Mayor Charmaine Tavares and Councilman Mike Molina will hand out reusable shopping bags from 10 a.m. to noon today at Ah Fook's Supermarket at the Kahului Shopping Center.

Molina introduced a measure recently signed by Tavares that bans plastic shopping bags effective Jan. 11, 2011. The free bag distribution promotes the International Year of the Reef. When blown into the ocean, plastic bags are a threat to marine animals that ingest them or become entangled in them.

Year of the Reef educational materials will be available at the store.

Another reusable bag giveaway will take place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Oct. 11 at Takamiya Market in Happy Valley, Wailuku.