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Officials in Long Beach are busy preparing businesses and consumers that the city's ban on disposable, single-use plastic shopping bags goes into effect on August 1st. Their campaign, "Take a Tote," has found the city hosting reusable bag giveaways at various locations in the LBC to help customers get all geared up for the switch.
Long Beach has also created a website that provides information about the ban, including what retailers are affected. The August 1 date is for "large" retailers, like major chain grocery and drug stores. Smaller retailers will need to ditch the plastic by January 1, 2012.
Says Vice Mayor Suja Lowenthal of the ban:
“Long Beach is ground zero for plastic bag pollution in southern California. What starts out as litter on the street 40 miles away from Long Beach becomes marine debris half buried on our beaches or floating in a few feet of water off our shores. As a beach city, and particularly one that is located at the base of the Los Angeles River, I hope our ban will inspire upstream cities to think sustainably, and consider reducing their plastic waste as well.”
The movement to ban the bag in Long Beach began in late 2010, and was approved in May 2011. Similarly to the ban imposed in unincorporated Los Angeles county, which recently went into effect, consumers may purchase a paper bag for 10 cents apiece, but stores are prohibited from distributing disposable plastic bags.
