July 24th, 2008

By John DeFore

In another development sure to result in gray hair, if not legal action, for those in the plastics industry, the city of Los Angeles voted this week to ban plastic bags by July of 2010.

The city’s action isn’t a law, though: It will only become one if the state of California fails to adopt a 25-cent fee for plastic bag use that has been proposed but was met with resistence earlier this year. As a result, plastic-bag advocates tell the Los Angeles Times that this week’s vote won’t inspire any additional legal challenge from the industry.

Other cities like San Francisco have taken various kinds of action on retail bag use, from total bans on non-biodegradable plastic to discouraging the use of disposables via taxes. While previous efforts to ban plastic bags outright in L.A. have been abandoned by the city, it seems likely that some action beyond mere volunteer campaigns will eventually be seen: The City Council vote was 13 to 0, and accompanied a measure to eliminate Styrofoam food containers at city events and facilities.

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