Background

According to the California Integrated Waste Management Board, approximately 6 billion plastic bags are consumed in Los Angeles County each year. That means that the average Los Angeles County resident takes home 600 plastic bags in one year. That’s a lot of plastic bags! Less than 5 percent of those bags are recycled. And, since plastic bags are lightweight and easily caught in the wind, they make up a significant amount of the litter found in storm drains that lead directly to the beach and ocean.

As a Coastal City, the Manhattan Beach community is very concerned about protecting the marine environment. Because plastic bags do not biodegrade in the ocean, they pose a threat to marine animals that mistake the bags for food and can ingest the bags leading to choking, starvation or suffocation. Plastic bags also contribute to the overall amount of plastic debris in the ocean. In fact, marine researchers have found that plastic pieces outweigh surface zooplankton in the North Pacific Central Gyre (an area in the Pacific Ocean where debris becomes trapped by circulating currents) by a factor of 6 to 1.

As a first step toward reducing single-bag use, the Manhattan Beach City Council passed an ordinance banning the distribution of plastic bags at the point-of-sale for all retail establishments in Manhattan Beach in July 2008.  This ban is currently on hold due to a lawsuit brought by the "Save the Plastic Bag Coalition."  Please visit the Frequently Asked Questions page and the Additional Information Page for more details. 

The City of Manhattan Beach encourages you to bring a reusable bag with you every time you shop!  Just say no to single-use plastic and paper bags!  By using reusable bags instead of single-use bags we can help to conserve resources, reduce landfill waste, reduce plastic bag litter and protect the marine environment.