For many, if not most, a national ban on plastic bags may be a welcome initiative. Quite recently, it was reported in the media that City Hall officials proposed a ban on “single-use” plastic bags. Government has already taken the stance and banned Styrofoam containers, which, for many years, were clogging up the country’s drainage network. The environmentally damaging effects of plastic bags far outweigh their convenience; as we have already witnessed, plastic bags can increase the risk of flooding and when the plastic is washed out into the ocean, it has a negative impact on hundreds of different species of marine life. There are many problems associated with plastic bags, which is why bans or fees are in place in many countries. The oldest is in Denmark, which started in 1993, whereby charges are levied for the use of plastic bags. Ireland has perhaps the best known measure, which is the 2002 ‘bag tax’. Consumers would have to actually purchase bags. This resulted in a 90 per cent drop in bag usage and a great reduction in litter. By 2007, usage was rising again, which led to an increase in the price of bags. Ireland and Denmark are just two successful examples and many other countries across the world are following suit. The European Union will require an 80 per cent reduction of plastic bags by 2019. This means virtually every European country is now considering ways to bring about reductions.
Many other countries have already taken the decision to place a ban on plastic bags; in fact, earlier this year, the United Kingdom’s Prime Minister Theresa May defended the country’s ‘long-term’ plastic waste plan. The Prime Minister said her long-term strategy, including eradicating all avoidable plastic waste in the UK by 2042, would allow future generations to “enjoy a beautiful environment”. Key to this is a crackdown on throwaway plastics. Under the UK Government’s plan, supermarkets will be urged to introduce “plastic-free” aisles while taxes and charges on single-use items such as takeaway containers will be considered. Other measures announced include a charge for plastic carrier bags to all retailers in England, Government funding for plastics innovation and a commitment to help developing nations tackle pollution and reduce plastic waste, including through UK aid.
She called plastic waste “one of the great environmental scourges of our time”, adding: “In the UK alone, the amount of single-use plastic wasted every year would fill 1000 Royal Albert Halls.” The PM added too that the Government had already reduced plastic bag usage by nine billion and legislated to ban plastic microbeads used in cosmetics and cleaning products. Environmentalists there agree that the Government’s plan to restore nature – not just safeguard nature – is genuinely radical.
Aside from being a national problem, the profusion of plastic waste is also a global issue and the United Nations-Oceans Chief, Lisa Svensson has warned that life in the seas was at risk of irreparable damage from a rising tide of plastic waste. She urged firms and individuals to act far more quickly to halt plastic pollution. However, plastic bags are just one part of the problem – there are so many other types of plastic flowing through waterways. Svensson admitted that it could take 10 years to get a UN treaty agreed on plastic litter and a further two years to get it implemented. In the meantime, she has urged that there should be much stronger actions from civil society, putting pressure on business to change – they can, in turn, switch their supply chains. More importantly, the UN representative emphasised the need for more individual governments to take urgent action too.
According to the BBC, Indonesia – the world’s second biggest plastics polluter after China – has pledged to reduce plastic waste in the ocean by 75 per cent by 2025. China is also looking at new policies to curb plastic waste after a decade-long campaign failed to show results. While countries grapple with individual challenges and issues with enforcement, experts suggest that countries tackle the issues through mandatory education programmes and public awareness; if not, regulations for curbing plastic use in the future might not work.
The main objective behind plastic bag bans is to lower how much plastic finds its way into the marine world. About 94 per cent of all birds have plastic in their stomachs, which is also found in the stomachs of many endangered species. At least 267 different species of animals have suffered as a result of ingestion of or entanglement with plastic. In fact, these disastrous consequences caused Australia to ban bags locally in 2003, in an effort to protect the migrating whales in Tasmania. It comes as welcome news that Guyana will now seek to join in the drive to ban plastic bags.
