Plastic bags and other marine debris cause serious problems for the health of our coast and bay shorelines. Each year an estimated million plastic bags make their way into San Francisco Bay, where they pollute the water and endanger the 500 species of animals that live in the Bay.
Plastic litter never biodegrades. It is an eyesore for our communities and costs local governments millions to clean up. The Governor's Ocean Protection Council will vote soon on whether or not to support local efforts to reduce plastic bag litter. Please ask Governor Schwarzenegger to be a leader in the effort to eliminate plastic bags in our communities. Hurry! The vote is set for April 23. Choose the Bay over the bag!
As you know, plastic bags and other marine debris cause serious problems for the health of our coast and bay shorelines. Plastic pollution kills wildlife and costs the state millions of dollars to clean up. As a result, the Ocean Protection Council (OPC) has listed reducing plastic bag use as a key priority in its strategic plan to protect our waterways.
San Francisco Bay, the largest estuary on the West Coast, is particularly vulnerable to plastic litter and debris. Thirty percent of California's land and thousands of miles of creeks and rivers drain to the Bay. It is estimated that more than one million plastic bags end up in the Bay watershed every year, threatening the ecosystem.
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Please instruct the OPC to fund development of the Master Environmental Assessment, a document that will provide the basis for cities to develop environmental reviews of single-use bag ban and fee ordinances. This document will pave the way for California cities to help achieve the state's important goal of eliminating plastic marine debris.
Plastic bags and other marine debris cause serious problems for the health of our coast and bay shorelines. Each year an estimated million plastic bags make their way into San Francisco Bay, where they pollute the water and endanger the 500 species of animals that live in the Bay.