Judge Rejects Plastic Bag Ban

A California Supreme Court judge has ruled that the city of Oakland cannot ban the use of plastic shopping bags without a thorough environmental review. The Oakland City Council must now decide whether to appeal the judge's ruling or do a full environmental study. Many municipalities considering a similar ban have watched the case closely, including San Francisco, which banned plastic bags last year. The Oakland council approved the ban last summer. Shortly thereafter, a coalition of plastic bag proponents sued to have the ban lifted, arguing that paper bags require more energy to produce and take up more landfill space than plastic bags.