I saw this cartoon the other day on Facebook. Guy in a fast-food joint is handed a fish sandwich. No plate, no container, just the sandwich. He asks, "Where's the bag?" The clerk answers, "It's in the fish."
The average American family takes home almost 1,500 plastic shopping bags a year and recycles only about 15 of those. Much of the rest winds up as microplastic in landfills, runoff and the ocean. There, it is ingested by and kills fish, sea birds and marine mammals. Imagine starving to death with a belly full of plastic.
Scientists are now finding plastic not only in the fish we eat but also in sea salt, and even in beer. Time to do something about this.
The Newport Chapter of Surfrider Foundation is asking the Newport City Council to "Ban the Bag." At the January 22nd City Council meeting, council members will be asked to vote in favor of a city-wide ban on single-use carry-out plastic bags. Surfrider members Consuelo Kammerer and Diya Heal, our Ban the Bag coordinators, will be there along with students from Sam Case Elementary School and Newport Middle School. Aimee Thompson from Thompson's Sanitation Service will also be there making the case for a cleaner, healthier, more beautiful Newport.
Can you be there? Please do support our Ban the Bag Initiative January 22 at 6:00 p.m. at Newport City Hall, 169 SW Coast Hwy. Click here to display the Google Calendar item and then select Save to put it in your personal Google Calendar.