European Union Considering Plastic Bag Ban

More bad news for plastic! San Francisco is saying bye bye to bottles, and Chicago is considering banning bags. Now, all of Europe may be doing away with single use plastic bags. The European Union has issued a report examining the use of single-use bags.

In 2010, there were 8 billion plastic bags thrown away throughout the 28 countries that make up the EU. That works out to roughly 198 plastic bags per person, and 90 percent of these were single-use plastic bags. The report gave three possible methods for reducing plastic waste. One would be to implement programs to incent retailers to voluntarily stop distributing the bags. Another would be to levy fees for the use, and the final option would be a ban across the entire EU. After a thorough analysis of all three options, the report concluded that the one most likely to be effective is the ban.

The report closes with a recommendation to first take steps to reduce bag use to gradually help businesses and residents of the EU adapt to the changes with the law not taking effect until 2020.                                                                                            

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