A temporary ban on plastic bags used to carry groceries and other items purchased at stores throughout Carlsbad is set to go into effect Saturday, Feb. 1, in an effort by the city to reduce litter.

State and local policies to regulate the use of plastic bags have significantly reduced how many of them are found littered along U.S. shorelines — potentially cutting that type of waste in half in ...

Plastic shopping bags, which have low recycling rates and often become litter when they blow away in the wind, are among the biggest culprits of plastic pollution in the ocean and along shorelines.