The invention of plastics has solved many needs in our life. From industrial production to food, clothing, housing and transportation, it brings great convenience.
However, due to the improper use of plastic products and excessive reliance on disposable plastic products, nature and human beings are threatened by plastic pollution.
On December 4, Espinosa, President of the 73rd UN General Assembly, told a press conference at the UN Headquarters in New York that 80% of disposable plastic products will eventually enter the ocean, and that by 2050, plastics in the ocean will surpass fish.
The Office of the President of the United Nations General Assembly will fully support the global action against plastic pollution.
At present, countries around the world are developing biodegradable and renewable plastics that can replace disposable plastic products, or promulgating bans on the reuse of disposable plastic products.
Today, let's see which countries and regions have enacted bans since 2018.
Europe
On October 24, the European Parliament voted to ban the use of disposable plastics in order to curb the increasing pollution of plastic waste to the marine and ecological environment.
According to the proposal, the EU will ban the production and sale of disposable tableware, cotton swabs, straws and other disposable plastic products from 2021, which will be replaced by paper, straw or reusable hard plastics.
Plastic bottles will be collected separately according to the existing recycling model; by 2025, the one-time recycling rate of plastic bottles in member countries will reach 90%.
New Zealand
On August 10, the New Zealand government announced that it would gradually ban all disposable plastic shopping bags next year.
Retailers have been phasing out light plastic bags for at least six months. According to the proposal, the penalty for violators should be increased to NZ$100,000, or about 450,000 RMB.
Chile
On August 3, Chile formally promulgated the "Plastic Ban Law", which prohibits all supermarkets and shops throughout the country from supplying plastic bags to customers. Chile became the first country in Latin America to ban all businesses from supplying plastic bags to shoppers.
The "Plastic Prohibition Law" stipulates that from February 3, 2019, all large supermarkets and shopping malls shall no longer provide free or charged plastic bags to shoppers. The maximum penalty for each illegal plastic bag provided is $370. From August 3, 2020, Chile will completely prohibit plastic bags.
Mongolia
In August this year, the Mongolian government made a resolution banning the sale or use of disposable plastic bags from March 1, 2019.
The General Administration of Customs and the General Administration of Technical Supervision will supervise the resolution. The announcement a year in advance is intended to prepare the public and importers to run out of existing plastic bags.
France
On July 12, the European Times of France reported that the Paris City Council recently voted to adopt a resolution stipulating that from September, major municipal public institutions such as schools, nursing homes, stadiums and museums will gradually ban the use of plastic straws.
In France, disposable plastic bags with thickness less than 50 microns have been banned since 2016.
In addition, the French government will begin to ban all disposable tableware made of pure plastic in 2020, replaced by degradable bags and compostable bags
Australia
Since July 1, retailers in Queensland and Western Australia have been banned from offering disposable ultra-thin plastic bags to customers. Since then, only New South Wales has not imposed a plastic ban in eight districts of Australia.
According to Queensland regulations, retailers who provide disposable ultra-thin plastic bags with thicknesses not exceeding 35 microns in violation of regulations may face a huge fine of up to A$6,300 (equivalent to 30,000 yuan).
Woolworth, Australia's largest supermarket chain, has stopped offering disposable plastic bags to customers in 1,000 stores nationwide since June 20. Customers need to buy their own shopping bags or recyclable environmentally friendly plastic bags when shopping.
India
On June 5, World Environment Day, the Prime Minister of India announced plans to eliminate all disposable plastic products by 2022.
The plastic restriction order in Maharashtra, India's second most populous state, came into effect on June 23.
CNN said that after the plastic restrictions came into effect, inspectors began to appear frequently on the streets of cities, ruthlessly imposing fines on illegal businesses. On June 24, more than 80 businesses in Mumbai, the state capital alone, were fined up to 400,000 rupees.
Canada
In May, the Vancouver City Council voted to pass the Zero Waste 2040 Strategy. On June 1, 2019, local businesses were banned from distributing disposable plastic straws, foam cups and packaged lunch boxes to customers.
Vancouver has become the first city in the world to formally set up a zero waste target and a corresponding plan.
Korea
In April this year, the Korean government announced a comprehensive waste recycling management strategy, aiming to reduce the use of disposable cups and plastic bags by 35% by 2022 and reduce plastic waste by half by 2030.
In August, South Korea began to implement a ban on plastic, and some enterprises developed edible rice straws, which consisted of 70% rice and 30% cassava. The straws were smooth, firm and resilient. They could be soaked in hot drinks for 2 to 3 hours, and lasted longer in cold drinks.
At present, the single price is about 9 cents RMB. Will the straw be eaten before the drink?
Britain
In January, British Prime Minister Teresa May announced that she would spare no effort to ban plastic in all respects. In addition to imposing taxes on plastic products and increasing research and development of alternative materials, she also planned to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste by 2042, including plastic bags, beverage bottles, straws and most food packaging bags.
In addition to the government, the Queen has also expressed her strong determination to ban plastic pipes and bottles on all royal sites.
At the same time, the wave of plastic ban has swept across many fields, including catering, aviation and so on.
Starbucks said it would ban the use of plastic pipes in 28,000 stores by 2020.
McDonald's announced that its British and Irish stores will replace all plastic pipes with paper pipes from September 2018.IKEA promises to stop selling disposable plastic products by 2020 and achieve zero emissions by 2025.
In May this year, Alaska Airlines announced that it would no longer provide plastic straws and stirring rods in its cabin or lounge, instead of paper or bamboo products.
In July, American Airlines announced similar measures. Since then, United Airlines, Delta Airlines and other aviation companies have indicated that they will stop using all kinds of disposable plastic products to support the ban.
The ban not only arouses people's awareness of environmental protection, but also brings a new round of environmental business opportunities.
Starbucks announced in July this year that it will replace plastic pipettes with a new polypropylene cup cap with an opening and a suction nozzle for drinking. Compared with the plastic pipette, the new cup cover has the advantages of large volume, easy classification and easy recovery. The company expects to reduce the consumption of more than 1 billion pipettes a year.
At present, 120 million tons of disposable plastic products are produced annually, of which only 10% are recycled, about 12% are burned and more than 70% are discarded into soil, air and sea.
You know, plastics are produced from expensive oil and are discarded after one use. To exaggerate, they are worth between $8 billion and $100 billion at any time. That's money!!!
