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State and local leaders announced Monday a bill that would ban polystyrene food containers, such as styrofoam cups, in California by 2020. State Sen. Ben Allen, whose district includes UCLA, introduced Senate Bill 705, or the Ocean Pollution Reduction Act, at the Meyer and Renee Luskin Conference Center. Allen said he wanted to introduce this bill at UCLA to highlight the fact that a major institution like UCLA could make the change with positive results. UCLA eliminated polystyrene containers from its campus dining facilities in 2009 as part of a plan to have zero waste to landfill by 2020.

The EPA is banning exports of five mercury compounds, effective Jan. 1, 2020, under the reformed Toxic Substances Control Act.

Supermarkets in France have been banned from throwing away or spoiling unsold food by law. The stores are now required to donate unwanted food to charities and food banks.

President Barack Obama announced a new ban on offshore oil and natural gas drilling across broad areas of the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, using part of the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act that would make it hard for his successor to reverse the decision. "They'll be arguing about this for years in the courts," said environmental lawyer Patrick Parenteau.

The Portland, Oregon, city council yesterday passed a law banning the demolition of homes build on or before 1916. The law requires old homes to instead be deconstructed, allowing builders to salvage and reuse lumber and other materials. The city expects the new deconstruction policy will divert 8 million pounds (4,000 tons) of materials for reuse annually.

Hilton Worldwide will cease serving shark fin and stop accepting new orders for shark fin dishes by April 1, 2014. The ban covers all restaurants and facilities operated by its 96 owned and managed properties across Asia Pacific.

China's latest clean air provision includes the outright banning of all usage and sales of coal in Beijing by the end of 2020.

Apple is banning the use of two potentially hazardous chemicals, benzene and n-hexane, during the final assembly of iPhones and iPads as part of the company's latest commitment to protect the factory workers who build its trendy devices.

Plastic bag manufacturers have filed a second ballot initiative related to the California plastic bag ban.

Finland approves ban on coal for energy use from 2029

Britain will ban the sale of new petrol and diesel cars from 2040 in an attempt to reduce air pollution that could herald the end of over a century of reliance on the internal combustion engine. Britain's step, which follows France, amounts to a victory for electric cars that if copied globally could hit the wealth of oil producers, as well as transform car industry jobs and one of the icons of 20th Century capitalism: the automobile itself.

Delta Airlines, United Airlines and American Airlines have all banned big-game trophies from their cargo holds after the public outcry regarding the illegal killing of Cecil, a beloved lion, at the hands of a Minnesota man. Hunting advocates say their pastime is needed to fund conservation in Africa and warn that the backlash could lead to a sharp reduction in lion populations. "Through the sales of hunting licenses, equipment, tags, and so on, sportsmen contribute $2.9 billion every year for conservation," according to Olivia Nalos Opre, co-host of a hunting-themed TV show. BBC (8/4), FoxNews.com (8/4) 

A proposal to Mondelez International from As You Sow asking the snack food company to phase out unrecyclable packaging received 28.4 percent shareholder support representing $11.8 billion worth of shares at the food manufacturer's annual meeting.

For decades, the slaughter of sharks - sought after for their fins and meat - has been staggering. But bans on finning and new attitudes in Asia toward eating shark fin soup are leading to optimism about the future for these iconic ocean predators

The world's leading certification body for ethically sourced palm oil has ordered a total ban on deforestation by its members, amid growing pressure from both companies and consumers.

Thailand has joined Vietnam and Malaysia in cracking down on the world's trash. Thailand will stop accepting more than 400 types of electronic waste (e-waste), including circuit boards, old TVs and radios, within six months