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THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2011
Volume 10 Issue 249
Santa Monica Daily Press
AMERICANS DIG SWEET DRINKS SEE PAGE 14
We have you covered
THE ARE YOU PREPARED? ISSUE
Plastic bag ban takes effect in SM
District aces state requirements, lags nationwide Will Rogers Elementary falls into ‘PI’ status
BY ASHLEY ARCHIBALD BY ASHLEY ARCHIBALD
Daily Press Staff Writer
Daily Press Staff Writer
SEE YA: A clerk at Co-opportunity on Wednesday uses single-use plastic bags on the last day
CITYWIDE It’s official. The long-awaited — or dreaded — plastic bag ban passed by the City Council in January takes effect today, whether you’re ready or not. According to city officials, 26 million plastic bags get used each year in Santa Monica alone, contributing not only to the city’s carbon footprint, but to the bags that foul up local beaches and devastate marine life. The ban will significantly cut down on that by cutting them out of grocery stores, and restricting them in other places, including the various Farmers’ Markets. Josephine Miller, an employee of the Office of Sustainability and the Environment and colloquially known as the “bag lady,” is pretty confident that the last six months’ reprieve from the ban, which was supposed to take effect in March, has given retailers and their customers time to prepare themselves for enforcement. Miller has been busy making it happen. She’s run around to hundreds of impacted businesses giving presentations, prepping owners, bagging clerks, creating fliers (three) and calling the 108 most-affected stores to give them updates on the rules and loopholes of the ban.
before a ban takes effect. Management said they were trying to use the rest of their stock before the ban began. Santa Monica is among a small group of cities that has banned plastic bags.
SEE BAN PAGE 8
SMMUSD HDQTRS Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District posted gains in a state indicator used to evaluate schools’ progress from year to year, but more than half of campuses — 10 of 17 — failed to achieve standards set by the federal government. The California Department of Education uses a measure called the Academic Performance Index, which compiles scores from standardized tests covering English, mathematics, science and history. SEE SCORES PAGE 7
Weather service warns of high surf along coast ASSOCIATED PRESS LOS ANGELES The National Weather Service has issued a high surf advisory for the coast of Southern California, warning of strong rip currents and breakers that can top more than 11 feet. A winter storm off the coast of New Zealand is generating big waves across the Pacific. The weather service says they're expected to arrive late Wednesday afternoon on California beaches and shoreline, from San Luis Obispo to San Diego counties. Meteorologist Stuart Seto said the surf will average 7 feet to 9 feet, with south- and southwest-facing beaches seeing larger than 11-foot waves during high tide around noon Thursday. He says strong rip currents will create hazardous conditions for swimmers. People are urged to stay off jetties or risk being swept away.
Daniel Archuleta daniela@smdp.com
NCAA FOOTBALL
Katz grows into role at Oregon St. Former Samohi quarterback begins second year at the helm BY DANIEL ARCHULETA Managing Editor
CORVALLIS, Ore. It’s bowl or bust for Oregon State quarterback Ryan Katz. The Santa Monica High School product
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is preparing to begin his second year as the starter and can’t help but expect big things following a so-so 5-7 season. “We’re going to have a better year than last year,” Katz promised. “Not making a bowl game, that was tough on us. It was a
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KATZ
SEE KATZ PAGE 10
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