Are Plastic Bag Bans the Answer?

Effective July 01 many parts of unincorporated Los Angeles County must comply with the first stage of the plastic bag ban phase-in.  With many retail categories exempt from the ban, the overall goal is to reduce the county plastic bag use by 50%..

Is a plastic bag ban the solution to the environmental impact of carrying purchases from the point of sale to the consumption destination?  Some sort of "bag" will be used for products and the general options are plastic, paper and reusable bags.

In future posts, the ZWZ Blog will explore the carbon footprint associated with paper bag manufacturing and recycling.  Reusable bags will be addressed from a food safety perspective due to recent reports of bacteria growth in the bags.  Additionally, it appears spent reusable bags are landfill destined.

what is the answer to plastic
bag pollution?

To learn more about the CA bag ban, read Meredith Skrzypczak's article Plastic Bag Ban In Some County Areas Starts Today.

In the ZWZ Blog post, Is Plastic Really Kin to the Devil?, many of the virtues of plastic are mentioned.  Rather than plastic bag ban ordinances, it seems a more holographic approach will result in sustainable long-term solutions.