Other countries are waging a more aggressive war on plastic bags

Monday, 7 May 2018

Associate environment minister Eugenie Sage said in February the Government was months away from any legislation on plastic bags.

As Countdown moves to ban plastic bags in their stores, it's something supermarkets in other countries have long moved passed.

More than 40 countries across the world have taken legislative action to reduce their usage of single-use plastic bags.

Kenya's law against making or importing plastic bags has some of the harshest penalties.

But it's something the New Zealand Government has failed to enact in legislation around despite efforts stemming back to 2015.

Associate environment minister Eugenie Sage said in February the Government was looking at options, which would likely boil down to a levy or a ban, but was still months away from taking action.

* Petition calling for an end to plastic bags has gone to parliament

Plastic bags are major polluters, but New Zealand's legislative action to curb them pales in comparison to what other countries have done.

* Helen Clark joins Sam Neill, Jane Goodall in campaign urging nationwide ban on plastic bags

* The long, lonely life of a plastic bag: New Zealand's single-use bag problem**

A petition in favour of a ban reached Parliament with 65,000 signatories including former Prime Minister Helen Clark's and actor Sam Neil.

Africa

More than 15 countries in Africa have either banned plastic bags completely, or charge a tax on them. South Africa was the first country to ban the bags in 2003.

Up to 6 billion bags a year go into landfill in Western Australia, after being used for 12 minutes.

Prior to the ban South Africa declared plastic bags their 'national flower' because of how often they were seen caught on the branches of trees and bushes.

Kenyan offenders face the harshest punishments. Those producing, selling or using plastic bags could risk imprisonment of up to four years or fines of $40,000 (NZ$52,700).

Rwanda's strict rules have led to rampant smuggling of plastic bags into the country.

Reports plastic bags were being smuggled across the border from the Democratic Republic of Congo into Rwanda followed the country's 2008 plastic bag ban.

Thicker shopping bags used by retailers are often exempt from anti-plastic bag laws, except in China where a tax is imposed on them.

Border officials told The New York Times women were the most frequent smugglers, often bringing them across the border hidden in their bras and underwear.

France

In France plastic bags were banned in July 2014.

Garbage containers and rubbish bags are seen around a Parisian kiosk. The country banned single-use bags in 2014.

Thicker non-standard plastic packaging is still allowed, though most supermarkets in the country started offering paper bags (for a fee).

A law that comes into effect in 2020 will see only biodegradable plastic cutlery, cups and plates being used in the country. Critics of thelegislation have said it violates European Union rules on free movement of goods.

Australia

People sort plastic bags for recycling at a garbage dump in Bangladesh's capital, Dhaka in 2009.

Australia's two largest supermarket chains, Woolworths and Coles will stop offering plastic bags by August this year.

Tasmania was the first place in the country to ban the bag. South Australia was also a leader on the issue, enacting a 'Zero Waste' programme, which banned bags in October 2008. It estimates 400 million bags were never used, thanks to the ban.

Western Australia announced that from July 1, 2018, single-use plastic bags will be banned in the state.

Ireland

Ireland was the first country to apply a plastic bag levy in 2002. It's 15 pence (NZ32c) levy per bag led to a 90 per cent reduction in use, or one billion fewer bags used.

The tax generated $9.6 million by 2015, which was used to invest in green initiatives.

Bangladesh

Bangladesh was the first country in the world to ban certain thin plastics in 2002, after they were found to be choking the nation's drainage systems in a series of bad floods.

United Kingdom

After the UK government implemented a 5 pence (NZ10c) charge on plastic bags in 2015, it reported an 85 per cent reduction in single-use plastic bags six months later.

China

China banned plastic bags in 2008, it also prohibits businesses from giving out thicker plastic bags for free.

United States

California was the first US state to issue a plastic bag ban in 2014. San Francisco was the first city in the country to ban bags in 2007.

Cities in 24 states have now banned the plastic bag. But Michigan, Missouri, Arizona, and Idaho bucked the ban, enacting legislation that prohibited banning bags or enacting any fees or taxes on the bags.