Ban on polythene bags alone not enough
<b>By Ambrose Sansa</b><br><br>In this year’s budget, finance minister Dr. Ezra Suruma sought to ban the production and importation of polythene bags less than 30 microns and slapped a 120% tax on higher micron polythenes. This non-biodegradable product is a petroleum-based product that has rece
By Ambrose Sansa
In this year’s budget, finance minister Dr. Ezra Suruma sought to ban the production and importation of polythene bags less than 30 microns and slapped a 120% tax on higher micron polythenes. This non-biodegradable product is a petroleum-based product that has recently characterised urban blocked drainage channels and landfills.
Although the ban is intended to serve environmental ends, the impact is far reaching for producers and consumers. In Kampala, polythene bags are used for packing foodstusffs. Without an immediate substitute, the ban will leave a huge gap in the ready-to-eat foods market. This may have implications on food hygiene.
The ban and tax had little to do with the environmental concerns. The two were primarily because of the need to raise more government revenue, which depicts opportunism by the policy makers to use environmental means to plug budgetary deficits.
The ban brought to the spotlight a broader problem of waste management in Kampala and other towns. Waste management problems in Uganda are largely a result of inadequate policies, guidelines and practices that would aim at improving the standards, efficiency and coverage of waste from cradle to grave. For instance, why did the budget proposal single out polythene bags as opposed to say PET bottle material, chemical and industrial waste? There is need for a comprehensive policy approach on waste management.
Experience in many countries has shown that a ban is the most effective way to deal with very light bags considering their high vulnerability to littering, single-user character, low price and poor recycling feasibility. In Rwanda, a participatory approach involving the private and public sector, consumers and other stakeholders has been put in place to rid the country of plastic bags.
Provision of information through the media has raised the level of awareness and understanding on plastic bags among the populace. A significant outcome of these efforts has been the elimination of the black plastic bags in Kigali.
In 2003, South Africa introduced a plastics legislation that sought to prevent plastic pollution, promote the repeated use of bags, and encourage the bags’ recycling.
Plastic bags thinner than 30 microns were banned while the others attracted a levy of one Rand per kilogramme. The levy was targeted at the manufacturers who were expected to pass it on to the consumers. The revenue collected was channelled to environmental projects like the establishment of a plastic bag recycling company.
In less than a year there was a significant reduction in the production of plastic bags accompanied by growth of alternative sectors, particularly canvas bags, and plastic recycling.In 2002, Ireland imposed a 15 Euro cent levy or surcharge on plastic bags provided by grocery stores and other shops. This reduced the use of plastic bags by 90%. The revenue collected goes to an Environment Fund, which planned to spend 35m Euros on recycling centres in 2003. There was a comprehensive education campaign in which pamphlets were sent to each household, outlining why the levy was being introduced, how the revenue generated would be used, and how the consumers could avoid it by using reusable bags.
The above examples demonstrate that a holistic approach that focuses on long-term behaviour modification is needed in combating plastic waste pollution. Introduction of a tax on plastic bags is not enough without a comprehensive education and awareness campaign.
It is also important that a ban on importations and use of polythene is followed with provision of alternatives.
The writer works with Environment Alert
In this year’s budget, finance minister Dr. Ezra Suruma sought to ban the production and importation of polythene bags less than 30 microns and slapped a 120% tax on higher micron polythenes. This non-biodegradable product is a petroleum-based product that has recently characterised urban blocked drainage channels and landfills.
Although the ban is intended to serve environmental ends, the impact is far reaching for producers and consumers. In Kampala, polythene bags are used for packing foodstusffs. Without an immediate substitute, the ban will leave a huge gap in the ready-to-eat foods market. This may have implications on food hygiene.
The ban and tax had little to do with the environmental concerns. The two were primarily because of the need to raise more government revenue, which depicts opportunism by the policy makers to use environmental means to plug budgetary deficits.
The ban brought to the spotlight a broader problem of waste management in Kampala and other towns. Waste management problems in Uganda are largely a result of inadequate policies, guidelines and practices that would aim at improving the standards, efficiency and coverage of waste from cradle to grave. For instance, why did the budget proposal single out polythene bags as opposed to say PET bottle material, chemical and industrial waste? There is need for a comprehensive policy approach on waste management.
Experience in many countries has shown that a ban is the most effective way to deal with very light bags considering their high vulnerability to littering, single-user character, low price and poor recycling feasibility. In Rwanda, a participatory approach involving the private and public sector, consumers and other stakeholders has been put in place to rid the country of plastic bags.
Provision of information through the media has raised the level of awareness and understanding on plastic bags among the populace. A significant outcome of these efforts has been the elimination of the black plastic bags in Kigali.
In 2003, South Africa introduced a plastics legislation that sought to prevent plastic pollution, promote the repeated use of bags, and encourage the bags’ recycling.
Plastic bags thinner than 30 microns were banned while the others attracted a levy of one Rand per kilogramme. The levy was targeted at the manufacturers who were expected to pass it on to the consumers. The revenue collected was channelled to environmental projects like the establishment of a plastic bag recycling company.
In less than a year there was a significant reduction in the production of plastic bags accompanied by growth of alternative sectors, particularly canvas bags, and plastic recycling.In 2002, Ireland imposed a 15 Euro cent levy or surcharge on plastic bags provided by grocery stores and other shops. This reduced the use of plastic bags by 90%. The revenue collected goes to an Environment Fund, which planned to spend 35m Euros on recycling centres in 2003. There was a comprehensive education campaign in which pamphlets were sent to each household, outlining why the levy was being introduced, how the revenue generated would be used, and how the consumers could avoid it by using reusable bags.
The above examples demonstrate that a holistic approach that focuses on long-term behaviour modification is needed in combating plastic waste pollution. Introduction of a tax on plastic bags is not enough without a comprehensive education and awareness campaign.
It is also important that a ban on importations and use of polythene is followed with provision of alternatives.
The writer works with Environment Alert