SR-112707-13E13-E
November 27, 2007
Council Meeting: November 27, 2007 Santa Monica, California
CITY CLERK'S OFFICE -MEMORANDUM
To: City Council
From: Councilmember McKeown
Date: November 27, 2007
Request of Councilmember McKeown, at the request of Heal the Bay, that the
Council adopt a resolution by which the City of Santa Monica would join the City
and County of Los Angeles in declaring December 20, 2007 "A Day Without a
Bag," encouraging holiday shopping with reusable tote bags rather than single-
use plastic and paper carry-out bags, in the interest of sustainability, reduction of
landfill and protection of the marine environment.
13-E
November 27, 2007
Resolution
Recognizing December 20, 2007 as
"A Day Without A Bag"
in the City of Santa Monica
WHEREAS, each year, approximately 6 billion plastic carryout bags are used in
Los Angeles County'; and,
WHEREAS, in the United States, less than 5 percent of plastic bags are
recycledz; and,
WHEREAS, the indiscriminate disposal of plastic bags is an increasing blight
problem, because plastic bags create significant litter problems for Santa Monica
streets, beaches, and the marine environment; and,
WHEREAS, over 1 million seabirds, 100,000 marine animals, and countless fish
die annually through ingestion of and entanglement in marine debris, including
plastic bags3; and,
WHEREAS, each year, the State of California spends approximately $25 million
to landfill discarded plastic bags4; and,
WHEREAS, the City of Santa Monica has set solid waste reduction and recycling
goals, and is considering joining other municipalities in taking action against the
unchecked proliferation of plastic bags; and,
WHEREAS, reusable bags contribute towards environmental sustainability over
single-use plastic and paper carryout bags; and,
WHEREAS, Heal the Bay and its community partners are urging shoppers to
forego single-use plastic and paper bags in favor of reusable tote bags to
recognize "A Day Without A Bag";
Therefore be it RESOLVED, that the Santa Monica City Council hereby
recognizes December 20, 2007 as "A Day Without a Bag" in Santa Monica.
'Los Angeles Countypepartment of Public Works, (August 2007) "An Overview of Carryout
Bags in Los Angeles County: A Staff Report to the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors."
z US EPA 2005 Characterization of Municipal Solid Waste, Table 4; Los Angeles County
Department of Public Works, (August 2007) "An Overview of Carryout Bags in Los Angeles
County: A Staff Report to the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors."
s N. Wallace. "Debris entanglement in the marine environment: A review" (985) pp. 259-277 in:
R.S. Shomura and H.O. Yoshida (eds.), Proceedings of the Workshop on the Fate and Impact of
Marine Debris, U.S. Department of Commerce, NOAA Technical Memorandum. NMFS, NOAA-
TM-NMFS-SWFC-5; S. Casey, (2006) "Our Oceans are Turning in to Plastic, Are we?" Best Life:
103-109.
° Californians Against Waste,
http://www.cawrecycles.org/plastic campaing/plastic bags/problem?PHPSESSID=519f35bd2.
s City of Oakland, City of San Francisco, Ireland, and South Africa. (More information is
available within: Los Angeles County Department of Public Works, (August 2007) "An
Overview of Carryout Bags in Los Angeles County: A Staff Report to the Los Angeles
County Board of Supervisors.")