“We need to create awareness around the issue of one-time use plastic straws and its detrimental effects on our landfills, waterways, and oceans,” Calderon stated in a media release.
“AB 1884 is not a ban on plastic straws,” he added. “It is a small step towards curbing our reliance on these convenience products, which will hopefully contribute to a change in consumer attitudes and usage.”
Assembly Bill 1884 aims to update the California Retail Food Code.
Western Journalism reported:
The bill notes that the current code “… establishes uniform health and sanitation standards for, and provides for regulation by the State Department of Public Health of, retail food facilities, as defined, and requires local health agencies to enforce these provisions.”
As the law currently stands, punishment for violating the Retail Food Code ranges from paying a fine between $25 – $1,000 or jail time.
“Existing law requires, except as otherwise provided, a person who violates any provision of the code to be guilty of a misdemeanor with each offense punishable by a fine of not less than $25 or more than $1,000, or by imprisonment in the county jail for a term not exceeding 6 months, or by both.”
If passed, the law would modify the code to mark the provision of “single-use plastic straws to consumers unless requested by the consumer,” as a crime.
Banning straws is a bit of a stretch. While plastic waste is a major issue that wreaks havoc on the environment if not properly disposed of, there needs to be another way to go about making a change. The government should not have the ability to tell people whether or not they can drink from straws, and this is just another reason why so many people have become fed up with California.
Plastic waste has become a major problem in the world, and wildlife is paying the price for our uncaring attitude towards the environment. This is one of those issues where people need to be more aware of the impact plastic has on our world and adjust accordingly. California is once again stepping over the line with the proposed law.
Straws and stirrers rank at number nine in the top 10 marine debris items according to The Ocean Conservancy. The elimination of plastic straws has become an urgent issue for a while now.
The “Be Straw Free Campaign” was introduced by Milo Cress in 2011 when he was only 9 years old.
“I noticed that whenever I ordered a drink at a restaurant, it would usually come with a straw in it, and I don’t usually need a straw,” he told CNN.
“This seemed like a huge waste,” Cress continued. “Straws are made of oil, a precious and finite resource. Is making single-use plastic straws, which will be used for a matter of minutes before being tossed away, really what we want to do with this resource?”
Who would want to live in a place where you could be jailed for passing out drinking straws? That is a dangerous proposition and is exactly the reason why California is failing. The issue of plastic is something that people should take more seriously and hopefully over time they will. What do you think about the proposed law?
H/T CNN, Western Journalism
Join the conversation!
We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, vulgarity, profanity, all caps, or discourteous behavior. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain a courteous and useful public environment where we can engage in reasonable discourse.