WHY IT RATES: The program doesn't begin until 2020, but local residents and business owners are implementing the initiative now. -Janeen Christoff, TravelPulse Senior Writer
The city of San Miguel de Allende has taken an important step to become a sustainable city by the year 2020. The Municipal Government, in coordination with the Environment and Sustainability Department, has launched the "Zero Plastic, More Life" campaign, set to take effect January 1, 2020. But for local city businesses, even three months is too long to wait, so the residents and local business owners are stepping in now to help transition San Miguel de Allende into a zero plastic city.
The San Miguel de Allende city government approved a new law that begins January 2020 to remove all single-use plastic. But separate from the government ordinance, the city has decided to begin now. During the next few months leading up to the new year, the Environment and Sustainability Department will work to implement actions and strategies to inform all residents of the city, as well as business owners, to educate and train with the aim of furthering the commitment to care for the environment. Hotels, restaurants, wedding planners, tour guide associations, and the local chamber of commerce signed an agreement with the city government to start making changes in their businesses now.
For example, street vendors that once served their products on plastic or styrofoam plates will transition to more eco-friendly options. A local street cart selling corn esquites, for example, will serve the dish in a corn husk, rather than a plastic dish. It's better for the environment, and has a more appealing look to it, as well.
"Global warming is real and it is happening now, and we cannot wait anymore," said Mayor Luis Alberto Villarreal. "I thank the city council members for approving this law. It is something that is going to help the city and make a small contribution for the environment."
Villarreal reaffirms his commitment to carry out actions aimed at protecting the environment. "We are a government that thinks about sustainability, as the U.N. marks it, thinks about making use and care of social, economic, and environmental resources to conserve them and increase them in favor of the next generation," he said.
The wellness mindset is not new to San Miguel de Allende, so these initiatives will be seen as taking the already green-minded destination to the next level. Wellness travelers will find unique hot springs just five miles north of the city, as well as award-winning spas at hotels like Hotel Matilda or the Rosewood San Miguel de Allende, hiking trails, organic markets, vegan restaurants, and the city's first green roof at Hotel Hacienda El Santuario, which has been operating sustainably for the last 10 years.
Working sustainably to help preserve the environment is not a new mindset for San Miguel de Allende. But thanks to the government and the passion of its longtime residents, there is no time like the present to work even harder to protect and care for our planet.
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