Politics & Government

Lafayette Examines Environmental Goals

City Council has a meeting tonight (Monday) with its Environmental Task Force, including discussion of a potential plastic bag ordinance.

The potential for a city ordinance to ban single-use plastic bags is on the agenda as the Lafayette City Council has its annual meeting with its Environmental Task Force this evening.

The City Council has a special meeting at 7 p.m. tonight (Monday) in the Community Hall at the Lafayette Library & Learning Center, 3491 Mt. Diablo Blvd.

Item no. 1 on the task force's 2013-14 goals is "Adopt a City-wide ban on single-use plastic bags," according to a city report by associate planner Michael P. Cass and planning technician Megan Canales. The report has a recommendation for the council to continue the consideration of an ordinance on a plastic bag ban to the May 13 meeting.

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The staff report contains written remarks already submitted by residents and nonprofit organizations. Here is a sampling:

  • "… It is amazing the freedom the average person is willing to give up. I propose that Lafayette has intelligent well informed citizens that can make their own thoughtful choice on whether to choose paper or plastic or BYOB (bring your own bag)."
  • "The state spends $25 million annually to clean up and landfill these littered bags and this figure does not even include the over $300 million that local governments (continue) to spend to clean littered streets and waterways."
  • "Cities throughout Northern California have responded to these issues and the state's landfill diversion goal of 75 percent by 2020 by adopting plastic bag ordinances. These ordinances are straightforward to implement and have proven to be far more effective than education alone."

The last comment came from Sustainable Lafayette.

Find out what's happening in Lamorindawith free, real-time updates from Patch.


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