Plastic Bag Ban Takes Effect In Laguna Beach

LAGUNA BEACH (CBSLA.com) — Retail customers in Laguna Beach will no longer be able to choose between paper and plastic without paying a little extra.

KNX 1070's Mike Landa reports the city became the first in Orange County on Tuesday to join a growing number of California communities prohibiting stores from providing customers with single-use plastic carryout bags.

The ordinance (PDF) adopted by the City Council in February prohibits any plastic bag less than 2.25 milliters thick, including bio-based plastic bags made from plant sources such as corn.

However, the ordinance does not apply to plastic produce bags used to carry fruits, vegetables and meat and poultry items.

Grocery stores, convenience marts and other retail outlets in the city are allowed to provide only recycled paper bags or reusable bags to customers, and must charge customers 10 cents for each paper bag requested.

According to the Laguna Beach city website, those funds will be kept by the store as "an incentive to encourage shoppers to use reusable bags."

Other Southland cities including Los Angeles, Manhattan Beach, West Hollywood, and Long Beach have adopted similar measures over the past year.

But the American Progressive Bag Alliance (APBA) - which represents workers in the plastics industry - and other opponents said the ordinance will ultimately hurt consumers pocketbooks and push the marketplace toward less sustainable alternatives.