SAN ANTONIO – Bexar County Young Democrats, along with other members of the community, gathered Monday evening at Brackenridge Park to fight for a cleaner community.
“We are standing up for environmental responsibility of San Antonio,” Gabrien Gregory, president of the Bexar County Young Democrats, said.
The group is pushing for a plastic bag ban in San Antonio.
Some people in the community believe it's an important issue, while others believe the change would be an inconvenience.
"I feel like we're a large city and we can make a difference and we should,” Andrew Mortiz, San Antonio Resident said.
District 1 City Councilman Roberto Trevino said although the city has already been addressing environmental issues, the proposal goes beyond recycling bins.
"We definitely want to talk about the proper use -- is banning or limiting an appropriate measure? That's a good discussion to have. We want to protect the environment,” Trevino said.
Across the street from the Olmos Basin trails off of Jones Maltsberger Road and East Basse Road, dozens of bags fill the area.
Trevino said it is important to take a closer look at the issue because drainage systems tend to get clogged, causing flooding in the area.
"When a bag particularly is floating around in our community, it restricts plant life from growing, animals often think that its food, and when it gets to our water system that's very serious,” Gregory said. “When a bag gets into our water system it not only has the potential to block some of the filtration process the chemicals break down. That gets into the water and we have potential of us drinking that water.”
The Bexar County Young Democrats will be meeting with city officials in the next few weeks in hopes of change.
“We want to get people together and educate them on how we can make the impact and get them to sign the petition,” Gregory said.
The group started a petition online and has collected over 280 signatures.
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