Bill aims to ban plastic bags at grocery stores

Good Morning, I’m John Carroll, in for Debbie Cruz….it’s Tuesday, August 20th.

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A San Diego legislator is sponsoring a bill to fully ban plastic bags at grocery stores.

That’s next. But first... let’s do the headlines….

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San Diego's newest community planning group is holding elections that are online.

And all residents, even noncitizens, are eligible to vote.

The Uptown Community planning group will advise the city on land use and infrastructure matters in Bankers Hill, Hillcrest, Mission Hills and University Heights.

New bylaws approved by the city council in May include designated seats for renters, homeowners, businesses and nonprofits.

Michael Donovan is overseeing the elections.

“We're also required to have at least one in-person voting day, which is August the 20th from 6 to 8 p.m. for those who either don't want to submit documentation online or who just feel more comfortable voting in person.”

The deadline to vote is 8 tonight (Tuesday).

You can register at uptown-community-planning-dot-org.

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There’s a slight chance of thunderstorms in our mountain and desert areas tomorrow (Wednesday).

But don’t let the rain fool you… we’ll still be feeling the summer heat.

The National Weather Service says today (Tuesday) is expected to be the hottest day of the week, with above average temperatures for this time of year.

In the inland areas, temperatures are expected to be in the low 90s, in the mountains temps will be in the mid 80s, by the coast it’ll be in the low 80s, and in the deserts, temps could reach 111 degrees.

Forecasters say after today, a cooling trend will begin.

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San Diego Wave F-C has a new interim head coach.

Landon Donovan will serve as the new head coach through the remainder of the 20-24 season.

According to a news release, former coach Paul Buckle is returning to his personal commitments after he transitions his coaching duties to Donovan.

Donovan is a San Diego local, and was formerly the Executive Vice President of Soccer Operations for the San Diego Loyal.

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From KPBS, you’re listening to San Diego News Now. Stay with me for more of the local news you need.

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Environmentalists gathered at a beach in Encinitas over the weekend, to push for the passage of a better plastic bag ban in the state.

Sci-tech reporter Thomas Fudge was there and spoke with the sponsor of a bill that will eliminate the sale of plastic checkout bags in grocery stores.

Moonlight Beach drew a crowd Saturday of elected officials. Activists from Surfrider. Even a woman dressed in a suit made of plastic bags. They came to rally against plastic pollution and in favor of Senate Bill 1053. The bill is meant to close a loophole in California’s first plastic bag ban, passed ten years ago. It allowed the sale of thicker plastic bags at grocery store checkouts by calling them reusable and recyclable. In practice they have been neither of those. State senator Katherine Blakespeare, of Encinitas, is the bill sponsor. She says if it becomes law, shoppers could only get a recyclable paper bag at checkout. “They wouldn’t have the option of paper or plastic, which is what we all hear at the grocery store. Paper or plastic! IT would just be paper if you didn’t happen to have your reusable bag with you.” Today some stores don’t even carry paper grocery bags. SB 1053 and its companion bill in the Assembly have the support of the grocery store industry in California. The bills must come to a floor vote either this week or next. SOQ.

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A California bill would prohibit public libraries from banning books solely because of their topics or views.

Reporter Katie Anastas says the county board of supervisors will consider supporting that bill and raising awareness of attempted censorship.

Jennifer Lawson manages the county library’s collection. When librarians buy new books, she says they consider a book’s popularity, professional reviews and the reputation of the author and publisher. LAWSON We buy books because our customers want them. And it's true that not every customer is going to want every book, but, you know, we're trying to appeal to all the different groups in our communities. Members of the public can submit a form if they want the library to reconsider certain material. Lawson says, in recent years, most objections have been about books with LGBTQ+ topics. California legislators are considering a bill that would prohibit public libraries from banning material just because of the topic or intended audience. District 3 Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer is asking county leaders to support that bill and ensure that every county library has a physical or digital copy of the most frequently challenged books. She says she wants the county’s librarians and readers to know they’re supported. LAWSON-REMER I’ve heard stories about books that have been returned with the whole book blacked out. And that’s not fair. That’s not appropriate. If you don't want to read the book, don’t check it out. But don’t black out my ability to read the book. The Board of Supervisors will vote on Lawson-Remer’s proposal at their meeting next Tuesday. Katie Anastas, KPBS News.

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The 20-24 presidential race has been the subject of countless posts on Tik Tok, X and Instagram.

L-A Times politics reporter Faith Pinho spoke to KPBS Midday Edition host Jade Hindmon about the role of social media in this year’s presidential election.

It seems half of the campaigning for this upcoming election is being done on social media. From what you’ve seen, what role is that and pop culture playing here?

Okay, what is brat summer?

And how is that use of social media and  pop culture similar or different to presidential elections in the past?

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San Diego has the only zoo outside of Australia with platypuses.

And now, the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance is partnering with an Australian zoo to study how climate change is affecting them.

As North County reporter Alexander Nguyen tells us, the population is declining because of habitat loss.

Platypuses are beloved egg-laying mammals. They're also pop-culture icons … like the character in Disney’s “Phineas and Ferb.” “Perry the platypus!” But not much is known about them because of their elusive nature. “They spend their lives in murky water, they live in long, dark burrows.” Hendrik Nollens is the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance's vice president of Wildlife Health. He says the Australian Bushfire of 20-19 destroyed a large part of the platypus’ habitat … and their numbers are declining. “So one of the objectives of this study is to actually understand that under which conditions do platypus no longer thrive, no longer reproduce, because those would be triggers to actually go, rescue them, retrieve them from a system under threat, but then also inform when they can go back.” The Platypus Research Program will primarily be conducted in Australia in partnership with Taronga Zoo. San Diego Zoo Safari Park is the only zoo outside of Australia to have platypuses on display … giving researchers here a chance to monitor their burrow behaviors. AN/KPBS.

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That’s it for the podcast today. As always you can find more San Diego news online at KPBS dot org. Join us again tomorrow for the day’s top stories. I’m John Carroll. Thanks for listening and have a great Tuesday.