China's June 1 bag ban targets ultrathin plastic bags and the free giveaway of shopping bags. But China's major tourism region Yunnan province is kicking off a real ban: It's outlawing all plastic shopping bags, no matter how thick they are, no matter at a charge or free, no matter if they are made from conventional materials or are biodegradable.

The ban doesn't stop here. According to Xinhua's Yunnan Channel, the provincial government has ordered the ban of all production, sale and use of plastic shopping bags, starting Jan 1, 2009. The ban supersedes the less strict national ban, the directive stresses.

The government spokesperson encouraged consumers to use alternative, eco-friendly shopping bags: non-woven, canvas and paper bags.

I seriously doubt Yunnan's policymakers understand that non-woven bags are made of plastic, or that they've ever heard how the production of paper bags consumes more energy and releases more greenhouse gases than their plastic counterparts.

Do they truly believe it's the right thing to do--making the 45 million residents go plastic-bag-free?