No More Plastic Bags at Los Angeles Corner Stores, Bodegas

When Los Angeles instituted its plastic bag ban at the start of the year, large grocery stores were affected immediately. Small mom-and-pop shops and corner stores were give six months to phase in compliance. That means today is the day that all stores in Los Angeles have to stop giving plastic bags to customers. Actually, that's not quite true. Just as New York City's failed large soda ban was full of holes on what businesses were affected, so is the bag ban. CBS LA notes:

Clear plastic sacks for produce and meat, along with bags for pharmacy items, will still be available and free to shoppers.

Establishments such as department stores, restaurants and other shops that do not sell grocery items will be exempt from the ban.

I guess plastic bags from department stores that don't sell food have a different environmental impact than bags from those who do?

Anyway, despite Los Angeles City Council member Paul Koretz claiming that these plastic bags choke and pollute, a recent study by the Reason Foundation (which publishes this site and Reason magazine) determined that bag bans were ineffective in reducing waste and that claims that plastic bags make up a significant amount of coastal litter are exaggerated. Read their study here.

Below, Reason TV and Kennedy on L.A.'s ban: