SAN FRANCISCO—San Francisco Board of Supervisor for District 3, Aaron Peskin, has proposed legislation that would work to reduce single-use foodware and disposable cups.
The legislation was announced on Tuesday, July 23 and would require all food vendors to charge their customers 25-cents for to-go disposable cups and plates. Businesses would provide reusable dishes for customers dining in, but in order to encourage customers to bring their own to-go cups and containers, the upcharge for transportable foodware would be put into place.
The 25-cent upcharge would not apply to individuals on food stamps or the federal supplemental nutrition program for women, infants and children.
If approved, the legislation would go into effect as early as January 1, 2020.
“We will pay the costs of this harm [plastic waste] one way or another, whether through the increased cost of waste management, or the enormous cost of cleaning up our oceans and waterways. We must take steps now to change our behavior and hopefully prevent the worst of the worst harm to our planet,” said Peskin in a news release.
For more details on the city of San Francisco’s goal to reduce waste, visit https://sfenvironment.org.
