THE parliament on Thursday passed a motion for a resolution urging the Government to enact a law banning the use of plastic bags, commonly known as buveera.
The minister of Water and Environment, Maria Mutagamba, was given two months to draft a Bill to ban the importation, manufacture, use and indiscriminate disposal of polythene bags.
The MPs voted unanimously for a motion moved by Ruganda West MP, Henry Banyenzaki, and seconded by Geoffrey Ekanya to rid the country of what they termed the “menace of buveera” which not only degrades the environment but also endangers people’s lives.
Banyenzaki argued that plastic bags had become part of everyday life, with one million buveera thrown as waste every year on the streets, in the drains, in lakes and streams leading to serious environmental hazards. He said buveera had adverse health effects due to improper use and disposal.
“Polythene-wrapped fish and meat degenerate a kind of heat that creates radiation which ultimately makes food poisonous,” Banyenzaki said, based on a paper prepared by the parliament research department.
“Besides, the polythene-wrapped fish, meat and vegetables get infected by anaerobic bacteria, a germ responsible for skin diseases and cancer,” he added.
Quoting nutrition experts, he warned that the use of plastic cups could cause ulcers and cancers. Plastic bags around homes, he pointed out, are breeding points for mosquitoes which spread killer diseases like malaria, dengue fever and filariasis.
The research further revealed that when polythene packing materials are burnt at temperatures which are too low, they release toxic gases like carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide and other substances which are harmful to human beings and the environment.
“Fumes from burnt polythene materials cause cancer, hypertension and diabetes,” said Banyenzaki.
The MP said that buveera cause soil degradation due to the incapability of soil bacteria to degrade the polythene materials into smaller decomposable substances. They take between 20 to 100 years to break down yet approximately one million plastic bags are added to the environment each year.
They also prevent water penetration.
Littered buveera, the MPs concluded block sewers and drainage systems.
According to the research paper, domestic production of polythene stands at about 700 tonnes per year while importation is estimated at 40,000 tonnes annually.
Statistics from the Uganda Revenue Authority indicate that importation of polythene in the country more than doubled between 2002 and 2003: from 487,058kg to 1,095,289kg.
“Available estimates indicate that one tonne of polythene generates 450,000 shopping bags. The increased domestic production, importation and use of polythene materials coupled with the current poor disposal have compounded the problem of solid waste management in the country, especially urban areas,” Banyenzaki stated.
In his motion, he calculated that the population of 1.5 million generated 14.400 kgs per day in plastic waste, yet there is no capacity to collect, clean or recycle the dumped polythene.
While seconding the motion, Ekanya said every financial year since the sixth parliament, government has renegade on its promise to ban buveera. He noted that, despite its hazards, women use buveera to light charcoal stoves and wrap food.
