Need status report on EAC’s plastic bag ban proposal

(The latest in a series of posts relating to the environment, Bethlehem’s Climate Action Plan, and Bethlehem’s Environmental Advisory Council)

“There is no reason why good cannot triumph as often as evil.
The triumph of anything is a matter of organization.”
(Kurt Vonnegut)

Juliet Eilperin and Brady Dennis, “Trump EPA finalizes rollback of key Obama climate rule that targeted coal plants.” Washington Post, June 20, 2019.

Despite a drumbeat of scientific warnings, the Trump administration Wednesday issued a new rule that cuts carbon emissions from power plants by less than half of what experts say is needed to avoid catastrophic global warming.

The Affordable Clean Energy rule, issued by the Environmental Protection Agency, represents the Trump administration’s most significant action to unwind federal regulations aimed at addressing climate change. At the EPA on Wednesday, Trump’s top aides, Republican lawmakers and state business leaders celebrated it as proof that the president had delivered for his constituents in coal country.

On a day in which we learn of another effort by our national government to thwart progress in avoiding “catastrophic global warming,” it might be good to wonder outloud where the single-use plastic bag ban advanced some time ago by Beth Behrend and our Environmental Advisory Council (EAC) is in the City ordinance-producing pipeline.

Gadfly notes that amid the tumult over the demonstration ordinance Tuesday at City Council, two residents made pitches for the plastic bag ban ordinance.

People aren’t forgetting about it.

Listen:

Dan Miller:

Mary Jo Miserindino:

Nothing is easy, right?

So Gadfly was curious how Narberth — the first and I believe still only town in Pennsylvania to enact such a ban — did it.

Take a look at:

Vinnie Vella, “How a Main Line town became the first in Pa. to ban plastic straws.” Philadelphia Inquirer, October 27, 2018.

Narberth is described as “low hanging fruit” for such an ordinance. Small: 4500 residents compared to our 75,000. Small: two chain stores compared to dozens probably in our town. And long-standing eco-conscious as marked by the three-decade NarbEarth event.

There did not seem to be any concerted opposition in Narberth.

We probably should be prepared for more controversy, more struggle.

But, first, we could use an update on the whereabouts of the EAC proposal.

It’s Thursday, June 20, do you know where your local Climate Action Plan is?