China Bags Plastic Habit
by Anonymous - May 29th, 2008
It's official: China has risen above the rabble of plastic manufacturers and has boldly banned the plastic bag.
The law will kick in June 1, and will apply to bags thinner than .025 millimeters thick.
According to a survey by the China Plastics Processing Industry Association, the Chinese use up to one billion of the super thin sacks each day -- and 37 million barrels of oil a year to manufacture them.
Experts predict that once the ban goes into effect, plastic bag consumption could drop by two thirds.
The nation’s largest producer of plastic bags, Huaqiang, has already discontinued all operations.
What about the bags remaining? They'll be fitted with bar codes, and come Sunday, storekeepers will be forced to charge for them -- between 0.2 and 2 yuan (three and 30 cents).
Critics question whether the thin bag’s substitutes -- thicker plastic sacks and supposedly biodegradable ones -- will deliver any environmental or economic benefits.
And of course, enforcement of such bans is tricky in the world's largest consumer market.
You may recall Beijing's attempt to ban disposable wooden chopsticks, as Scientific American reminds us. It was too difficult to implement, and faced fierce local opposition.
Ultimately, it was dumped.
Still, no need to write off the plastic bag moratorium quite yet.
It's a commendable move. And it's always worth remembering that this is China -- America's favorite whipping boy on climate and environmental issues -- that's moving the green ball forward, again (and again and again).
Source: Scientific American
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