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HomeMy WebLinkAboutDirection - Single-Use Plastic Bag OrdinanceCITY OF PALM DES DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNITY STAFF REPORT REQUEST: CITY COUNCIL DIRECTION REGARDING A SINGLE -USE PLASTIC BAG ORDINANCE SUBMITTED BY: Missy Wightman Assistant Planner DATE: December 8, 2011 CONTENTS: City of Santa Monica "Ban at a Glance" Citizens' Sustainability Committee Minutes Consideration By minute motion, that the City Council provide direction to staff regarding an ordinance regulating single -use plastic bags. Executive Summary On September 8, 2011, the City Council directed staff to research the environmental effects of single -use plastic bags and how the control of these bags may affect the environment. Additionally, staff was tasked to research incentives and other programs used to promote re -usable bags. Citizens' Sustainability Committee Recommendation At the October meeting of the Sustainability Committee, staff provided educational research, discussed the impacts, and solicited committee member opinions on how to move forward. Seven of the eight committee members stated that this was an important topic that needed to be addressed now and recommended that the City Council move forward with a ban on plastic bags. Member Langford stated he may be "on board", but that he needed to do some more research on the issue. Background This discussion is intended to advise the reader of the impact of plastic bag use on three levels: global, regional, and local. Global: Plastic bags were designed to be thrown away. They were first introduced in the early 1970's and by the mid-80's they became the common way to carry daily groceries. On average, each person uses a single -use plastic bag for approximately 12 Staff Report Single -Use Plastic Bag Ban Page 2 of 6 December 8, 2011 minutes and uses approximately 500 plastic bags per year. Although the popular perception is that plastic and paper bags are free when given away by retailers, they do carry a cost, which is passed on to consumers in the form of higher prices and to taxpayers in the form of costs for environmental cleanup. Currently, 5% of those bags are being recycled. These plastic bags are recyclable, but they are not being recycled. So the answer is apparent: source reduction. Source reduction reduces the use of a material source before it becomes municipal solid waste. The idea is if you use less, you pollute less. Approximately 19 billion bags (or approximately 142,500 tons of single -use plastic bags) are released into the environment each year by Californians alone. Environmental impacts are such that plastic bags, depending on whether they end up in a sealed landfill or the environment, take anywhere from 10 to 1,000 years to degrade. The time frame is really unknown as they may end up in a variety of environments. Plastic bags do not biodegrade, they photodegrade. This means the plastic material breaks into smaller fragments of plastic by exposure to sunlight where they can continue to contaminate soil, waterways, and animals upon digestion. Theoretically, every piece of plastic produced is still "out there". These small pieces of plastic act almost like a magnetic chemical sponge, accumulating damaging pollutants, and being eaten by animals and continuing to travel up the food chain to our plates. The Ocean Conservancy conducts an event each year called `Trash Free Seas'. Volunteers from around the world conduct a one -day clean-up, documenting everything they find. Plastic bags have accounted for 10-11 % of collected debris in the last two years. In 2009, in one day, volunteers collected 819,074 pounds of plastic bag debris. In 2010, in one day, volunteers collected 869,857 pounds of plastic bag debris. This is one day, each year, in only the locations where volunteers participated in the clean-up. This demonstrates that even though plastic bags are recyclable, they aren't being recycled. In 2009, during the clean-up day, volunteers found and documented 336 marine birds and animals entangled in debris. One hundred twenty birds were alive and released, while the other 216 were found dead. Wildlife does not just become entangled in debris, but often injests the debris found floating in their ocean home. Many varying debris items account for these injuries and deaths that are hard to number, but are approximated at over 100,000 per year. Plastic bags are a real concern as identified by the Ocean Conservancy. Regional: On July 1, 2007, the new law AB 2449 required large grocery stores and pharmacies to take back plastic bags for recycling and to encourage reuse. These stores were additionally required to make reusable bags available to consumers for purchase. Despite the choices of bags, over four years later, this law has had little impact on recycling of plastic bags or the use of reusable bags. Grocery stores are mandated to collect and recycle these bags, but the reality is that many recycling facilities don't accept plastic bags for recycling. Recycling facilities do not want them as they continually clog recycling sorting machines, the resale rate is low, and large numbers of these bags have to be collected before they amount to any dollar value. WPlanning\Missy Wightman\Sustainability Plan\Plastic Bags Ban\Council Staff Report.docx Staff Report Single -Use Plastic Bag Ban Page 3 of 6 December 8, 2011 Palm Desert is not immediately adjacent to the ocean, but the lightweight nature of plastic bags allows them to travel great distances in the wind. Palm Desert trash is taken to Lamb's Canyon Sanitary Landfill in Beaumont, and recycling is taken to Burrtec's Escondido facility, where bags have the opportunity to be picked up by the wind and impact environments other than the local Coachella Valley. Many California cities are moving forward now with their own legislation in light of a recent California Supreme Court case won by the City of Manhattan. Save the Plastic Bag Coalition, a pro -plastic bag group, sued the city for not performing an Environmental Impact Report before enacting a ban on single -use plastic bags. The court determined that a full Environmental Impact Report was not necessary and a mitigated negative declaration was sufficient to comply with the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act. The California Supreme Court ruled that common sense and substantial evidence support the city's determination that their ordinance would not have a significant adverse environmental effect. The following California cities and towns have already implemented local ordinances banning plastic bags: San Francisco, Malibu, Fairfax, Manhattan Beach, Palo Alto, Santa Monica, Calabasas, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Oakland, and San Jose. The California counties that have implemented ordinances are Los Angeles, Marin County, Santa Cruz, and Santa Clara. Los Angeles county interviews have suggested that officials hope that the state takes note of such a large local action should plastic bag legislation come before the state again for a vote. Richard Crockett, General Manager of the West Valley Material Recovery Facility for Burrtec in Fontana, states that they do not advertise that plastic bags are recyclable. (Mike Veto, Burrtec's Director of Municipal Services, stated that Palm Desert's refuse is sent to the landfill and recycling to the facility in Escondido, where plastic bags are treated the same as in Fontana.) According to Mr. Crockett, recycling the bags is difficult for Burrtec due to the following reasons: • Plastic bags are difficult to recover and to manage once recovered. They take up a tremendous amount space, which results in little material weight recovered. • The bags get stuck in the equipment, resulting in damage to the equipment and the need for excessive cleaning. • The bags make recovery of the other recyclables more difficult; they are harder to see because of the film, and the bags contaminate the fiber grades. • The quality of the film plastic recovered is very poor due to its high contamination and the low quality film used to make the bags. GAPlanning\Missy Wightman\Sustainability Plan\Plastic Bags Ban\Council Staff Report.docx Staff Report Single -Use Plastic Bag Ban Page 4 of 6 December 8, 2011 • The amount of film plastic in the recycling stream is pretty high, even though film bags are not identified as acceptable in our recycling programs. When asked about plastic bag recycling, Mr. Crockett suggests that people recycle their plastic bags at the grocery store. "The customers served by West Valley MRF have agreed not to add them to the list of acceptable recycling items because of the concern with the volume that is out there. We get so many now and do our best to recover (them). If we added them to the list it would be overwhelming. Every bag we recover is by hand -- there is not mechanical separation available -- and I fear the effort that would be required to recover all of them would be extremely burdensome. I am not sure where the grocery stores send their bags but I would guess to the same film buyers we do business with. Another benefit to taking them back to the store (and not putting in the recycling materials going to the MRF) is that the bags are cleaner and should have a higher value. In the recycling stream they become extremely dirty during collection and processing." Local: In 2009, the City of Palm Desert started recycling plastic bags by implementing the 'bag -in -a -bag' program where a homeowner can stuff as many plastic grocery bags as they can into one bag and throw it into their curbside recycling container. However, individual plastic bags are less likely to be recycled due to their light weight nature which allows them to fly away from garbage bins, garbage trucks, landfills, big -box stores, anywhere. In preparation of this report, staff turned to local individuals and organizations who could speak to the impact of single -use plastic bags on the local desert environment. Dr. Allan Muth with the Boyd Deep Canyon Desert Research Center, remotely located south of Palm Desert in the Santa Rosa Mountain range, states that these bags blow in every year off of Highway 74 and Vista Point. They do have an impact on the environment; desert tortoises have eaten them to their detriment, and they have been found in coyote scat. Dr. Muth also discussed the fact that plastic uses a tremendous amount of oil and only breaks up into smaller and smaller pieces, but never degrades, so theoretically every piece of plastic ever created is still in the environment. Danny Ortiz, Natural Resource Specialist with the Forest Service, who works along with the Friends of the Desert Mountains, reports that just the other day they picked up around four to six plastic bags on a trail clean-up in less than a one mile stretch. These bags are litter that they regularly see and clean-up. She reports that she hasn't been able to study the effects on animals, but they definitely do not want to see them here as they are a concern to bighorn sheep and desert tortoises. GAPlanning\Missy Wightman\Sustainability Plan\Plastic Bags Ban\Council Staff Report.docx Staff Report Single -Use Plastic Bag Ban Page 5 of 6 December 8, 2011 Carlos Hernandez, City of Palm Desert Maintenance Services Manager, reports that plastic bags are a common form of litter collected by maintenance staff in certain parts of Palm Desert. Also, they are a common form of debris in storm drains and storm drain inlets. Last summer, the City contracted out the work to remove and clean these facilities to ensure their successful operation. Plastic bags were a part of the debris removed. City landscape staff has stated that these bags are particularly a problem around and near big -box stores where the bags are distributed in large numbers. Although they don't consider this a large maintenance problem, they do have to consistently clean them out of public rights -of -way and medians as the wind blows the bags into the air and they get caught in plants and trees. They reason that, since the City of Palm Desert has a large number of visiting seasonal residents and tourists, it's important to keep the city looking clean to secure the return visits. Analysis Single -use plastic bags have an adverse impact on animal life and the aesthetic quality of the desert. Studies on the environmental effects of marine debris reveal ingestion, entanglement, ecosystem alteration, and invasive species movement. Economic impacts stemming from the bags adversely affect tourism, fishing navigation, and human health and safety. Switching to paper bags or compostable plastic bags is not a "cure all," since these bags also have shortcomings. Both types of bags usually enter the waste stream, and frequently end up in a landfill where they still take time to decompose. A lasting solution requires source reduction, such that fewer bags of all types are distributed. Staff studied several city ordinances enacted in California, and reviewed Santa Monica's ordinance in particular with the Citizens' Sustainability Committee. The Santa Monica "ban at a glance" is attached to this report. This program eliminates single -use plastic bag distribution from most retail outlets, and imposes a nominal charge (100) on paper bags. The money collected is retained tax free by the merchant to offset any additional costs they incur. There are exceptions to the Santa Monica plastic bag ban, including those bags used for produce at a grocery store and for carry -out food from restaurants. The city also provided a six month outreach and education period prior to implementation. During this time they actively distributed reusable bags at no cost through a variety of outlets. The Citizens' Sustainability Committee recommended taking Santa Monica's approach a step further, asking staff to research elimination of the plastic bags used for produce and take-out food at restaurants. If directed to move forward, staff will continue research of the regulations in other communities and will bring a draft ordinance to the Citizens' Sustainability Committee for further review, working along with representatives of the Chamber of Commerce to promote a positive change. Once complete, staff would GAPlanning\Missy Wightman\Sustainability Plan\Plastic Bags Ban\Council Staff Report.docx Staff Report Single -Use Plastic Bag Ban Page 6 of 6 December 8, 2011 return the proposed ordinance to the City Council for consideration. Fiscal Analysis Preparation of an environmental document and a public education campaign would be needed to move forward with an ordinance banning single -use plastic bags. A conceptual budget for the various elements of implementing the ban is as follows: Implementation and Education Measures Cost Preparation of Environmental Documents CEQA $5 — 10,000 Newspaper, Television Ads, Public Service Announcements, Etc. $10 — 15,000 Distribution of Re -usable Bags $10 — 20,000 Total $25 — 45,000 Money for this use is not included in the budget for the current fiscal year, but a portion of the cost could come from AB 939 funds (the city's recycling funds) to purchase recycled content re -usable bags for public distribution. Recommendation Staff requests that the City Council direct staff to prepare a draft ordinance and CEQA document based upon the general Santa Monica model: a ban of most single -use plastic bags; a charge for paper bags; retention by the merchant of the charge for paper bags; and a dedicated outreach and education program before implementation. With such direction, staff will work with the Sustainability Committee and representatives of the Chamber of Commerce to bring an ordinance and detailed fiscal analysis forward for consideration. Submitted by: Missy Wightman Assistant Planner 2 n M. Wohlmuth Manager Department Head: auri Aylaian Director of Community Development GAPlanning\Missy Wightman\Sustainability Plan\Plastic Bags Ban\Council Staff Report.dou MINUTES PALM DESERT SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE October 19, 2011 IV. ORAL COMMUNICATION NONE V. NEW BUSINESS A. Plastic Bag ban discussion. Ms. Wightman introduced information proposing an ordinance that would ban plastic bags in the City of Palm Desert. Ms. Wightman referenced a handout that the City of Santa Monica prepared for their ban on plastic bags. It showed the tiers/levels of implementation of the ban and its impact on various sizes of businesses. The City of Santa Monica banned plastic bags from all grocery/retail stores and pharmacies and levied a 10 cent charge for paper bags. The 10 cents is charged to the customer if they don't have a bag for their goods and goes directly back to the stores as an incentive to promote reusable bags to their patrons. Ms. Wightman stated vegetables would be exe may not include take-oui since using biodegradabl+ liquids in the take-out, comments. e produce bags that hold fruit or ,m this ban. However, the ban may or but that would have to be discussed for take-out might not work if there are hey spill. Ms. Wightman asked for A general comment was made about take-out containers and having them switched to biodegradable. Ms. Riddle and Ms. Ream pointed out that biodegradable containers sometimes disentigrate when in contact with liquids, so that idea might not be prudent. Ms. Ream pointed out that the Coachella Valley doesn't have a dirty MRF facility to handle the Styrofoam or the biodegradable products that would enter the recycle loads. Mr. Kassler began by asking what kind of time frame the City of Santa Monica gave the retailers to comply with this ban. Ms. Wightman stated that the standard time frame is from six months to one year to come into compliance. She also mentioned that the State of California requires CEQA review to study the environmental impacts of such a decision. Based on previous legislation, the City of Palm Desert [most likely] would have to prepare a Negative Declaration before implementing such a ban. It takes about eight months to prepare and would be presented to the City Council before the ban were implemented. Ms. Wightman wanted to reiterate that the idea isn't to rid MINUTES PALM DESERT SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE October 19, 2011 ban plastic bags and have people use paper; the idea is to have people switch to reusable bags exclusively and if they forget, then a paper bag would be an alternative choice at a cost. Mr. Raya asked what the various businesses in each of the tiers thought of the ban. Ms. Aylaian stated that she recently attended a workshop where Santa Monica gave a presentation on this topic. The City conducted a study showing that implementation of the ban would cost about 25 cents per bag. She mentioned that initially, all the merchants were opposed to this ban. The City refined the ordinance, reduced the per bag charge to 10 cent and passed the money onto the merchants themselves. Once these changes were made, the merchants came on board and the data show that this type of program does indeed work. Mr. Kassler asked how long this took to implement. Ms. Aylaian stated that actual implementation has been within the last 60 days, but the education process to the merchants and the community has been over the last year. Mr. Kassler stated that the success of this program is to mandate that the retailers sell the reusable bags in their stores. Ms. Ream indicated that was already a law in the state that grocery stores and pharmacies of a certain size are required to sell those bags. She also stated that she has recently noticed other stores selling them as well: Marshalls, Ross and Home Goods to name a few. She also mentioned that some comments that she has received about the bags is their washable feature appears to be a selling point. Mr. Greenwood asked if there was a way that the city could provide these bags to people. Ms. Wightman indicated that she recently spoke with Frankie Riddle and Ms. Riddle suggested that `939 funds' could be used for something like this. These funds are exclusively used for the purchase of recycled content products. Ms. Wightman asked the group if the Santa Monica model is something that the committee wants to follow or if they had their own ideas. Mr. Koller stated that he liked the idea, but cautioned the use of the word "tier" because that made people think of higher rates to pay, since that is how water and electrical bills are jargoned. He suggested using another word to indicate the level of implementation or adoption. Mr. Koller also suggested that five cents of the recovery fee should go to outreach. Mr. Freed commented on the implementation of this type of ban in the City of San Francisco. He said that the city council there was unable to 3 MINUTES PALM DESERT SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE October 19, 2011 come to a decision, so they put it out on a ballot measure for the people to decide. It was overwhelmingly passed and became effective for the whole city, save Chinatown. The city had done a study showing that they spent nearly $750,000 per year on cleaning out the sewer systems from plastic bags. So this ban would certainly help alleviate that. Mr. Freed stated that the ban allowed for the use of biodegradable bags (including PLA-aka 'corn plastic') and left the decision up to the merchants as to what kind of bag they would use. Ms. Riddle stated that was a good policy, but biodegradable might not work well here, since the City of San Francisco has a 'dirty MRF" facility whereas the Coachella Valley hasn't one. The biodegradable bags would still contaminate the recycling load. So it might be prudent to promote the reusable bags. Mr. Koller pointed out that if he had the option to just pay 10 cents for a paper bag, then he'd opt to do that. But if he had to pay something like 40 cents for a bag, that would add up for a grocery trip with over five bags. So if the idea is to change people's behavior and have them purchase the reusable bag rather than use paper every time as a convenience, then maybe the charge per bag should be higher. Mr. Leo wanted to know what the city or this committee would do to educate the public. There are many out there who simply don't know or understand all of the implications of this matter. Ms. Riddle stated that an education program already exists for this topic. The city always uses education first and then also employs other measures to bring people into compliance. Mr. Greenwood stated that he personally felt that there would always be those people who just don't want to comply and then it becomes a situation where the city just needs to make a decision, educate people and they will [begrudgingly] comply. Mr. Greenwood also wanted to know if Palm Desert had any figures on what it costs to remove plastic bags from their sewers and gutters like San Francisco did. Ms. Aylaian asked Mr. Koller if he could provide CVWD's information on that for the sewers, and Ms. Wightman would ask the Public Works department if they had any numbers on removal of bags from the storm drains. Ms. Aylaian stated that in the EIR, the only information presented would be the environmental information; any financial impacts aren't part of an EIR. Ms. Wightman quipped that plastic bags are called "urban tumbleweeds". n MINUTES PALM DESERT SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE October 19, 2011 Mr. Leo reminded the committee that there are those in the city who can't afford to buy reusable bags. He indicated that there are seniors on a fixed income that might not be able to participate and would ask that the city possibly assist this group by giving some bags to those who can't afford it, so they too could participate. Mr. Kassler opined that the discussion is way too focused on cost. His family purchased a few reusable bags a couple of years ago. They haven't been destroyed or even become dirty. He feels that the focus on small dollars such as this is distracting from the overall goal of the ordinance and that is to eradicate plastic bags'. Ms. Wightman and Mr. Koller both verified that their grocery bags never get dirty and the washable factor seemed to be a non-isse. Ms. Wightman presented the fact that Sam's Club and Costco already operate without plastic bags and consumers do not expect to bag their items as they leave these stores. They re -use boxes and consumers know this before they enter the store. Mr. Raya stated that the city already has two good models in place: Sam's and Costco. People already are trained to put their groceries in these boxes and take them home. Many of the grocery stores have very large compactors, why not just have them divert some of their boxes for grocery hauls instead of compacting them? Ms. Riddle stated that was a good idea in theory, but when people bring home their groceries in boxes, what happens to the boxes after their use? Mr. Greenwood stated that he worked his way through college at Costco and he knows that people just take their groceries home and then discard the boxes in all sorts of non- stackable ways. He guessed that the boxes (being paper) just end up in the landfill rather than being recycled or reused. Mr. Langford asked Ms. Wightman if she could provide one or two more cities as examples of what they have done in their bag ban ordinances. Ms. Wightman indicated that she previously sent links to members' emails and would resend the link regarding other cities requirements. Mr. Raya wanted to know if CVAG has been contacted and if they will be able to get the word out across the Coachella Valley. Ms. Riddle stated that, so far, nothing valley -wide has been done. Mr. Raya asked what the next steps would be. Ms. Wightman stated that she would draft language for a model ordinance and go before the City Council asking for their direction. If granted, then the CEQA 5 MINUTES PALM DESERT SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE October 19. 2011 analysis will be performed, the ordinance finalized and then the education and implementation of the ordinance would begin. Mr. Raya wanted to know if the grocery stores would be invited to talk about how this would impact them. Ms. Wightman stated that would be appropriate, but not before council direction has been granted to move forward. Through a show of hands, members Freed, Taylor, Leo, Koller, Kassler, Raya, and Greenwood stated this was an important topic that needs to be addressed now and recommended the City Council move forward. Member Langford stated he may be on board, but needed to do some more research. B. De-asphaltification and current parking requirements. S. Wightman indicated that as of the last meeting where Mr. Fre ented the concept of de-asphaltification, she was ask o pr ' e parking count requirements for various businesses in City of P Desert. To move forward with this concept she wa to look at the rrent parking standards and see the various s parking require sand verify that they are or are not over rked in their standards. Wightman asked for volunteers conduct basic parking studi n their own time at various loca ' s around the city. Nearly every ber of the committee vol eered and Mr. Leo mentioned that h d 15 students who d also be available to count parking. Ms. man stated that has identified structures with separate parking, s it can be cult for the untrained eye to count shared parking spac lots ' Target or Trader Joe's where many businesses share a co arking lot. Mr. Kassler stated that Wal Mart should certainly be i d in this count because they are one of the largest parking to nd i project could benefit from de- asphaltification`, it would them. ightman state these areas would also be cover under the c ry, Regional Shopping Districts. Mr." Alvarez w d to remind those who wo a counting that `season' is s ng and those counts might be sligh igher than the counts wo be in the summer time. Mr. Freed re ted that to count p ing after thanksgiving would skew the nuHe also state at his intent of de-asphaltification was to have 1 % e area de ed to community gardens and 30% of the parking t on ething other than asphalt (like grasspave). 0 Plastic Bags* Paper Bags Product Bags** Reusable Bags less than 2.25 mil Recycled Content All Sizes TIER 1 Retail Grocery Stores Convenience Stores Mini Marts Liquor Stores Drug Stores/Pharmacies e. TIER 2 Retail � , Department Stores ��_ Clothing Stores %W1 Hardware Stores J*i Durable Goods ti O K OK, City Facilities bi 1� TIER 3 Retail Restaurants Food Vendors Food Trucks OK Take Out Food Exempt TIER 4 Retail Farmers Markets NO Mushroom Sales Exempt * Tier 3 Retailers are permitted to use all bag types for takeout foods and liquids only. **Product bags, made from both paper or plastic, for the sale of grocery store produce and ringe meats, prepared take-out foods and liquids, are exempt from the ban for public health eg i and safety reasons. 1 !81'e-au Bag Ban •C �u InaWesm.oghan J Michelson, Wilma From: Terry Kay ftkay@dc.rr.com] Sent: Saturday, December 03, 2011 10:26 AM To: CityhallMail Subject: Regarding Dec 8 Agenda Item 14,J In reading the Drctn - Single -Use Plastic Baa Ordinance, I find it one sided. I recommend the Council be provided inputs from the other side before making a decision. Opposing information can be found at http://savetheplasticba€,.com/ReadContent522.aspx REQUEST FOR CITY COUNCIL DIRECTION REGARDING A SINGLE -USE PLASTIC BAG J. ORDINANCE. Respectfully Terry Kay 78065 Larbrook Dr Palm Desert, CA 92211 760-360-6325 Save The Plastic Bag Pagel of 2 ❑ ABOUT US THE COALITION STEPHF.N JOSEPH, COUNSEL. NOT PART OF ACC Search • HOME • ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES • PAPER BAGS AND CO2 SAN FRANCISCO SURVEY PAPER BAGS IN LANDFILLS • PAPER BAGS AND ROACHES • THE TRUTH ABOUT LITTER • THE FAMOUS TURTLE PICTURE • "SERIES OF BLUNDERS" ARTICLE • IS THERE A "GARBAGE PATCH"? • THE VOYAGE OF THE 'JUNK" • THE OIL MYTH LA COUNTY SPREADING MYTHS • VdHOLE FOODS GREENWASHING • BERKELEY BOWL'S SOLUTION • PLASTIC BAG RECYCLING BINS • LITIGATION • ABOUT US • CONTACT US THE COALITION The Save The Plastic Bag Coalition was formed in June 2008. The sole purpose of the coalition is to inform decision -makers and the public about the environmental impacts of plastic bags, paper bags, and reusable bags. The anti -plastic bag campaign is largely based on myths, misinformation, and exaggerations. We are responding with environmental truth. That is why we are asking for Environmental Impact Reports. We believe that banning plastic bags is unjustified based on the true facts. STEPHEN JOSEPH, COUNSEL Stephen Joseph is counsel for SaveThePlasticBag.com. Click HERE for his full bio. In 2000, he formed "San Francisco Graffiti Busters" and sued the City and County of San Francisco to have the graffiti cleaned off parking signs. In response to his initiative, the city cleaned the signs. In 2001, he and a colleague conceived and persuaded the city to launch a "Green Patrol" to clean up litter and graffiti. The Green Patrol was launched by Mayor Brown in 2001. Commencing in 2003, he launched and led the successful national ban trans fats campaign. He sued Kraft Food to have the trans fat removed from Oreos. (As a result, Oreos are now trans fat -free.) He sued McDonald's regarding fraudulent advertising about trans fat. (McDonald's French fries are now trans fat -free.) Artificial trans fat causes heart attacks. However, before it could be banned, all of the potential consequences and alternatives had to be fully explored and understood. Therefore, he took two important actions. First, he created "America's First Trans Fat -Free City" in Tiburon, California to demonstrate that the concept of a trans fat -free city was workable and had no negative consequences. The project was a success and led to New York City banning trans fat. Second, he conducted a zero trans fat cooking oil contest with all the testing done by a neutral entity, Texas A&M University. The results confirmed that trans fat -free oil have a fry life that is functionally equivalent to partially hydrogenated oil and is preferred by consumers. He is also a member of the American Heart Association's trans fat panel which works to ensure that trans fat is not replaced with unhealthy high saturated fat alternatives. He was highly instrumental in bringing about the California statewide trans fat ban which the Legislature passed and the Governor signed in 2008. No consumer choices were removed in the trans fat campaign. Oreo cookies, McDonald's french fries, and all other food items remain available to the consumer. In April 2007, after San Francisco banned plastic bags, he was approached by plastic bag manufacturers who wanted him to help defeat ban initiatives. He refused. He assumed that the negative environmental information about plastic bags on the Internet was correct. In March 2008, after reading an article in the London Times, he researched the subject. He was surprised to find that most of the information circulating on the Internet about plastic bags was false. He discovered that paper bags were worse for the environment, especially regarding energy consumption and CO2 and methane emissions. He changed his mind and decided to get the environmental truth out to the public. He is concerned that anti -plastic bag activists are disseminating environmental misinformation to the public and politicians. He believes that spreading environmental misinformation is simply wrong. NOT PART OF ACC PLEASE NOTE THAT THE COALITION IS NOT CONNECTED WITH AND HAS NEVER RECEIVED ANY FUNDING FROM THE AMERICAN CHEMISTRY COUNCIL (ACC) OR PROGRESSIVE BAG AFFILIATES (PBA). (PBA IS PART OF THE ACC.) http://savetheplastiebag.com/ReadContent522.aspx 12/5/2011 Save The Plastic Bag Page 2 of 2 Site By Spirit ONLY ONE OF THE COALITION'S MANY MEMBERS IS ALSO A MEMBER OF THE ACC OR PBA. THE COALITION IS TOTALLY INDEPENDENT IN ALL RESPECTS. THE COALITION MAKES ITS OWN DECISIONS, WHICH SOMETIMES DIFFER SIGNIFICANTLY FROM THOSE OF THE ACC AND PBA. FOR EXAMPLE, WE ARE IN FAVOR OF PAPER BAGS FEES WHILE THE ACC IS NOT. THE ACC AND PBA ARE NOT PARTIES TO OR INVOLVED IN THE COALITION'S CASE AGAINST THE CITY OF MANHATTAN BEACH OR ANY OTHER CASE IN WHICH THE COALITION IS OR HAS BEEN A PARTY. 0 2008-11 Save The Plastic Bag Coalition. All rights reserved. http://savetheplasticbag.com/ReadContent522.aspx 12/5/2011 Page 1 of 1 Jim VanDorn • Bowling Green, Kentucky According to a Palm Desert staff report, banning plastic bags would cost the city $25,000 to $45,000 to do an environmental -impact report, run a public education campaign and distribute reusable shopping bags to the public."" Yep, there you go again. Spend $50 grand on a survey to ban something stupid, that you can't enforce, that drives more businesses away. First no styrofoam, now plastic bags? How's a taco gonna fit in my pocket? Maybe Bill Kroonen needs to introduce a ban on once -only breathing. Everyone would have to walk around with an environmentally approved bag over their mouths and breath each breath four times ... he gets to try it first.... Why not form work details with your plentiful jail populations and have them do cleanup all over the city and county areas and earn their meals? Gee, that makes to much sense.... Reply • 1 - Like Follow post • 3 hours ago Reply I Reply Facebook social plugin Sunday, December 04, 2011 AOL: Belairrd Michelson, Wilma From: Hermann, David Sent: Monday, December 05, 2011 9:33 AM To: Michelson, Wilma Subject: FW: Bill Kroonen plastic bags Good morning Wilma, We received the message below over the weekend addressed to Councilman Kroonen. Thanks very much for sharing it with him! David David Hermann Public Information Officer City of Palm Desert 760-776-6380 From: Jim Ryan fmailto:jaryanzLd)yahoo coml Sent: Sunday, December 04, 2011 6:37 AM To: InformationMail Subject: Bill Kroonen plastic bags In plastic bag debate please consider the need for newspaper delivery to use plastic bags. Almost all deliveries are done by motor route. On damp days, deliveries to people with sprinkler systems and when the paper is large it is almost impossible to deliver a clean dry paper without plastic bags. And please don't tell us to read the paper online. JIm Ryan jaryanz(a�,yahoo.com cm MARY DRURY 4 72750 Sage Court Fri Palm Desert, CA 92260 `'3 760/340-0599 Cell: 760/774-0874 " December 4, 2011 o 0 c:a � Honorable Dr. William Kroonen Councilmember City of Palm Desert 73510 Fred Waring Drive Palm Desert, CA 92260 Dear Dr. onen: I've been reading, with interest, the City's study to ban the use of single -use plastic bags. I would like to offer some perspective as I believe I'm a fairly typical shopper. • Finding washable cloth bags to use for groceries to prevent cross -contamination of foods was very difficult and very expensive when I finally found them on the internet. • While I don't have a dog, I would find it offensive to pick up poop with paper or a scooper that You would have to hose out allowing fecal matter to go on the ground. • I re -use the grocery bags to line my small trash cans. If I didn't have these, I would buy plastic liners which are of a heavier gauge than the single -use bags. Therefore, in the landfill, they break will down even more slowly than single -use bags. • After reading it each morning, I use the single -use bags to collect my newspaper to take to Animal Samaritans so they can use in the animal cages. Consequently, I'm saving tons of newspapers from going to the landfill. I would guess Animal Samaritans also finds use for these bags once they take the newspapers out. • 1 use some of the single -use bags for short-term shortage of items I want to keep. • 1 use the single -use bags for things I keep in the trunk of my car, such as extra pair of shoes, extra umbrella, small towels, etc. Before a decision is made, why not ask the very creative people living in Palm Desert to tell you what they uses they find for these single -use bags. My guess is that their lists will be far longer than mine. Just by showing my list, you can see that these are not single -use bags, but may be recycled & re -used many times over. With the budget cutbacks, does Palm Desert really have the extra $25-50,0o0 for "educational" outreach and buying everyone a re -usable bag that is going to be thrown away once it gets dirty or has chicken, meat or other fluid contamination? This same bag, while perhaps not plastic, will still be thrown out in a landfill. I know Palm Desert wants to be the Valley leader in all things sustainable and energy efficient. But, really; at this point in time, doesn't Palm Desert have more important and better ways to spend its time and money? R Ily, Mary Drury P.S. Most grocery stores already provide a box in their front lobby areas asking people to recycle the plastic bags. Nearly all of them I've seen are usually crammed full. It seems, if the City wants to create a mandate, that this is a much simpler, more practical, and enforceable solution than banning the bags or initiating a charge for those customers who still want to use them. cc: Councilwoman Jan Harnik December 6, 2011 r The Honorable Jean M. Benson City of Palm Desert 73-510 Fred Waring Drive Palm Desert, CA 92260 RE: Single -Use Plastic Bag Staff Report Dear Mayor Benson, On behalf of the California Grocers Association, I write to inform you of our interest to work with the City of Palm Desert on a plastic bag ordinance if the Council chooses to pursue a regulation. We believe it is crucial that plastic bag regulations meet their environmental goals, respect consumers, and minimize impacts to retailers. To date the grocery industry has helped develop and implement over a dozen plastic bag ordinances throughout California that have met this standard. The California Grocers Association is a non-profit, statewide trade association representing the food industry since 1898. CGA represents approximately 500 retail member companies operating over 6,000 food stores in California and Nevada, and approximately 300 grocery supplier companies. Retail membership includes chain and independent supermarkets, convenience stores and mass merchandisers. CGA members include grocery companies operating in the City of Palm Desert. Numerous California local jurisdictions have passed or are currently considering plastic bag regulations. In nearly every jurisdiction the model of banning single -use plastic bags and allowing recyclable paper bags for a charge has shown to encourage reusable bag use, provide consumers no -cost and low-cost carryout options, and minimize operational and financial impacts to retailers. California jurisdictions that have model ordinances include the Counties of Los Angeles and Alameda along with the cities of Long Beach and San Jose. If Palm Desert decides to move forward with a plastic bag regulation, we encourage using these ordinances as a model. Thank you for considering CGA a partner as Palm Desert discusses and possibly develops a plastic bag ordinance. Please contact Sarah Paulson Sheehy, CGA Director of Local Government Relations, at 310- 779-6860 or by email at ssheehy@CAGrocers.com, to discuss the issue further. Sincerely, Ica SARAH P. SHEEHY 'M (/) Director, Local Government Relations M _ rM cc: Members, Palm Desert City Council c Ms. Missy Wightman, Assistant Planner, City of Palm Desert w >F Ms. Rachelle D. Klassen, City Clerk, City of Palm Desert rn CALIFORNIA GROCERS ASSOCIATION 11215 K Street, Suite 700 1 Sacramento, CA 95814-3946 1 T: 916.448.3545 1 F: 916.448,2793 1 w xagrocers.com Klassen, Rachelle From: Sent: To: Subject: Attachments: Judy, Janine Tuesday, December 06, 2011 3:36 PM Klassen, Rachelle; Mendoza, Grace FW: Direction regarding Single -Use Plastic Bag Ordinance - Item 14J, 12-8-11 Agenda Palm Desert Plastic Bag 12-6-11.pdf From: Sarah Sheehy.[mailto:ssheehyCa�CAGrocers.coml Sent: Tuesday, December 06, 2011 3:13 PM To: CityhallMail; Information Mail; Planning E-mail Subject: Direction regarding Single -Use Plastic Bag Ordinance - Item 14J, 12-8-11 Agenda Dear Councilmembers, Please accept the attached letter regarding Agenda Item 141 on the December 8, 2011 Agenda. Please contact me at 310-779-6860 or by email at ssheehy(cbcagrocers.com, with any questions or for additional information. Thank you for your consideration. Best, Sarah Sarah Sheehy California Grocers Association 1020 N. Lake Street Burbank, CA 91502 818.841.8640 (phone) 310.779.6860 (cell) 916.448.2793 (fax) ssheehyCabcagrocers.com (email) Klassen, Rachelle From: Desert Rats [twoswopes@verizon.net] Sent: Wednesday, December 07, 2011 11:59 AM To: Klassen, Rachelle Subject: Plastic bags Council Members: Since we will be unable to attend tomorrow's meeting, we are writing in protest of the ban on plastic bags in the City of Palm Desert. This would be another unnecessary intrusion into our lives and into the financial lives of local businesses. In speaking to friends and family who reside in cities were such a proposal is now in effect, they are driving to other nearby cities to do their shopping — from Santa Monica to West Los Angeles and from Long Beach to Cypress. They are therefore using fuel energy to accomplish their shopping errands which off -sets any energy savings from the reduced production of plastic bags. As to the power hungry environmentalists' arguments regarding the low percentage of such bags being recycled, does that mean that all our efforts to recycle such bags are for naught and the City is not really recycling the bags that we dispose of in our recycling containers? We see only the occasional plastic bag beside the roadways, so that seems a greatly over blown argument. Also does the ban include all stores, such as Macy's, Sears, Target, hardware stores, gift shops, etc.? Or is this only the beginning and will be the foot -in -the -door with grocery stores then lead to further expansion of the government mandate? One other consideration and an important one is the health hazard of the reusable shopping bags. It has been shown that such bags foster the growth of bacteria and the contamination of foods transported in them. Additional wrapping of meat and poultry, fruit and vegetables will be required to prevent food illnesses. Please consider the ramifications of your decision. We need less government control of our daily lives, not more. Yes, we must consider and protect our environment, but with common sense and practicality. If you decide to proceed with the ban on plastic bags, we will be driving to nearby cities to do our shopping. Sincerely, James & Marylin Swope Palm Desert 0 O >- O Michelson, Wilma E w G, I Y ED From: Carla Castronova [tavadesigns@msn.com] A [ 141 DESERT, CA Sent: Wednesday, December 07, 2011 11:29 AM To: CityhallMail 2111 DEC _7 PM 12: 00 Cc: Christina Michas Subject: Opposition to Paper bag's being out lawed Attention: Mayor Jean Benson, and Council Members: Robert Speigel, Cindy Finerty, Jan Harnik and William Kroonen: I understand that you are considering enacting a law to prohibit businesses from providing their customers with plastic bags. This will represent a hardship for many people. I live on a fixed income that does not allow many luxuries, including being able to buy plastic bags for trash, and plastic bags to pick up after my dog from neighbors, public and city areas. And that is what your law would do, force people to pay for these same bags, which of course will only help the corporations who manufacture them financially. Also, businesses, especially small businesses, would have to raise their prices in order to comply with this law for an alternative type of bag. Our economy is already struggling, without imposing more laws and more rules on a business. Do any of you own or operate a business, if the answer is yes, then you know what I am saying, if not, talk to a business owner about all the rules and laws he has to follow and how difficult it is to stay in business. It is my understanding that many businesses are closing, or moving. I hope each of you will take into careful consideration what this law would actually achieve and what hardship it would impose. Thank you, Carla Castronova 1 -IVE Michelson, Wilma t FaK''T, ;,1 From: Tim Sullivan [tmsu1100@gmail.com] Sent: Tuesday, December 06, 2011 10:24 AM Pill DEC _ 7 PM 2; 0 � To: Benson, Jean; Spiegel, Bob; Finerty, Cindy; Harnik, Jan; wkroonan(a cityo palmdesert.org Cc: Wohlmuth, John Subject: Plastic bags and city government overreach/lack of focus Good morning: By way of introduction, my name is Tim Sullivan, and I've lived in our city for almost twenty years. I've had the pleasure of knowing, and working with many of you in the past. In those years I've written a total of three letters to the city - two on the same (unresolved) topic (more about that in a moment). The recent articles in The Desert Sun regarding the city pondering the banning of plastic bags prompted this note. For the record, the only way plastic bags effect my life is when I get them shopping. I don't have any personal or professional stake in this matter (as I might if I owned a store, managed Fresh and Easy, etc.). My first response, when I saw the article several weeks ago about this matter was, how silly. Don't we have more important things to focus on? Do we really want to add one more burden on already over burdened shopkeepers and storekeepers. I shop, frequently, at the Fresh and Easy off of El Paseo. A month or two ago the state passed a law disallowing self cashiering for beer, wine, etc., even though those purchases are so well monitored and managed currently by stores like Fresh and Easy (the article in the LA Times mentioned Fresh and Easy was a specific focus of that law ... it's commonly accepted that the unions drove the law to provide more cashiering jobs). Now, these poor guys may have to figure out another way to provide their customers with bags? Crazy. Anyway, a day or two after the original article ran there was (another) armed robbery on El Paseo. Surely, I thought, this will refocus the city and this silly plastic bag issue will fall by the wayside. Well, I guess, no such luck. So I just wanted you to know that at least one resident thinks this is a waste of the city's time and resources and exemplifies a lack of focus on what the primary role of the council is. Surely it is not to be in the citizens and shopkeepers back pocket. Which leads me, briefly, to another issue that is connected to this under the subject: "Overreach" (my first letter to the city on this was answered, my follow up letter went unacknowledged and unanswered... bad form I think). On Easter morning my wife, brother and I were ticketed on the hiking trail up to the cross, by an armed park ranger, for having our dogs off leash, and on the wrong trail. On Easter morning ... can you believe that? The officer was arrogant, condescending, insulting to my wife - I mean really insulting - and to me. No warning, no don't do this again ... rather a 275.00 ticket. Imagine us, having left Mass an hour before, to hit the trail, dogs at our feet, only people on the trail at that time, having to deal with that. Infuriating. I sent a note to John Wohlmuth, a neighbor and long time acquaintance, who referred me to the park service, who referred me to the department of the interior, who referred me back to the park service, etc. You get the drift. I mentioned to John that the ranger mentioned he had been deputized by the city of PD, and was there on the city's behalf. Not good, do you think? So, I thought you'd want to know. I love our city and have always tried to step up and help and support wherever I could ... as such, I thought you'd want to know my impressions of this proposed ban, and about the really unpleasant incident, with an armed ranger on a trail that's a ten minute walk from our home. Thanks for taking the time to read this. I'm easily available at 760-568-9688, or at tmsul100L&gmail.com if you'd like to discuss further. Warm regards and best holiday wishes, Tim Sullivan 73-150 Deer Grass Dr. Palm Desert, CA 92260 Michelson, Wilma From: al saroni [twoturn@webtv.net] Sent: Tuesday, December 06, 2011 9:07 PM To: CityhallMail Subject: Plastic Bags Mayor Jean Benson and the Palm Desert City Council If the Palm Desert City Council votes to do away with "Plastic Bags", what will the Pet Owners do with the "dog poop" that we are requested to pick up? "For every force there is an equal opposite force" Please allow plastic bags in Palm Desert. Thank you. Al Saroni Dog owner and "poop scooper" in Palm Desert Michelson, Wilma From: Carla Castronova [tavadesigns@msn.com] Sent: Wednesday, December 07, 2011 11:58 AM To: CityhallMail Cc: Christina Michas Subject: Fwd: Opposition to Paper bag's being out lawed Correction Attention: Mayor Benson and Council Members, please note the correction to my email subject as it should read Opposition to Plastic Bags instead of Paper bags. Thank you. Also I would like to add, the problem is more about litter than plastic bags, Cigarettes, food wrappers, bottle tops, etc. are more prevalent than plastic bags. So begin a city campaign about litter. Begin forwarded message: From: Carla Castronova <tavadesigns _msn.com> Date: December 7, 2011 11:29:17 AM PST To: cityhall(c�`yofpalmdesert.orq Cc: Christina Michas <cmichas(cD-dc.rr.com> Subject: Opposition to Paper bag's being out lawed Attention: Mayor Jean Benson, and Council Members: Robert Speigel, Cindy Finerty, Jan Harnik and William Kroonen: I understand that you are considering enacting a law to prohibit businesses from providing their customers with plastic bags. This will represent a hardship for many people. I live on a fixed income that does not allow many luxuries, including being able to buy plastic bags for trash, and plastic bags to pick up after my dog from neighbors, public and city areas. And that is what your law would do, force people to pay for these same bags, which of course will only help the corporations who manufacture them financially. Also, businesses, especially small businesses, would have to raise their prices in order to comply with this law for an alternative type of bag. Our economy is already struggling, without imposing more laws and more rules on a business. Do any of you own or operate a business, if the answer is yes, then you know what I am saying, if not, talk to a business owner about all the rules and laws he has to follow and how difficult it is to stay in business. It is my understanding that many businesses are closing, or moving. I hope each of you will take into careful consideration what this law would actually achieve and what hardship it would impose. Thank you, Carla Castronova a C' •• C1-r� Michelson, Wilma From: Kenny, Ryan [Ryan_Kenny@americanchemistry.com] Sent: Wednesday, December 07, 2011 4:23 PM To: CityhallMail Cc: InformationMail Subject: [SPAM] - Re: Carryout Bags Agenda Item Attachments: Letter to City of Palm Desert.pdf Dear Honorable Members of the Palm Desert City Council, Please find attached a letter from the American Chemistry Council commenting on the carryout bag agenda item. We would appreciate your consideration of our views during your deliberations. Please let me know if you have any immediate questions. Thank you, Ryan Kenny , Manager, State Affairs American Chemistry Council _ . ;;" I i .C7 1121 L Street, Suite 609 Sacramento, CA 95814 Phone (916) 448-2581 Fax (916) 442-2449 c- Cell (916) 606-5772 > www.americanchemistry.com rn M +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ This message may contain confidential information and is intended only for the individual named. If you are not the named addressee do not disseminate, distribute or copy this email. Please notify the sender immediately by email if you have received this email by mistake and delete this email from your system. E-mail transmission cannot be guaranteed to be secure or error -free as information could be intercepted, corrupted, lost, destroyed, arrive late or incomplete, or contain viruses. The sender therefore does not accept liability for any errors or omissions in the contents of this message which arise as a result of email transmission. American Chemistry Council, 700 — 2nd Street NE, Washington, DC 20002, www.americanchemistry.com QQmerican° Chemistry uncil December 7, 2011 The Honorable Jean M. Benson Mayor, City of Palm Desert 73-510 Fred Waring Drive Palm Desert, CA 92260 Re: Agenda Item No. XIV.J — Carryout Bag Discussion Dear Mayor Benson: It is our understanding that the City of Palm Desert City Council is considering whether to direct city staff to pursue development of an ordinance to ban plastic retail bags and require a pre -determined fee on paper bags. By way of background, the American Chemistry Council (ACC) is a national trade association of manufacturing companies, including those domestic producers of fully recyclable retail plastic bags. ACC members support efforts to reduce bag litter and disposal and it is for that reason we have been working to promote and enhance the recycling of not only plastic bags but other plastic packaging as well. ACC is in full agreement with the intent of this discussion but feel an outright prohibition on these recyclable products is unnecessary. In many cases, suggestions to ban recyclable plastic bags often overlook important, yet unintended environmental impacts. Furthermore, these ordinances have the potential to impact consumers economically, and for those employees who work at bag manufacturing facilities in California. As you and your colleagues discuss this issue, ACC respectfully requests that you consider several policy issues and potential alternative approaches. A common misconception is that plastic bags are not recyclable. California law requires all large grocery stores and pharmacies to provide a recycling bin for plastic bags. These bins provide a local consumer infrastructure that can capture not only recyclable plastic grocery bags but newspaper, dry cleaning, toiletry, and other bags and film as well (e.g., product wraps for cases of soda, paper towels, etc.). Nationally, plastic bag and film recovery has increased by 31 percent since 2005. This recovery growth is more than nine times greater than the 3.4 percent increase in recovery of all municipal solid waste from 2005 to 2009 according to EPA data. Recovery of postconsumer film (which includes plastic bags and product wraps) grew to an estimated 854,377,000 pounds in 2009. In many communities around the country, ACC has worked in partnership with retailers, public agencies and other stakeholders to promote the recycling of plastic bags and wraps. In addition to the recycling opportunities, we believe that other policy and legal issues should also be explored, including: • Whether such an ordinance would be subject to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and thus an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) would need to be completed before final adoption of the ordinance. • If a fee is proposed on alternative products such as paper bags (in an effort to reduce the environmental impacts of those products), would such a fee be subject to the provisions of Proposition 26? • Whether an analysis has been conducted as to the potential consumer cost impact for residents that may now be forced to pay for paper bags, especially those that may be struggling to make ends meet? americanchemistry.com`' 1121 L Street, Suite 609 1 Sacramento, CA 1 (916) 448-2581 �� Whether such an ordinance would require city expenditures to implement, monitor and audit the program, especially as it relates to a city mandated per bag charge? In our view, bag litter and disposal can be reduced by encouraging consumers to use reusable bags and to recycle their plastic bags. These activities can be undertaken through partnerships between industry, retailers, local governments, recyclers and environmental organizations all without the burden of additional regulation, unintended environmental impacts, or negative economic impacts on consumers. Thank you in advance for the opportunity to provide these comments and we would welcome the opportunity to discuss potential recycling opportunities in the city of Palm Desert. If you or your colleagues have any questions or comments, please do not hesitate to contact me at 916-448-2581 or via email at ryan kennyCD-americanchemistry.com Sincerely, Ryan Kenny Manager, State Affairs American Chemistry Council cc: Members, Palm Desert City Council; City Clerk OL americanchemistry.com'�' 1121 L Street, Suite 609 1 Sacramento, CA 1 (916) 448-2581 V? Michelson, Wilma From: Dianne Funk [difu 1 @aol.com] Sent: Thursday, December 08, 2011 8:40 AM To: CityhallMail Subject: Paper or Plastic..... Dear Mayor and Council Dear Honorable Mayor and City Council, I always recycle my plastic bags from Vons as well as the plastic that my newspaper comes in. I use them rather than the larger, thicker trash bags because I think they make sense by biodegrading faster in the landfills than the commercial bags. If you are recycling properly, there is little to go into these bags anyway, so it is convenient for me to toss in 'garbage scraps' from food, tie it up and throw into the bin, knowing it will do what it's supposed to do --- decompose in the landfill rather than sit longer in a garbage bag. Plastic or paper has always been the question, and the answer really is: it shouldn't matter so long as you recycle. I know the flimsy plastic is strewn around, but I don't think most people do that. I think most people are responsible, even if they ultimately place them in the thicker commercial bag. I don't think money should be made on this effort. Instead people should just be made aware of recycling options of plastic bags. Thank you for your consideration. Dianne Funk 72-755 Pitahaya Palm Desert Michelson, Wilma From: SusanMarie Weber [susanmarieweber@earthlink.net] Sent: Thursday, December 08, 2011 1:15 PM To: CityhallMail Subject: Palm Desert Council Meeting - RE: Plastic Bags Dear Members of the Palm Desert City Council RE: Banning of Plastic Bags in Palm Desert I am unable to attend the council meeting tonight, but wanted to share my comments with you. It just seems more logical to encourage people to recycle, than to threaten companies and shoppers with penalties for using plastic sacks. Already we see many shoppers carrying their own bags into the stores - people WANT to do the right thing - they just need to be reminded of that "Right Thing to Do". We don't need one more layer of government involvement, we don't need one more "law" to enforce, one more aggrivation, and one more cost, to try to enforce such a "law". Thank you Susan Marie Weber 43041 Buttonwood Dr Palm Desert CA 92260 Susan Marie Weber Management Essentials Consulting/Accounting/Notary PO Box 11206, Palm Desert CA 92255 760.831.5416 (cell) / 760.340.2213 December 7, 2011 Honorable Jean M. Benson Mayor, City of Palm Desert 73-510 Fred Waring Drive Palm Desert, CA 92260 Re: Item J: Proposed Ordinance Relating to the Reduction of Single -Use Plastic and Paper Carryout Bags. Dear Mayor Benson: The California Restaurant Association (CRA) is the definitive voice of the food service industry in California and is the oldest restaurant trade association in the nation. On behalf of our restaurant members in the City of Palm Desert, we firmly believe the staff recommendation before you is premature, therefore requiring additional industry stakeholder meetings be conducted by the City to ensure all parties have chance to comment on this very important issue. Additionally, it should be noted that the CRA did not receive notice of this public hearing and for that reason we did not have the opportunity to notify our members in the City of Palm Desert of their opportunity to participate in the public hearing or stakeholder meetings. If one of the goals of banning plastic bags and charging a fee on paper bags is to incentivize people to use reusable bags, this is a major concern for restaurants for the following reasons: • Restaurants must follow strict food safety standards in food handling under Cal Code, the California retail food code. Restaurants are regularly inspected by their county environmental health department under these guidelines. • Food safety and food borne illness prevention is a top priority for restaurants, but no matter what precautions are taken by the restaurant to prevent cross contamination, it can all be in vain if people use contaminated reusable bags to transport restaurant food. • Restaurants take �Lny potential risk of cross contamination very seriously. This risk exists with reusable bags. • People use reusable bags to hold any number of things, not just food. They use it to carry dirty clothes, shoes, and any number of personal items. Most people do not wash their reusable bags and many people keep their bags in their car trunks for convenience, a combination that can be a breeding ground for bacteria. • The use of reusable bags by restaurant patrons increases the owner's/operator's liability because there is a potential for cross -contamination. • Unlike food purchased at the grocery store, restaurant food is typically not prepackaged or sealed. There can be spills and not all food is completely wrapped up or enclosed in a container (e.g. fries at quick service restaurants). • Using a new, clean bag is the best way to ensure food is safely transported from the restaurant. Other concerns include: Reusable bags could also lead to restaurants using more individual packaging to protect the food from coming into contact with the bag (e.g. extra wrapping). • Although the ordinance allows food vendors not to charge a fee for paper bags, restaurants should have the freedom of choice to use food service packaging that best meets their operational needs. Paper bags are not necessarily the best choice for restaurants. Plastic bags help prevent accidental leaks and spills whereas a paper bag would just seep through. Therefore, we urge the City Council to table this item until all stakeholders can participate in a full discussion of the economic impacts this measure will have on small business. Should you have any questions, please contact me at (619).517-6435 or cdUuanncalrest.org. Sincerely, Chris Duggan Director, Local Government Affairs California Restaurant Association Klassen, Rachelle From: Chris Duggan [CDuggan@calrest.org] Sent: Thursday, December 08, 2011 1:56 PM To: Klassen, Rachelle Subject: CRA Comment Letter to City of Palm Desert: RE Item J Attachments: MayorJeanMBensonCRALetterl2.8.11.pdf Hi Rachelle, Please find our comment letter in regards to item J on tonight's City Council agenda. Thank you for distributing to Mayor and Council. Sincerely, Chris Chris Duggan Director, Local Government Affairs California Restaurant Association 5333 Mission Center Road, Suite 390 San Diego, CA 92108 T: 800.765.4842 / (619) 517-6435 E: CDuggan calrest.org www.calrest.org Membership matters. fic e :tiahty note: roi s eie ,tronic message transmissiolr contains information from the: California Restaurant Association which may be confidential or privileged The r sii�rxli<>n is intended to be for the apse of the individual or entity earned above. If you are not the intended recipient, be aware that any disclosure, y,:� nicution or use of the contents of this information is prohibited. It ✓-)u have received this electronv< transmission in error. please immediately notify us by telephone at 800.765,4842. Michelson, Wilma From: John Creek [littleriver4853@yahoo.coml Sent: Thursday, December 08, 2011 2:53 PM To: CityhallMail Subject: PLASTIC BAG BAN To The Palm Desert City Council: I would like to express my opinion on this ridiculous proposal. Most people I know use their plastic bags for other things such as "poop bags", trash bags, donation items. Stop trying to be San Francisco or Santa Monica. You only look foolish. Stick to your duties: infrastructure, safety, fire, schools. By the way, what about the PLASTIC Poop Bags the city is giving out for free at our parks? Why not have people bring their own PLASTIC BAGS from the grocery store? Hello! Let's use our heads here. Nancy Creek Property owner and shopper