2024-09-24 12:55:02
Gov. Gavin Newsom has officially signed a new bill banning all plastic bags in California grocery stores including in Santa Clarita.
The new bill, SB 1053, changes the current plastic bag ban to make plastic bags no longer an option at checkout for people shopping in California.
Starting Jan. 1, 2026, shoppers who do not bring their reusable bags will simply be asked if they want a paper bag for their goods, for a small fee, according to state legislators.
This new bill comes after a long history of attempts to reduce plastic waste at checkouts in California. Established by the passage of SB 270, the first plastic bag ban allowed stores to sell “thicker plastic bags” to customers to reuse and recycle, but the reality is people hardly do so.
“The previous bill allowed stores to sell customers thicker plastic carryout bags that were considered reusable and met certain recyclability standards. However, the truth is almost none of those bags are reused or recycled, and they end up in landfills or polluting the environment,” said State Sen. Catherine Blakespear in a statement.
One state study pointed out by Blakespear revealed that the amount of plastic shopping bags trashed per person went from 8 pounds per year in 2004 to 11 pounds per year in 2021.
Environmental non-profit Oceana was thrilled to hear about Newsom signing this bill and safeguarding California’s coastline and marine life.
“The new ban on single-use plastic bags at grocery store checkouts solidifies California as a leader in tackling the global plastic pollution crisis,” said Oceana’s plastics campaign director Christy Leavitt.
Along with California, 12 other states have put plastic bag bans into effect.
On Sunday, the California Public Interest Research Group, a nonprofit dedicated to consumer protections, said this new bill finally meets the intent of the original plastic ban that was introduced in 2014.
“Plastic bags create pollution in our environment and break into microplastics that contaminate our drinking water and threaten our health. Californians voted to ban plastic grocery bags in our state almost a decade ago, but the law clearly needed a redo,” said the group’s director Jenn Engstrom.
Ed. Note: This story written by Kamryn Martell.
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