California's chief executive approves measure prohibiting the use of all plastic bags at supermarkets.
California previously prohibited slim plastic shopping bags at stores like supermarkets, but consumers could still acquire thicker plastic bags marketed as reusable and recyclable.
The recent legislation, endorsed by state lawmakers last month, will eliminate all plastic shopping bags starting in 2026. Individuals who fail to bring their own bags will now be asked if they require a paper bag.
Senator Catherine Blakespear, one of the bill's supporters, argued that people weren't reusing or recycling plastic bags. She referred to a state study showing that the average disposal of plastic shopping bags per person increased from 8 pounds (3.6 kg) annually in 2004 to 11 pounds (5 kg) annually in 2021.
Blakespear, a Democrat, stated that the earlier bag ban enacted a decade ago didn't significantly decrease overall plastic usage.
"We're practically suffocating our planet with plastic waste," she stated in February.
Oceana, an environmental nonprofit, commended Newsom for signing the bill and "protecting California's coastline, marine life, and communities from single-use plastic grocery bags."
Christy Leavitt, Oceana's plastics campaign director, declared on Sunday that the new ban on single-use plastic bags at checkout lanes in grocery stores "establishes California as a leader in addressing the global plastic pollution crisis."
Twelve states, including California, currently have some form of statewide plastic bag ban, as reported by the environmental advocacy group Environment America Research & Policy Center. Hundreds of cities in 28 states also have their own plastic bag bans in effect.
California's Legislature enacted its statewide plastic bag ban in 2014. The law was subsequently upheld by voters in a 2016 referendum.
The California Public Interest Research Group stated on Sunday that the new law finally fulfills the initial intent of the original bag ban.
"Plastic bags pollute our environment and break down into microplastics that contaminate our drinking water and endanger our health," said the group's director Jenn Engstrom. "Californians voted to ban plastic grocery bags in our state nearly a decade ago, but the law undeniably needed an update. With the Governor's signature, California has finally banned plastic bags at checkout lanes for good."
As the mayor of San Francisco in 2007, Newsom approved the nation's first plastic bag ban.
Businesses in California will need to adjust their operations to comply with the new plastic bag ban, which eliminates all plastic shopping bags starting in 2026. Consumers who forget their reusable bags will be offered paper bags as an alternative.
