Last year Los Angeles became the largest city to ban plastic bags (San Francisco was the first), a law which went into affect at the start of the year and more recently for establishments like small grocery stores and farmers markets. Even better, California just recently became the first state to ban the use of plastic bags. The bill is currently waiting to be signed by Governor Brown, which will go into effect July 2015.

In addition to the obvious environmental affects, Californians Against Waste says the state spends $34 to $107 million dollars on plastic bag cleanup each year.