Starting August 20, if you have a layover at San Francisco International Airport, you will be unable to purchase a single-use plastic water bottle. Adhering to a city ordinance, the airport is banning the sale of single-use plastic bottles in all restaurants, stores, and vending machines throughout the airport.

ABC News reports: “As a department of San Francisco’s municipal government, the airport is following an ordinance approved in 2014 banning the sale of plastic water bottles on city-owned property.”

The same ABC article laments that since over four million plastic water bottles are sold annually at the San Francisco International Airport, getting vendors to comply may prove challenging. Airport spokesman Doug Yakel told the news outlet that he hopes using penalties to force compliance, “won’t be necessary.” The article goes on to explain:

SFO vendors already are required to provide only compostable single-use foodware, including to-go containers, condiment packets, straws and utensils. Shops at the airports have adjusted easily to these requirements because of the increased availability of suppliers producing such products, said Michael Levine, CEO of the company that oversees Napa Farms Market, a store selling grab-and-go fare in Terminal 2 and International Terminal G. “But the water bottle impact is a little trickier,” he said.

Look, I’m all for individuals choosing to use less and waste less. However, I’m not a fan of government — local, state, or federal — making decisions that negatively impact businesses and reduce consumer choice. If people want to use a worthless paper straw, they should have that right. If people want to drink water out of a reusable tin or glass container, they should have that right. Likewise, businesses should be free to stock only paper straws and not sell single-use plastic bottles if they so choose. However, business owners should also have the right to sell plastic water bottles to those consumers who want that option.

As one Twitter user pointed out, governments should be focused on encouraging innovation instead of passing regulations that move us backward.

Wow. Ok, bottled water industry. You guys are next. Here's a better idea: let's focus on biomimicry and @CradletoCradle design and manufacture straws, bottles, etc. that biodegrade and/or can be properly recycled. https://t.co/I7iv8RM5Ib — Anthony Bradley (@drantbradley) August 3, 2019

San Francisco became a clown show a long time ago. The once beautiful city is being run by leftist loons who haven’t met a micro-managing piece of legislation they don’t like (except when it comes to regulating things like drug use, homelessness, and pooping on the sidewalks). Banning the sale of single-use plastic water bottles may seem like a small thing in the short term, but it’s another piece of evidence that leftists want to have utter control over our lives.