cleaner life-supporting planet-Increased Cancer is the result ofso many toxins in our air, food, water and everywhere-Use a freakin paper bag!

You can GROW trees for this purpose-geez!


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Um…they’re banning the paper bags as well….


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I guess I’ll be paying a nickle per bag, then. It’s worth it to avoid the hassle of bringing my own bags to the store. Then I’ll go throw ’em on the front lawns of Bill Worell, Brian Engleton, and John Ashbaugh.


What a bunch of interfering busybodies.


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F.A.Q.s and FARCE:


WHY IS PAPER ALSO BANNED?

Because this isn’t a plastic bag ban. It’s a “single use bag” ban. Paper is known not to biodegrade well when tightly packed in a land fill. I’m certain the plastic bag lawyers have pointed this out in court. You can’t discriminate unfairly so that’s why it is a “single use” ban, not a plastic ban.


WON’T THIS BAN SAVE THE ____ (pelicans/whales/litter/etc)?

No. Because it’s not a ban on much of anything. While the proposed ordinance targets thin, single-use bags, “reusable bags” are not banned (see below). Further, the proposal doesn’t cover the many, many other plastic film and paper sources which provide abundant litter. Look again on the side of the road–is it really grocery bags? Or, is it fast food and product packaging? And what else? The ban is very narrow. There will remain PLENTY of other sources, which I believe are the preponderance.


BUT I LOVE PELICANS/WHALES/ETC!!!

Sorry. This ban could likely INCREASE the amount of non-degradable paper and plastic resources put into the environment (see HEAVY PAPER/PLASTIC BAGS below). Go complain to the Sierra Club. They were there last night supporting this.


WHAT’S A REUSABLE BAG?

Commonly, people think of cloth and other type bags as the replacement for single use bags. HOWEVER, the THICK PLASTIC AND PAPER bags such as the type supplied by Trader Joes are also considered reusable because they are more durable. Reusable bags must also have handles–paper bags typically have heavy kraft paper handles, where plastic bags typically have handle holes.


SO HEAVY PAPER AND PLASTIC BAGS ARE NOT BANNED?

Nope! Heavy bags that use far more resources to produce and are far less easily degraded after disposal are not banned.


WHY ARE HEAVY PAPER/PASTIC BAGS NOT BANNED?

Short answer: Lawyers. As long as a bag is reusable (technically, can withstand 150 uses and has handles) then it is not a single-use bag. You cannot discriminate against any manufacturer for the type of material because any bag deemed “reusable” is a stand-alone product just like a cloth or vinyl bag.


WHY WILL I BE TAXED (CHARGED) 5-CENTS FOR EACH BAG?

Lawyers again. By forcing the stores to sell you a bag (if you don’t bring your own), they are actually selling a product instead of giving away single-use bags (banned).


WORSE: THE 5-CENT BAG TAX WILL BUY HEAVY PAPER/PLASTIC BAGS!

Yep. The bags sold by stores (if you don’t bring your own) will be the heavy paper/plastic “approved” reusable type. Many people will start supplying their own bags, and many will not. For those that don’t, the bags will be many times more wasteful of resources. It’s anyone’s guess whether the result will remove or add waste. Will you really reuse your heavy “Trader Joe” type bag 150 times? I doubt it. You get to pay for something you don’t need or want.


$100,000 TAX MONEY FOR “STATE APPROVED” BAGS?

Yep. The IWMA has set aside $100,000 of your tax money to purchase and distribute State-approved reusable bags (smells like communism to me). Sorry, but I’m jaundiced on this one. How can we complain about firefighter/police salary and go spend $100K on a bag give-away?


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I have to agree that the way they are going about this doesn’t make much sense.


Surprisingly, this sort of falls in line with what one of the posters (KimM on Warding off Water Wars) was talking about concerning the UN Agenda 21 and the ICLEI, earlier today. I’m still reading about this UN Agenda (there are many sites that address it), it’s some strange stuff with idea’s about changing people’s habit’s through the infiltration and special interest (tax $$) rewards at all levels of local governments. Currently all local cities in SLO county are members. I’m all for protecting our environment and sustainability considerations but some of this stuff gets rather twisted and it appears more about control of citizens through an insidious nanny gov take over! I don’t know what to think, I’m going to be reading up on this during my free time for a while!


Check out KimM’s post on the Warding off Water Wars Article. It caught my attention.


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Not mentioned in the article, but will they ban the very light plastic produce bags too? We’ve been using our own carrying bags for quite some time now up here in Oregon, the store gives you a 5c rebate for every one you use but the light produce bags are indispensable when you pick up wet produce. (they water produce every few minutes to keep it fresh) Honestly don’t miss the larger bags but there is a learning curve to remember to bring your own carrying bag into the store.


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Produce bags aren’t considered the final retail carry-away container so they aren’t included. Neither are pharmacy bags which are considered to protect privacy.


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Thanks for clearing that up. We have found using the cloth reusable bags to be no problem, just remember to keep a few in the car so they are there when you go to the market. Honestly, we don’t even think twice about it anymore.


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That’s exactly how the government wants it’s subjects to be… don’t think twice, just obey / comply.


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Except government had nothing to do with my experience, it was the markets up here in Oregon offering a 5c rebate for using your own bag, seems a win-win situation. Now I do understand some folks having issues with government mandates on this issue, but what I don’t understand is why anyone would have an issue with someone that WANTS to use their own bag. Do I get a thumbs down for being proactive on my own initiative?


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Sorry, I misread your comment; I saw “we” and assumed you meant Oregoneons… guess you might have meant your immediate family?


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I do not now, or ever claim to speak for anyone else but myself and my wife on occasion. Apology accepted.


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Sounds like another good reason to NOT shop in san luis. Sorry SLO retailers, I am done spending money in your city. This nanny state crap has to stop.


.


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its just another way for the city to take controll.


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This is a proposed ban for all SLO County, not just SLO City.


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Wasn’t or isn’t this also being considered STATE-wide? Thought I read that somewhere a while ago.


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Kevin, I would imagine that the reason for banning grocery bags as opposed to cereal bags, trash bags etc is the amount of grocery bags that we consume. They end up everywhere. I see grocery bags on the side of the road, at the beach, in the parks, there’s really not many places that you can go to without finding an old grocery bag. I threw one away from my neighbors yard today. I don’t see those other bags everywhere and that’s in part because there aren’t so many of them. Again, just guessing, I’m not sure but it makes sense to me. I would imagine that pretty soon they’ll start making more of those bio plastic bags that Sun Chips come in. I know that they probably cost more but if a potato chip co. can use them and still

make a profit I’m not sure why they can’t make other bags with the same material.


I’m all for this….big surprise eh.


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He didn’t mention a particular race.


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I can understand banning plastic bags. But why paper bags? They come from a renewable resource and they’re biodegradable.


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Perhaps it’s because of deforestation. If we all of a sudden start using 10 times more paper bags then it will be put to big a drain on the forests. Just a guess.


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There are entire forests harvested, replanted, and harvested again for the use in the manufacture of paper.


I’m really getting sick and tired of these “symbolic” laws that keep getting shoved down our throats.


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Pulp used for paper production in the US comes from tree farms that are sustainably grown and managed for that purpose and thus do not contribute to deforestation. In fact, in the US has a yearly net gain in forested land.


The story as written provides no hint as to why paper bags are included in this proposed ban. Perhaps there is no reason.


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Aren’t the democrats a bundle of fun, and yes there’s a reason. Control of your life. Research the role “environmentalism” played in the rise of Nazi Germany.


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How angry are people at their elected officials when a law about bags, BAGS, invokes imagery of nazi-ism.


Try to have some perspective.


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I agree, so much hate. It makes no sense, pure stupidity.


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Ah ha! You noticed that! See my comment above.


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an uncle works in a place that manufactures plastic film in northern Utah the place is pristine even by Utah standards the bag factory is clean there is no toxic waste,

another uncle is involved wood products handling manufacturing ,clearcutting hardwood in indonesia pulp for japanese news papers, polluted water waste oil from machinery toxic chemicals shipped half way round the world to feed massive smelly paper mills for something that gets used once and tossed. plastic please made from natural gas and water.


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