Frankly, I’m a little surprised it took them this long. Maybe they thought, with all their money and influence, that a bill that would ban single-use plastic bags would never get as far as it has in the California legislature. But now they’re running scared.
The swift and sudden force of their campaign has led the bill’s author, environmental champion and Assemblywoman Julia Brownley, to remark “I’ve never witnessed this kind of opposition to a bill.”
I’m talking, of course, about some of the usual foes of environmental regulations — the American Chemistry Council, a group that represents the interests of chemical companies. According to California Watch, these companies include the vast majority (80 percent) of companies around the United States that produce plastic bags. Because of course, that’s what plastic bags are made of: chemicals. Hence, the danger to marine life when tons of this familiar litter makes its way into the ocean and starts the slow but dangerous process of breaking down.
The Chemistry Council has released a TV advertising campaign airing only in Sacramento, and thus targeting legislators. With a mocking tone, it criticizes lawmakers for considering AB 1998, the ban on plastic bags in grocery stores.
“California is in trouble … 2.3 million unemployed … $19 million deficit … What are some Sacramento politicians focused on?” a cynical voice asks.
“Grocery bags.”
They’ve also launched a Web site complaining about what they call the “bag police.” It’s the corporate polluters’ usual message: “How dare anyone suggest to consumers practical and cost-effective ways to protect our planet? It’s the American way to pollute as much and as often as we want… right?!
Finally, the Virginia-based Chemistry Council has made donations to specific state senators whose votes could provide important to the outcome of the bill, as reported by the Sacramento Bee.
The intention of this coordinated campaign is, of course, is to increase pressure on legislators to vote no. But their scary ads (with their unsubstantiated “threat to jobs” numbers) are nowhere near as frightening (and yet entertaining) as the ones put out by our friends at Heal the Bay, which we featured in a recent blog.
To answer the main question asked by the chemical industry, why is this ban a priority, given all of California’s other big challenges?
Because single-use plastic bags are rarely recycled (it’s estimated that about 5-6% of plastic material is recycled). They blow into gutters and collect in our storm drain system, ultimately making their way to the ocean. It is estimated that 60–80% of all marine debris is plastic, which doesn’t biodegrade, but rather, breaks down into smaller and smaller pieces. In some areas there is six times as much plastic as there is plankton. Put simply, plastic bags are devastating oceanic environments. The Pacific Garbage Patch, a famous semi-solid plastic island of trash in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, increases in size and density daily. It is a trash soup that is now twice the size of Texas.
Californians are currently using 19 billion plastic bags each year. That’s a lot of trash, and a lot of devastation to marine life. The bill will require grocery stores to offer reusable bags for purchase at checkout, thus encouraging consumers to get into the habit of bringing their own reusable bags to grocery stores.
AB 1998 has passed the Assembly and is in the Senate Rules Committee for amendments. It has until the legislative deadline on Tuesday to get from the committee to the Senate floor and pass; from there it travels to the governor’s desk. [Editor’s note: unfortunately, AB 1998 died in the State Senate; look for it to come back in another form.]
