Bali bans single-use plastics in the island
Bali island Indonesia has enacted a ban on single-use plastics such as shopping bags, styrofoam and straws in efforts to restrain pollution in its waters, reports a local daily.
With this new policy, the government envisages 70 per cent reduction in Bali’s marine plastics by 2019, announced Bali governor Wayan Koster a day earlier.
“This policy is aimed at producers, distributors, suppliers and business actors, including individuals, to suppress the use of single-use plastics,” said Koster.
“They must substitute plastics with other materials,” added Koster.
The policy, which has a six-month grace period, is already in force from 21st December. The authorities warn to penalise those who do not comply the new regulations.
“If they disobey, we will take action, like not extending their business permit,” he was quoted as saying.
Experts have estimated that 80 per cent of the trash on Bali’s beaches originated from the island itself, states the local daily.
Trash from hotels and villages is often dumped in rivers, which end up on the resort island’s beaches due to coastal tides and currents.
Indonesia last year launched a national action plan, pledging up to USD 1 billion to cut ocean waste by 70 per cent by 2025.
National or local governments in more than 40 countries around the world have imposed bans on single-use plastic bags, including the Philippines, Malaysia, India and China.