By Beckett Navarrette
Staff Writer
Hermosa Beach City Council members voted unanimously on Sept 1 to ban Hermosa Beach retailers from providing single-use plastic bags to customers in order to reduce pollution and save on clean-up fees.
Hermosa Beach retailers are now required to offer paper or reusable bags in lieu of the one-use plastic bag, with the exception of produce bags. Hermosa Beach is one of the many Southern California cities banning single-use plastic bags as a way to cut back on expensive pollution clean-up fees.
“California communities spend, on average, $133,958 annually, or $1.031 per resident, on waterway and beach cleanups,” Natural Resources Defence Council Investigator Barbara Healy Stickel said.
Although the switch from plastic to paper may seem like a significant change for all Hermosa businesses, many won’t have to change anything. Numerous local business owners, including Gum Tree owner Lori Ford, made the switch to paper bags some time ago and have no alterations to make.
“Since the day we opened, almost 7 years ago, I have been purchasing recycled paper bags, wrapping paper and tissue paper for our shop,” Hermosa Beach resident and business owner Ford said in her letter to City Council.
The plastic bag ban prevailed after undergoing a few alterations in previous Council meetings. Most notably, the paper bag fee was changed from mandatory to optional, unless at a supermarket. That and other minor changes were made at the requests of many residents and business owners.
“I would never ask my customers for the 10 cents, so now I would be paying even more to give them this service, thus eating into my profits,” Hermosa Beach resident and business owner Gina Rothwell said in her letter to City Council.
After the paper bag charge was taken away, most were content with the ordinance, including Mayor Pro Tem Carolyn Petty and Councilmember DiVirgilio, who had both voted against the ordinance before the change. Others, though, still disagreed with the ordinance and thought it was unnecessary.
“Government needs to govern, and not determine what type of shopping bags individuals use,” Hermosa Beach resident Michelle Goodlett said in a letter to City Council.
After the adjustments were made, the Councilmembers appeared content with the bill. When the plastic bag ban was raised at the Sept. 1st meeting, the Council took less than a minute to unanimously assent to the ban. After months of debating, the single-use plastic bag is no more in Hermosa.
“I think this ordinance is way overdue and I’m really glad we got here.” Councilmember Hany Fangary said. “I just wanted to be grateful for the community we’re in for how we got here today.”
Using paper bags is a step forward for the environment, but some say it is not enough and that the difference is not significant enough. Many in favor of the ban predict that, over time, people will stop using the paper bags too, and will use an environment-friendly reusable bag.
“Eventually, the paper bags will go away ‘cause people are going to like the
reusable ones much better,” Councilmember Peter Tucker said.
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