Yes, one of the hurdles in the path of the city’s new single-use plastics ban will be boosting manufacturer supplies enough to lower prices for businesses buying them. But there may be other issues.

One is that a substitute material, polylactic acid (PLA), is often called “biodegradable,” but it won’t break down in any ordinary composting bin. That requires conditions generally present only in an industrial composting facility, of which Oahu has none — yet.

Reading tea leaves on Oahu home sales

How 2019 wraps up in Oahu home sales is still unclear, but much of the past decade has delivered years of record-breaking median prices for single-family homes and condos — dating back to 2013. Before that, prices fluttered for years in the aftermath of the recession.

The latest report from the Honolulu Board of Realtors lists median home sale prices through November as slightly down or flat. For single-family homes, $785,000 this year compared with $790,000 last year. For condominiums, the figure held steady at $425,000. If the six-year streak snaps, it’s a fairly safe bet that fresh one will soon be in the works.