Five years ago, a proposed law banning the use of polystyrene containers to serve burgers, salads and other prepared foods failed in the state Assembly after heavy opposition from the plastics industry and the Chamber of Commerce. The environmental hazards posed by this form of plastic foam haven’t changed since then, but a lot of other things have.

State Senator Ben Allen (D-Santa Monica) has been appointed to the governing board of the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, his office announced Tuesday.

The Conservancy, established in 1980 by the state Legislature, helps preserve more than 72,000 acres of wilderness and parkland encompassed in the nation’s largest urban park, itself a 150,000-acre swath of mountains and coastline in Ventura and Los Angeles counties.

California faces a transportation crisis, with gridlock, crushing commutes and significant negative impacts on our environment, economy and quality of life.

Posted Jun. 23, 2016 11:33am

by Santa Monica Mirror Staff

In a gathering Tuesday of over 200 Alzheimer’s advocates representing the entire state of California, Senator Ben Allen  was presented with the 2016 Legislator of the Year award by his constituent in the 26th Senate District, Elizabeth Gelfand Stearns, a former local and national board member of the Alzheimer’s Association.