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COULD AFFECT YOU. >> WE HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY HERE. MIKE: IN CALIFORNIA, THERE’S STRONG SUPPORT FOR PHASING OUT SINGLE-USE PLASTIC CONTAINERS. >> THE FOLKS IN CHINA HAVE DECIDED THEY DON’T WANT OUR JUNK ANYMORE. MIKE: WITH FEWER MARKETS FOR PLASTIC WASTE, LAWMAKERS ARE LOOKING TO BAN PLASTICS THAT CAN’T BE RECYCLED BY THE YEAR 2030. >> A LOT OF THAT PACKAGING WE GET AT THE GROCERY STORE IS ACTUALLY NOT TECHNICALLY RECYCLABLE. THERE AREN’T MARKETS FOR IT. AND WE CERTAINLY GOT THAT LESSON FROM CHINA WHEN THEY STARTED REJECTING ALL OF THIS PLASTIC PACKAGING THAT WE WERE SENDING THEM FOR RECYCLING. MIKE: CALIFORNIA HAS ALREADY BANNED SINGLE USE PLASTIC BAGS AND PLASTIC STRAWS ARE SOMETHI CONSUMERS MUST NOW REQUEST FROM RESTAURANTS. BUT STILL, PLASTIC POLLUTION IS A GROWING SOURCE OF CONCERN IN OUR OCEANS AND WATERWAYS, AND GETTING RID OF PLASTICS IS AN EXISTENTIAL CHALLENGE FOR TH PLASTICS INDUSTRY, THAT SUPPORTS THE CONCEPT BEHIND THE BILLS OF CLEANING THE PLANET, BUT WITH OPEN QUESTIONS ABOUT HOW TO DO IT AND WHERE DOES THE WASTE GO. >> SOME OF THE CHALLENGES THAT WE CURRENTLY EXPERIENCE IS THAT THERE ISN’T AN INFRASTRUCTURE CURRENTLY IN PLACE WITH THE CLOSING OF REPLANET THAT BRINGS ANOTHER CHALLENGE TO THIS PARTICULAR ISSUE. MIKE: BUT PLASTICS CAN’T BE ELIMINATED OVERNIGHT. AND IT WILL TAKE YEARS TO ADDRESS THE PROBLEM WORLDWIDE. BACK HERE AT THE STATE CAPITOL, WHERE BOTH BILLS ARE MOVING THROUGH THE ASSEMBLY AND THE SENATE THE PLASTICS INJURES THREE --

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Plastics may be a way of life in the United States, but California is pushing hard to restrict its use by banning products that can't be recycled by the year 2030. The target for lawmakers like Sen. Ben Allen, D-Santa Monica, is single-use plastic containers. "The folks in China have decided they don't want our junk anymore," Allen told supporters of his proposal, Senate Bill 54. A complementary measure, Assembly Bill 1080, is now moving forward in the Assembly."A lot of that packaging we get at the grocery store is actually not technically recyclable," said Mark Murray, of Californians Against Waste. "There aren't markets for it. And we certainly got that lesson from China when they started rejecting all of this plastic packaging that we were sending them for recycling."California has already banned single-use plastic bags, and plastic straws are something that consumers must request from restaurants.Still, plastic pollution is a growing source of concern in the oceans and waterways."Every day and every week, we're seeing more and more animals that are impacted by this in our oceans," said Dan Jacobson, of Environment California."Our dolphins and turtles are washing up; their stomachs are filled with plastics."But getting rid of plastics is an existential challenge for the plastics industry."The plastics industry is very supportive of the intent of the bill," said Bernice Jiminez Creager, of the American Chemistry Council. "However, we're trying to bring it to an operational versus aspirational position."There are still open questions about how to dispose of the unwanted plastic. Among them: Where does the waste go?"Some of the challenges that we currently experience is that there isn't an infrastructure currently in place. With the closing of rePlanet, that brings another challenge to this particular issue," Creager said. | MORE | California’s largest recycling business closes, 750 laid offThe Plastics Industry Association director of state government affairs, Shannon Crawford, sent a statement in response to the bills."We agree with the goal of the legislation," Crawford wrote, later cautioning, "These bills could ban many items we use every day. We are working with the Legislature and all stakeholders to develop a more thoughtful solution to California's recycling challenges." Both bills are moving forward in the Assembly and Senate, with the plastics industry offering amendments. But lawmakers will have to move fast, as the last day of the legislative session is Sept. 13.