San Francisco continues to lead U.S. cities by introducing new measures that reduce plastic consumption. The city has recently moved to restrict the sale of single-use plastic bottles on city property.

Humans consume one million plastic bottles every minute of everyday. These bottles rarely end recycled, and, instead, pollute the environment.

The presence of plastic has become dominant in the environment. Nowadays we see it everywhere we go - on the streets, near the drains, and in the ocean. The unfortunate truth is that plastic invades the natural spaces of wildlife. It contributes to the premature deaths of sea life and creates pile of trash in the Pacific Ocean.

San Francisco's new regulations will restrict the sale of plastic bottles at city events. Private businesses can continue to sell plastic bottles, but government agencies are now prohibited from this sale. Similar bans are expected to ensue.

The focus will shift to making tap water more accessible for consumers. Not all U.S. cities are able to commit to switch to tap water. In Flint, Michigan tap water is currently too contaminated for such a shift. But, measures to change this are on the rise.

This is not the first time the city has fought to enact positive change through government regulation.

In November 2016, California introduced legislation that banned single-use plastic bags. Proposition 67, the Single-Use Carryout Bag Ban, acted as a momentous shift in attitude toward plastic consumption. Residents didn’t argue, they simply adjusted their actions. 

Much like the plastic bag ban, more than 100 U.S. cities now follow the environmental consciousness of San Francisco. The city passes on inspiration to combat environmental through small, daily acts. Both the government and city residents hope to continue to set forward-thinking standards for a cleaner future.

 

Positive Action

• Avoid single-use plastics whenever you can and opt to use a reusable water bottle.
• Check out our National Recycling week research report for more information on waste and how we can improve our recycling methods.
• Learn where and what you can recycle using our RecyclingNearYou website service.

 

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Positive Environment News has been compiled using publicly available information. Planet Ark does not take responsibility for the accuracy of the original information and encourages readers to check the references before using this information for their own purposes.