by © MrBill ..
Member since:
December 28, 2006

Bag Ladies Lose Option in San Francisco

March 28, 2007 09:20 AM UTC (Updated: March 28, 2007 09:50 AM UTC)
views: 0 | comments: 34

 

Bag Ladies Lose Option in San Francisco

 

Yesterday, on a 10 to 1 vote, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors made their choice known in the ubiquitous paper versus plastic grocery bagging quandry. The vote bans non-biodegradable plastic bags in the city's large grocery stores and pharmacies. This ground-breaking new ordinance, probably the first of its kind in the US, will take effect in six months affecting drug and grocery stores with annual sales greater than $2million. Once the ordinance is in place, the bag choices will be paper or your pocket!

 ... wonder if customers will still  be able to bring their own plastic bags ...

 

When getting  bagged  what is your preference???

 

Comments: 34

Deb J. Mar 28, 2007, 9:26am UTC
What a strange ordinance when we already have so many issues!
Μόףףý ● ķ ~ Mar 28, 2007, 9:29am UTC
That's California for ya!
amanda w. Mar 28, 2007, 9:36am UTC
Go Bears! Huh?
Veronica V. Mar 28, 2007, 9:45am UTC
Wow! I used to live in SF, and with all the other issues going on in the state, is this really a necessary ordinance? While I certainly miss it there.... The government was always annoying at best!
Cathy S. Mar 28, 2007, 10:06am UTC
I do believe this IS a necessary ordinance and I wish so much that it was implemented in every state. Over a BILLION plastic bags are given out each day. An estimated 8 billion pounds of plastic bags, wraps and sacks enter the waste stream every year in the US alone.

I have some really great canvas bags that stand up like paper bags for easy bagging at the store, I can have a full cart of food packed into about five of them - forget the 25 plastic bags that it might take otherwise! To see them for yourself, check out www.reusablebags.com
© MrBill .. Mar 28, 2007, 10:18am UTC
CathyS, I should have known you would be a cat of the cloth! ;-)

I am a bit surprised that more gatherers aren't chiming in about reusable sacks.
♯ ♪ Mar 28, 2007, 10:25am UTC
Heh heh... SF is it's own little nation. Doesn't surprise me in the least bit. However, the plastic bags make great tents for the homeless, so now I wonder what they're going to do... Paper would melt away.
Cathy S. Mar 28, 2007, 10:37am UTC
I'm also surprised that it's not a hotter topic. I've been trying to convert people to canvas for ages but without too much luck. They're sturdier, easier to carry, and I don't have hundreds of bags floating around my kitchen!
Joe H. Mar 28, 2007, 11:11am UTC
That's the left coast for ya,

"When getting bagged what is your preference???"
A nice Pinot works for me or a short glass of Jamesons Irish Wiskey
Lainie - Just Lainie Mar 28, 2007, 11:37am UTC
While you guys are shocked that this isn't a "hotter topic".... But... I'm not surprised at all... I mean, look at the state of the earth. We're allowing global warming to take over without much debate. Of course there are some groups that are taking steps towards preserving the environment but the majority of Americans are gluttons. Unless they THEMSELVES get fried by the ozone being depleted or lack of trees, it's not a "real" problem. It's only a problem for those pesky polar bears, penguins, etc.
We're very lax unless it happens to us. Most of us don't feel the effects of plastic hurting the environment so we don't care and keep using plastic bags! I know I do... But... I also use them as small garbage bags for my car, bathroom and the like.
Jennifer- Very lucky mommy S. Mar 28, 2007, 11:58am UTC
db10
Sue B.© The Sting IS Worse Than the Buzz Mar 28, 2007, 11:58am UTC
Well now, aren't these the same people that are concerned with tree conservation?
courtney e. Mar 28, 2007, 11:59am UTC
i know that for some stores they sell you bags but other then that you have to bring your own way of carrying the things that you buy. i think that as small as that is it helps. they only sell plastic bags but by making you pay for them people tend to reuse them as much as they can to save money. i think that if stores want to still use plastic bags they should make ones like these that are studier and can be reused over and over again.
Sue B.© The Sting IS Worse Than the Buzz Mar 28, 2007, 12:02pm UTC
Well to answer your question, my last grocery shipment was delivered by Stop & Shop's Peapod Service. I wasn't home when they brought it so I'm not sure if it was delivered in paper or plastic. Probably both! OOOOOOOOOOOPPPPS
Jessica B. Mar 28, 2007, 12:25pm UTC
I agree that we need to cut down on the use of plastic bags, but I'm tired of government taking their time to deal with things like this. California seems to be one of the worst for issues like these. And I prefer bringing my own bag when I'm not going to get too many things- otherwise, I'll take whatever they have.
Deb J. Mar 28, 2007, 12:32pm UTC
Lainie, I use them like you do. As small wastebasket liners instead of garbage bags.
wendey h. Mar 28, 2007, 12:44pm UTC
We use those plastic grocery bags for all sorts of things around the house, lining wastebaskets, scooping the litter box, storing wet paintbrushes, carrying muddy shoes, etc. We would really miss them if they were banned here in NY.

That being said.....I'm sure that we could adjust. I noticed just the other day that Wegmans is now selling sturdy reusable bags for .99 each in their stores. It would make sense to me to purchase 5 or 6 of those to reuse, rather than contribute to the waste problem.
Carol Lloyd Mar 28, 2007, 1:24pm UTC
Great article
Gerry Wass Mar 28, 2007, 1:55pm UTC
I wish I knew more background about the ordinance and the debate that went into it. I suspect it has something to do with what I see in my area, which is plastic bags all over the countryside, stuck in trees and on fences. Eventually they find their way into watercourses and finally to the sea where I believe they become serious threats to some forms of marine life. Therefore I suspect that the issue is much, much bigger than we imagine. Thanks for bringing this to my attention!
Leti *. Mar 28, 2007, 2:25pm UTC
What's the big deal if stores don't offer plastic?

I think this is a move in the right direction. I'm always excited to hear what new ideas are out there.

Plastic bags are also made of some form of petroleum (sorry, I don't know what kind) and we're already paying a high penny for gas. They are also not as biodegradable as paper. Along with water pollution, urban sprawl, and the exploding human population, every little bit counts to help our earth.
© MrBill .. Mar 28, 2007, 2:27pm UTC
Well, this was slow to get going. Interesting how so many keyed on the perceived weirdness of San Francisco and California law-making rather than topics such as the use of plastic bags, environment, business operations, or even the question posed about how they preferred to get bagged. Also surprised there are no comments about bag ladies ... interesting what grabs folks' attention ...
Chris Wiegard Mar 28, 2007, 2:30pm UTC
I have no objection to this. So many people argue for consumer freedom and argue that consumers will always pick the best option, but it always ends up being the most convenient option for the consumer, never for wildlife safety and for the environment.
And yes you can argue that plastic bags can be recycled. But please be serious, who does that? My local area has curbside pickup of glass, aluminum, plastic and paper. And I look up and down the block on pickup day and there's my bin plus two more out of 20 homes. The possibility of recycling ends up being an excuse for a polluting product, just as the possibility of E85 ethanol fuel ends up being an excuse for buying a two-ton SUV that gets maybe 12 miles a gallon of gas.
© MrBill .. Mar 28, 2007, 2:45pm UTC
ChrisW - Here in Tahoe we have to take our recyclibles to a transfer station. They accept most of the things you mentioned. I said most. They won't take bundled newspapers, glass and poly containers that are not tagged with a return deposit, or bundled plastic bags. Strange, because if you just stick any of those in your regular trash they pick it up and it goes to the same damn transfer station to be sorted for disposal or recycling ...
Leti *. Mar 28, 2007, 2:48pm UTC
I forgot to say that the best way to go are tote bags so we don't use trees for bags...but one baby step at a time for us..
Karolyn Q. Mar 28, 2007, 4:38pm UTC
I never liked the plastic bags anyway. The only place that has plastic bags that don't get torn up is Target. I reuse all my plastic bags for garbage and other things around the house though. It makes no sense to buy the trash can liners for us.
Cecile V. Mar 28, 2007, 4:48pm UTC
I heard this on KTLA morning news. Environmentally a sound idea - but why do we need one more law to tell us what we ought to do? I actually prefer the plastic bags, I can grab up several packages and get more in the house at one time. Mainly because they have handles. If paper bags all come with handles like Trader Joe's, then that's no problem. Maybe we need to pass a law for biodegradable plastic bags & paper bags with handles only.

Non biodegradable plastic bags can be used for liners as Karolyn Q. suggested afore me, and make great stuffing for puff curtains. There must be other craft projects that they can be used for as well. Let's pass a law that requires that all non biodegradable plastic bags be recycled into something useful like that!
© MrBill .. Mar 28, 2007, 5:43pm UTC
Cecile - one of the things I purposely left out of this article about the new ordinance is that there is a provisio for bio-degradable - made from corn starch - type plastic bags. Businesses oppose this option for economic reasons as the bio-bags are much more expensive at this time. These bags are probably along the lines of when packaging pellets made from corn starch came out to replace styrofoam peanuts.
Lisa Lisa Mar 28, 2007, 6:09pm UTC
I'm an ecobag user. The plastic bags irk my nerves. LOL I don't like the clutter. We don't have a recycling program in my city. Because of the extra clutter and lack of resources for recycling, I switched to cloth bags. I love my eco bag... it holds so much more. I don't have to make multiple trips to the car.
Cecile V. Mar 28, 2007, 6:51pm UTC
Mr. Bill, I believe KTLA reported that some places were going to charge for the bags to make up for the extra expense.
© MrBill .. Mar 29, 2007, 12:05am UTC
Cecile, that is more likely an assumption by a reporter or an off-the-cuff remark by a spokesperson of one of the retail chains. It won't work customer service-wise to charge extra for one type of bag, customers will opt for the free bags. I remember when supermarkets tried a different approach to reuseable grocery bags, they tried offering a discount for bringing your own bags. It did not matter if the bags were paper, plastic, or cloth, just supply your own bags. The few cents per bag customers were credited was not enough of an incentive to change a significant percentage of shoppers and was soon discontinued.
Kim J. Mar 29, 2007, 12:26am UTC
The plastic bags do not break down & are a nuisance. Many people have gone back to using paper bags or bringing their own canvas bags. Its another one of those type of "non-news" items that made it on the news. Trader Joes only has paper bags and no one seems to mind, in fact many people bring in their own bags. Costco and others use boxes--no one is screaming for plastic and many other supermarkets in my area offer paper bags and people request them(near Chicago--west suburbs).
We became lazy with plastic--but its bad for the environment, its also another use of petroleum and we need to cut back on both.
Jessie W. Mar 31, 2007, 12:15am UTC
This probably isn't a bad ordinance earthwise. To answer your question, I request plastic bags because then I don't have to buy other plastic bags to bag up my garbage. My question for San Francisco then, is are they also going to ban plastic trash bags altogether or are people still going to be able to pay for plastic garbage bags to bag up their trash? Are they also going to ban plastic milk bottles? How about those plastic thingies that are around 6-packs of soda or beer? The plastic cases that cell phones and chargers come in? etc., etc., etc.,
Chavonne H. Apr 13, 2011, 10:28pm UTC
Well I personally prefer plastic bags because I reuse them as trash bags at home. However, a better way to have went about this would have been to offer an environmentally friendly alternative plastic type of bag instead of just taking it all away. Paper bags can be cool but they break, the handles especially and if you don't drive and your grocery bag handle breaks and you have multiple bags, it's gonna be hard to get home. But whatever is best for the environment is what really matters, if some of us have to be inconvienced well too bad, the Earth is more important than all of us. For without Earth, there is no us.
Kathy D. Apr 13, 2011, 10:29pm UTC
I usually use plastic bags to line my small trash cans, carry lunches, etc.

Join the Conversation
Chime in! Become a Gather member to comment.
Already a member? Sign in
top
 
Gather | Friends | Groups | Share
About Gather | Engagement Marketing | Gather Points | Advertise on Gather | Gather Press | Privacy | Terms of Service | Community Guidelines
Books | Business | Celebs | Entertainment | Family | Food | Giveaways | Health | Money | Moms | News | Politics | Sports | Style | Technology | Travel | Writing
Version 18247, "Zach"; Copyright © 2013 Gather Inc. All rights reserved.