One of the most frustrating things about being an out-of-state student is not having access to easily accessible, state-related election information. The only way I would have known about Proposition 67 is by having researched each of my props or by following various activist groups on social media, which is what I have done. A proposition like this doesn't sound out of the ordinary out here in the Pacific Northwest, but I wonder if it's getting the same response back home in southern California. It's the first statewide bag ban in the nation, and as an environmental science student I'm very excited to see how California votes.
Proposition 67 is protecting the ban on plastic bags that has already been put in place in 2014. The use of disposable plastic bags has been phasing out since then, with already more than 150 communities in California banning them. It has had a lot of support among environmentally conscious groups, local governments, business groups, unions, and retailers. Personally, it's an obvious decision supporting the ban, but I can also see why certain business-owners may be opposed. It's unfortunate that often times monetary profit is valued over environmental health, but it's a part of sustainability that has to include the way humans have an economy to upkeep, which supports families and the like. It's a balance, but in this case not one that i think has to compromise marine health.
With the ban, there will be not only less of the bags being distributed but an educational message being sent throughout the state and nation that this is a direction that the United States may want to move toward. It inspires future environmental stewards too, which is just what the planet needs. Who would be opposed to the idea of their son or daughter pursuing education about their home and how to help it? And for individuals who are looking to help in any small way, this is perfect! I don't think its terribly difficult to keep a reusable bag in the car or fold a compact one in a purse. Or backpack. Especially with all of the communities that have banned them already, it's obvious that there hasn't been any kind of uproar over it.
As for the environmental good it will do, less plastic means less pollution. Plastic bags are a thin-film, making it difficult to be recycled and for that reason not many places accept them in the recycling. Or if they do, it can become such a big problem that if enough of the film contaminates the load, the whole batch will be sent to the landfills instead. These policies differ depending on where you are, but the information should be accessible. This is not to say to stop recycling completely, because landfill technology is far better than letting it go onto the streets and into our water systems. Which is where the plastic bags would end up, tricking marine life into thinking they're jellyfish or something else that's edible. That plastic stays in their bodies until eventually they die, recycling the plastic back into the environment or, if they were caught, into our bodies.
