San Francisco Leads the Way to Banning Plastic Bottles
As one of the most liberal cities in the United States, San Francisco has led the way for many issues involving social and environmental change. Thus, it’s no surprise that San Francisco is not only leading the way to ban plastic bottles but also attempting to inducing a culture change to eschew all disposable plastic items.
Increasing Restrictions Since 2014
The original amendment to the city’s Environment Code came in March 2014 when the San Francisco City Council passed an amendment that prohibited the sale of plastic water bottles containing less than 21 ounces throughout the city. The ban was restricted to city-owned land, leaving private businesses unaffected and also giving residents and visitors time to get used to the idea and find other ways to consume water. The ordinance has expanded since that time to bar the sale of bottled water at large events on city property. City agencies are also prohibited from buying bottled water.
Working to Change the Culture
It’s not only the prohibition of plastic that San Francisco is promoting, the city is also working to promote usage of its municipal water supply, which city official says is more heavily regulated than most water that consumers buy in plastic bottles. To that end, officials have promoted increased investment in municipal water fountains and filling stations and institution of water hookups at special events.
Change Isn’t Always Easy
Americans, and the entire Western World, have become used to bottled water. Big corporations jumped quickly on the bandwagon, as witnessed by the massive increase in consumption of bottled water. Americans drank an average of 1.6 gallons of bottled water in 1976. Three decades later, that amount jumped to more than 28 gallons per person annually. That figure also means that many people are heavily ensconced in the good habit/bad habit cycle that drinking more water represents. The bottled water industry has worked hard to make consumers believe that the water you get from them is really better than what comes from the tap. However, a number of recent studies have shown that bottled water is no safer than tap water in most locations, even when massive problems such as the lead contamination in Flint, MI, is taken into consideration. That’s just one of the reasons why San Francisco is considered a cutting-edge city in the age of banning plastic. By focusing on the positives, municipal officials can encourage change in a positive manner.
What’s Next?
Many San Franciscans are not concerned with further restrictions in plastic bottles but are turning their attention to other forms of disposable plastics. Plastic straws and stirrers are the next targets. Seattle is believed to be the first American city to have banned plastic straws earlier this year. Given San Francisco’s innovations, one can expect a creative response to those who object to the plastic straw ban, namely disabled people, who indicate plastic straws are necessary for some disabled individuals to easily consume food.
