NEW BRAUNFELS, Texas (AP) _ Residents in New Braunfels will vote Tuesday on whether they want to ban disposable containers on their rivers, a proposal that has divided a town whose economy relies heavily on tourism.
The New Braunfels City Council voted in August to ban the cans on the Comal and Guadalupe rivers. Opponents formed the “Can the Ban” political action committee and gathered enough signatures to force a referendum.
By Thursday, the Austin American-Statesman reports some 4,800 people had already headed to the polls in early voting. That is 14 percent of the town’s registered voters.
Opponents say a ban will hurt tourism because tubers like to drink while leisurely floating down the river. Supporters say tourists litter the waterways with their cans.
(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)