Kiosk In This Issue Sat. June 18 7:30-9:30 PM The Mirth-O-Matics! Great Improv Comedy Group $10.00 cover The Works 667 Lighthouse Ave 831-372-2242 • FINAL WEEKEND Sun., June 19 Matinee 3:00 PM Ride to lunch - 5 Heritage awards - 9 Crisis: It’s coming - 12 Peter & the Wolf Forest Theater, Carmel $20 Call 831-626-1681 • Sun., June 19 8 a.m. - dusk Father’s Day fest Putting contest, raffle Screening of final round of US Open Admission free Call 648-5773 • June 20-24 Times Mon.-Fri. June 17-23, 2011 Vol. III, Issue 40 2:30-5:30 PM Pacific Grove Community News Youth Art Workshop “Insects” PC Art Center $100/week session 917-0009 info Picnic lunch City may join • Wed., June 22 Dinner time growing effort Eat out for AFRP Animals See www.animalfriendsrescue.org to ban plastic or call 333-0722 for updated list of participating shopping bags restaurants • By Marge Ann Jameson Sat. June 25 7:30-9:30 PM Kimberley Pryor & Robert Marcum A coalition of clean-environment and Acoustic folk/rock singers consumer advocates are promoting an outright $10.00 cover ban on the use of high density polyethylene The Works 667 Lighthouse Ave (HDPE) plastic grocery bags. And Wednesday 831-372-2242 night the City of Pacific Grove joined them by • directing staff to draft an ordinance to elimi- Sat. June 25 nate the use of single-use carryout bags, both 10 a.m. – 6 p.m. plastic and paper, and to encourage the use and of reusable bags by consumers and retailers. Sun. June 26 Sarah Hardgrave, Environmental Programs Noon – 5:00 p.m. Manager for the Community Development Touch of the Orient Department, will spearhead the effort and Fundraiser sale bring a draft ordinance back to City Council American Cancer Society within six months. A Negative Declaration Discovery Shop of Environmental Impact will be prepared 198 Country Club Gate Marley Knoles, in marketing for Canterbury Woods, took this photo of a juvenile Pacific Grove red-shouldered hawk near Hopkins Marine Lab where she was enjoying a plein at some point early in the process, and will • aire writing class recently. The bird was identified by Jack Beigle and Marvin continue to monitor the progress of other ju- Fri. & Sat. July 8, 9 Sheffield, DVM, avid birders. More pictures on page 7. risdictions attempting the same sorts of bans. 10AM - 5 PM The cost of the planned Negactive Dec- Sun. July 10 laration is built into the city’s budget as part 11 AM - 4 PM of the work plan for environmental programs. St. Mary’s-by-the-Sea Antiques & It is hoped that an environmental impact Collectibles Show & Sale report, which could be costly in comparison, Teen drinking parties will soon will not be needed but some other jurisdictions have gone that route in response to pressure by the plastics industry. If an EIR does end up Inside mean heavy fines for hosts being required, staff will return to Council for Pacific Grove City Council will likely soon enact an ordinance amending existing further direction. Cop Log ................................3 chapters of the municipal code in an attempt to “improve public safety relating to gather- Ban the bag movements are growing all Food ............................ (dark) ings where alcohol is consumed by minors.” over, despite the efforts of industry advocates Green Page ........................16 In other words, heavy fines will be levied if minors are found to be drinking at a party, who actually got an Assembly Bill passed Health & Well-Being .......... 10 whether parents are present or not. The fine would apply to the host or hostess even if (AB2449) which prohibits municipalities from High Hats & Parasols ...........4 they themselves are minors. imposing fees on plastic bags. Reasons for Legal Notices ......................14 Over the past 10 years the Pacific Grove Police Department has arrested 61 under- banning plastic bags cited include: Obituary ..............................11 age drivers for Driving Under the Influence of drugs or alcohol, arrested 41 juveniles for Opinion .........................(dark) being drunk in public, and filed 69 crime cases enforcing the Pacific Grove Municipal • It takes the equivalent of 12 million Peeps ...........................12, 13 barrels of oil per year to make single- Shelf Life...............................3 See PARTIES Page 2 use plastic bags, which are made from Sports ...................................6 natural gas. Up & Coming ........................8 • Only five to 10 percent get recycled, ‘Cautious optimism’ over fireworks and that’s because analysts estimate Make us your friend on The Board of the 2011 Pacific Grove Feast of Lanterns are cautiously optimistic that that it’s more expensive to recycle them Facebook to receive there will be fireworks for this year’s pageant, set to return to the pier at Lovers Point on than it is to make new ones. So they calendar updates and July 31. go into the landfill, or worse – into the reminders on your While the Board does not have the final permission from NOAA, president Sue Renz ocean. Facebook page! met with local officials and the group will go ahead and attempt to gain other permits • Surfrider Monterey and Save Our – such as those from the Coast Guard – plus contracts, insurance and agreements around Shores volunteers have removed more the fireworks. than 28,000 plastic bags from local riv- “It will only be a one-year permit, where we used to get five-year permits,” said ers and beaches in the past few years. It Renz. “We’ll take it.” She added that she had been advised that the final permits might was the number three cause of marine not be forthcoming until sometime in July. “At least we aren’t among those waiting for wildlife becoming entangled in debris, a permit for the 4th of July.” Send your calendar items to: Costs for the fireworks portion of the pageant have increased and donations and [email protected] See FIREWORKS Page 2 See BAGS Page 2 Page 2 • CEDAR STREET Times • June 17, 2011 pBAGS From Page 1 Desal forum behind fishline and fishing nets. • More than 267 species of marine wildlife have been harmed by plastic bag litter. postponed F.Y.I. There are horrifying pictures of birds, seals, turtles, fish and otters among others For Your Information. that have ingested plastic bags or become entangled in them. Some municipalities have tried the education route. Tell people all about the problem until after and they’ll do the logical thing and stop using plastic bags. But they didn’t. The city of San Kim’s Hair Jose tried it and found that education alone did not significantly change people’s habits. investigation at Pro Beauty Twenty-five percent of the world has either banned or put a fee on plastic bags, A meeting of the Community In- in Crossroads Carmel including Ireland, Scotland, Australia, South Africa. Bangladesh, Italy and China, which volvement Forum group for the Regional New Client Special has not been known for its environmental consciousness. Desalination Project that had been sched- Cut & Color $75 Since 2008, these nearby jurisdictions – including some with major populations uled for Wed., June 15 was postponed until Natural Nail Manicures $25 – have banned plastic bags: Fairfax, Malibu, Palo Alto, San Francisco, San Jose and further notice. 831.620.1422 Los Angeles County. Manhattan Beach has even gone so far as the California Supreme The decision to postpone the meet- Court in a battle against the plastics industry to ban the bags. ing was reached by the majority of the Sales and These cities are considering bans or fees: Encinitas, Los Angeles (city), San Diego, Regional Desalination Project's Advisory Property Management Santa Clara county (including 15 cities) and Santa Monica. Committee. still only 5% Other places considering either a ban or the enactment of a fee include: Alameda The meeting will be rescheduled County, Bakersfield, Belmont, Berkeley, Burbank, Calabasas, Chico. Downey, Eureka, once results are released in the ongoing Foster City, Gilroy, Humboldt County, Laguna Beach, Long Beach, Marin County, Men- investigation of former Monterey County docino County, Moorpark, Pasadena, San Rafael, Santa Cruz, Santa Barbara, Sonoma Water Resources Agency board member 623 Lighthouse Ave., in PG County and Sunnyvale. Steve Collins and his consulting contract 831-655-4708 with the project’s engineering firm RMC [email protected] Water and Environment. p From Page 1 The Committee consists of the Presi- FIREWORKS dent of California American Water, FATHERS DAY GIFTS sponsorships have been slow in coming. They were not part of the original celebration, two municipal advisors represented by yet it is the fireworks which most people surveyed connect with the event, now more Monterey Mayor Chuck Della Sala and at than 100 years old. And it is the fireworks that most tourists and visitors from out of WOODIES of Carmel Carmel-by-the-Sea Mayor Sue McCloud, town come to see. Fireworks as part of celebrations have become more and more rare and the General Managers of the Mon- GIFT WRAPPED & SHIPPED and people travel farther and farther to see them, many coming from the San Francisco terey County Water Resources Agency woodiesofcarmel.com Bay area, the San Joaquin Valley and south Monterey county to watch the pageant and and Marina Coast Water District. the fireworks finale. "The Regional Water Project contin- A Gift Shop for Men! Other parts of the feast of Lanterns celebration are set to return during the final 114 The Crossroads ues to move forward with permitting and week in July: the chalk fest, Pet Parade, dance at Chautaqua Hall and more are in the design work," said California American 626-9064 works.