A Year Later: California Plastic Bag Ban findings

EUREKA, CA. – It’s been about a year since California’s plastic bag ban took effect, and Zero Waste Humboldt conducted a study into local impacts and presented their findings to county supervisors.

They say counts on Highway 101 used to average over thirty bags littered across the roadway from Eureka to Arcata, but now those numbers are down by more than fifty percent.

This year’s statewide Coastal Cleanup Day also saw a reduction in plastic bags on beaches, and preliminary data show the bags accounted for 3.1% of liter found that day, compared to 7.4% in 2010.

Since enactment, bag restrictions apply to large food retailers, pharmacies, corner markets and liquor stores, but not restaurants or department stores.