News
With the passage of Proposition 67, California became the first state in the nation to enact a state law to ban plastic shopping bags. The WMA endorsed Proposition 67 during the September Board meeting.
Today the Alameda County Waste Management Authority approved an expanded reusable bag ordinance for Alameda County. The expanded ordinance will apply to all stores and restaurants in the county, and will go into effect on May 1, 2017 for retail stores and November 1, 2017 for restaurants.
Since it began in January, 2013, the reusable bag ordinance has had dramatic results. In Alameda County, overall bag purchases by affected retail stores have declined by 85 percent. The number of shoppers bringing a reusable bag to affected stores, or not using a bag at all, has more than doubled during this time.