Opinion: Monrovia, Please Don't Ban Plastic Bags

A Monrovia woman is planning to ask the City Council during its July 2 meeting to impose a ban on plastic bags in the city, according to a posting in the Nextdoor.com system.

Opinion: I really hope the Monrovia City Council does NOT do this. Why? 1. Because I don't think it is any of the city's concern if a business wants to use plastic bags and I don't like the current wave of governmental butting in to people's lives. 2. I have heard complaints by people who shop in Pasadena about its ban. If they are out and want to buy some stuff and they forgot to bring their tote-bag, tough, or they have to buy a bag. 3. There are health concerns with banning plastic bags because the alternative, re-usable bags, may spread disease. From a study of San Francisco's ban: "There is evidence, however, that reusable grocery bags, a common substitute for plastic bags, contain potentially harmful bacteria, especially coliform bacteria such as E. coli." http://goo.gl/dLYFX

- Brad Haugaard

7 comments:

  1. People need to get with it and understand that the world needs to reduce waste and the resources used to make wasteful things such as those plastic bags. I have not used then actually ever. I ALWAYS thought they were wrong. We all can keep a couple bags in our trunk for emergencies or pay the 10 cents. Those bags can be cleaned for sanitation!!

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  2. I agree that we all need to reduce our waste, but I reuse every plastic bag that I get from the stores to pick up my dogs business. I have started collecting bags from friends and family who don't need them. If the stores don't give them out freely I don't go to those stores and I would have to go out and buy more plastic bags to pick up her business. We don't want to give people a reason not to shop at Monrovia stores.

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  3. I have always used reusable bags and I put them in the washing machine once a month. Simple! Keep some in the car. Small foldable bags can even be kept on a key chain or in a purse. If you own a dog, buy small bags, we do. I don't think businesses owe you a plastic bag for dog litter.

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    1. I agree one hundred percent. People think that by reusing plastic bags for their dog business, it makes it okay for stores to keep issuing plastic bags. Now, if everyone and I mean everyone, would recycle their plastic bags, then nobody would be arguing that point. I have seen people request a bag for a single serve soda and a pack of gum and toss the plastic bag directly into a trash can right outside the store! Consumer's excuse for being against the bag ban is, that it is unsanitary, well, for example, raw chicken should always be placed in produce bags (still prvided in all grocery stores). It is the consumer's responsibility to get their groceries home in a safe and sanitary manner.

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  4. Brad, thanks for posting your opinion on this. I agree with your comments and I think it should be all about choice. It's interesting that some groups want all the choices on some issues but love to shove things down other people's throats on other issues.

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  5. What are all the choices that some groups want?
    Good grief, this is about plastic bags! Why does it have to be a them and us issue?
    Can it not be about improving our immediate environment (those loose plastic bags blowing around and littering) and improving the general environment with some sort of conservation?

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  6. There's a problem in our society and we need to fix it. It's that simple. That's why this came up. Plastic bags are causing problems, so we need to eliminate them. They should not have been used from the get-go, so that's a big "duh" on all of us. Now, we're paying the consequences with what they've done and are doing to our environment on so many levels. The environment isn't a partisan issue. It's where we ALL live, so we need to take care of it. Why is taking care of the environment "liberal?" That has never made any sense. ...Yes, your reusable bags will get nasty if you don't clean them, just like your underwear and your tub and the inside of your car. ...Oh, and a NOTE about using single-use shopping bags (plastic) for picking up after your pet: This is not good practice. Those bags take years to biodegrade, whereas the biodegradable kind designed for that purpose are much less harmful and break down more quickly. They're not perfect, but you'll also benefit from a lessened risk of getting p**p on your hands through the holes in your shopping bags. :)

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