Letter: Keeping environment clean not too much to ask

EDITOR,
I just read two letters in today’s Press-Banner regarding the plastic bag ban. One writer (“Plastic bag ban bizarre,” Kim Bukowski, Nov. 18) says that she just moved here from New Jersey and can’t understand why we will have to pay for bags with no free alternative. She also states that plastic bags are not hurting our environment and are recyclable, which they are, but plenty of people are irresponsible, and so many bags end up in the Monterey Bay and are very destructive to the ocean and wildlife. So, yes, they are hurting our environment. It takes 10 to 20 years for a plastic bag to break down once it has entered the ocean. Visit SaveOurShores.org to learn more about how plastic bags negatively affect our environment.
Jim Ward (“Bag fees present an unequal burden,” Nov. 19) argued against the ban in his letter, as well. Would it be too much to ask to invest in reusable bags, as so many people have chosen to do? They are only about a dollar each and can be used over and over again. These bags are also given out free at some local events to promote their use. We bring ours to the store every week. Or you can bring back your bags from previous trips. Just save them. I don’t believe it is at unreasonable at all to ask people to do their part to keep our environment clean.
Susan Negro, Scotts Valley