OCEANSIDE–In 2012 the City of Oceanside passed the Zero Waste Strategic Resource Management Plan. There were 100s of interested residents and stakeholders involved in the creation and implementation of the plan. The goal was to continue the city’s efforts in reducing their total waste.
Included in the plan was a sample Single-Use Carry-Out Bag Ordinance which will significantly reduce the number of single-use plastic bags in our waste. To date, over 130 jurisdictions in the State of California have approved single-use bag ordinances. The City Of Oceanside, in its efforts to reach a goal of “zero waste” wishes to join with the other jurisdictions and reduce its waste and litter caused by single-use plastic bags.
Deputy Mayor Chuck Lowery has placed an item on the agenda for October 21 city council meeting to direct the Utilities Commission to explore the implementation of the Single-Use Carry-Out Bag Ordinance.
“Approximately 19,000,000,000 (nineteen billion) single-use plastic bags are used annually in our state but less than five percent of those bags are recycled,” Lowery said. “This results in more litter in our city and on our beaches, storm water drains blocked and incapable of handling storm water runoff, and injury or death to birds and marine animals present in our environmentally sensitive water ways.”
It will be the direction of Deputy Mayor Lowery for the Utilities Commission to reach out to the public and the stakeholders who will be affected by this measure to ensure that the final ordinance will be beneficial to all the residents of Oceanside. The city as a whole has reduced its waste by approximately 72%; this measure will help to take Oceanside to the next level.
“Single-use plastic bags have an impact on our environment,” Lowery said. “They contribute to greenhouse gas emissions, litter, harm to wildlife, atmospheric acidification and our solid waste generation. We can act now so that Oceanside can move forward in its efforts to have ‘zero waste’ and help to keep Oceanside green.”
The Deputy Mayor’s office will work closely with the city’s Water Utilities department and the Utilities Commission to refine the language already crafted.
