Wal-Mart’s greening up three of its Northern California stores. According to The Sacramento Bee, the move is part of an experiment to ease customers into the bring-your-own-bag habit as the huge retailer attempts to reduce its global waste. If they forget bags, they can buy reusable bags from Wal-Mart in two sizes, for 15 cents and 50 cents. The company is also training checkers on how to fill reusable bags to capacity.

The effort is part of the company’s Plastic Bag Initiative, which aims to reduce plastic bag waste at its stores worldwide 33% by 2013. The company says the effort would help it avoid producing 290,000 metric tons of greenhouse gases and prevent the consumption of 678,000 barrels of oil every year.

Before the ban took effect, the stores posted signs encouraging customers to provide their own bags and also began selling reusable bags. The store discontinued free bags altogether on January 16 at the three stores. The stores were chosen because the customers in those communities had already signaled an interest in environmental issues. Beginning January 22, the reusable bags will be on sale at another 52 stores throughout Northern California.

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