‘Plastic Bag Law’ Results in 80% Drop in Use of Plastic Bags

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The law mandating charge for single-use plastic bags has led to notable reduction in their usage. According to the announcement by Israel’s Environment Protection Ministry, the plastic bag law which came into effect on January 1 last year has resulted in 80% drop in use of plastic bags during the year, thereby resulting in savings of approximately 7,100 tons of non-recyclable plastics per annum.

Prior to enactment of the law, an average Israeli citizen consumed nearly 275 bags per annum. This adds up to nearly 2 to 3 billion plastic bags across the country, causing huge threats to environment and marine life. These bags accounted for nearly three-fourths of the country’s total waste, the Ministry pointed out. However, the most recent report suggests that the total consumption of plastic bags by customers at major supermarket chains declined sharply to 378 million, as compared with 1.753 billion in 2016.

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It must be noted that the current law allows only supermarkets to charge for plastic bags, on the basis of survey results which showed that 60% of plastic bags used by consumers originate in the large supermarket chains. The Ministry is reportedly working on a new plan to achieve further reduction in single-use plastic usage by bringing more stores, including convenience stores, markets and other retail businesses, under the law. Meantime, Environmental Protection Minister Ze’ev Elkin thanked the citizens of Israel for embracing the environmental change. The thumping results will encourage the Ministry for setting ambitious future goals on reduction of plastic bags, he added.

Israel’s plastic bag law bans light weight (less than 20 microns) plastic bags from large grocery chains and enabled sale of thicker ones (between 20 and 50 microns) for a fee of 10-agorot. The law excludes bags that come into direct contact with food, such as those used for fruits and vegetables, provided they do not have handles.