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EU to ban free plastic bags in stores

 
, medical expert
Last reviewed: 16.10.2021
 
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21 May 2011, 12:37

The European Commission has started a process of public discussion of the future of plastic bags, which will last until August 2011, said EU Environment Commissioner Janes Potocnik. Currently, the EC is studying the possibility of imposing a ban on free polyethylene bags in stores or taxing them with a special tax.

According to a source, in some countries of the European Union, supermarket packages are either banned or are paid for customers. Uniform regulation for the whole of the EU does not exist, and after all, plastic bags used for several minutes pollute the environment for decades. According to the European Commission, an average EU resident uses about 500 plastic bags per year. In 2008, the continent produced 3.4 million tons of packages, which corresponds to a weight of 2 million cars.

In January 2011, the ranks of the countries that refused plastic bags were joined by Italy. However, the Association of European Plastics Processors EuPC (Brussels, Belgium), as well as the British consortium Carrier Bag Consortium (CBC) and the Association of Packaging and Film Producers (PAFA, Great Britain) have protested against the decision of the Italian authorities to ban polymer packages. According to experts, a simple lightweight plastic bag is so effective that replacing it with a heavier or biodegradable alternative packaging will affect transportation and storage, and will increase the risk of greenhouse gas pollution.

In San Francisco, the US law banning the use of disposable packages exists since 2007. Similar bills exist in other countries. In the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh, for the storage and use of plastic bags, imprisonment for up to 7 years or a fine of 100 thousand rupees (about $ 2,000) is punishable, in Bangladesh 10 years of prison are given for the production of polyethylene packaging.

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