Pacific Grove plastic bag ban in effect

Shoppers in Pacific Grove will no longer hear, “Paper or plastic?” Instead, under a new ordinance banning plastic bags, shoppers will hear, “Would you like a bag?”

Starting Sunday, shoppers will have to pay 10 cents for a recyclable paper bag or bring a reusable one from home.

Leslie Conley, who has worked at Grove Market in Pacific Grove for 11 years, said the store stopped using plastic bags over a year ago, but charging for paper bags has been an adjustment. So the market has started its own rule.

“If you bring your own bag in, you get 5 cents back off of your grocery bill,”Conley said.

If Grove Market shoppers forget to bring in a bag they can buy one as soon as they walk in.

But some people decided to keep their 10 cents and carry their groceries out by hand. The new ordinance does not apply to bags used for items such as produce or meat.

The bag ordinance is designed to reduce the impact of plastic bags on the environment.

“I think it’s wonderful,” Pacific Grove resident Kathryn Splivalo said.
“The plastic bags pollute, you see them blowing around, you see them in the ocean and it doesn’t hurt to buy a bag.”

Nob Hill off of Lighthouse Avenue in Monterey also has a plastic bag ban in effect, with parking lot signs reminding shoppers to bring in their bags.

In surveys, a 10 cent-per-bag fee has been shown to reduce the number of disposable bags used by 70 percent to 90 percent.