Being unique can sometimes be a source of pride, but when it comes to a plastic bag ordinance, Gilroy’s failure to act is a bit embarrassing. Every city of any consequence in Santa Clara County has clamped down on single-use plastic bags. Milpitas, one of the last holdouts, passed a ban that went into effect on Jan. 1.
Now Gilroy stands alone in its defiance of what has become a social norm in Northern California. Even Greenfield, Gonzales and King City have us beat on this question of environmental responsibility.
Gilroy considered the issue a few years ago and council members thought regulating plastic waste was excessive governmental overreach into individual freedom. Even this newspaper, in a glib, dismissive 2011 editorial, called the proposed ban “intrusive” and “way over the top.”
History, however, has overtaken the divine right to freely discard petroleum products. Gilroyans who planned to let Big Brother pry the flimsy, lightweight, two-handled sacks out of their cold dead hands may have that option removed by state legislation later this year.
But why wait? Gilroy still has the chance to voluntarily join the ranks of more enlightened communities and enter the modern era of reusability. Consumers in other communities quickly adapted to using reusable bags and the sky didn’t fall.
The ordinances have dramatically reduced plastic waste that otherwise winds up in landfills and waterways, in trees and shrubs and along roadsides. Each year, birds, seals and turtles die when they get entangled in plastic bags or mistake them for food. Scientists found 20 plastic bags in the stomach of a gray whale that washed up in Puget Sound six years ago.
The environmental advocacy group Californians Against Waste estimates that the average person uses 343 bags a year. If that figure holds true for Gilroy, an ordinance could dramatically reduce the impact of 17 million bags a year — perhaps more, since Gilroy is a regional shopping destination.
Shoppers throughout the region now bring reusable bags with them when they shop. Consumers can purchase a reusable one at the register, or, in some cases, forgo a bag entirely. Being the only city around that hands customers free bags at checkout sends the wrong message about what kind of community Gilroy wants to be.
The City Council should muscle up the political courage and take the plunge. It’s really not that much of an inconvenience, and seals will bark thank you up and down the Central Coast.
