Few shoppers stop to consider that disposable plastic bags have a devastating impact on marine animals such as whales, seals, sea birds and turtles. More than 100,000 animals die every year after ingesting or becoming entangled in them.
The 11.9 billion plastic bags California uses per year not only clogs up our landfills, but is also hurting the ocean. Approximately 1,000 miles off our coast swirls an area of plastic soup, twice the size of Texas, full of plastic bags and other artificial debris. We need to start cleaning up our act! Those who sell the 11.9 billion bags are fighting to maintain the status quo, fronted by the lobbying team from the American Chemistry Council, but we need to do what is best for the Pacific Ocean and our future.
Plastic Bag Facts:
The average plastic bag is used for only 5 minutes, yet can take up to 1,000 years to break down in the environment.
Turtles, dolphins, and whales can choke or starve by confusing plastic bags for jellyfish.
On land, plastic bags kill native birds, fauna, and other animals.
Every piece of plastic ever made still exists. There are approximately 46,000 pieces of plastic floating in each square mile of the world's oceans.
We, the undersigned, urge the California State Legislature to ban single-use plastic shopping bags from retail outlets in California to protect our wildlife and waterways. We further urge the legislature to adopt a surcharge on paper shopping bags to encourage people to use their own reusable shopping bags.
